Benin BESC
The Benin Customs Officials applied a new regulation, which made all the sea cargo shipped to Benin’s Cotonou port, obliged to have a BESC certificate. Although you might be using Benin only as a sea transit, it is still mandatory for you to have a BESC. Click here to find out more on transit shipments. The BESC is an obligation for the Port of Cotonou as well as all the other ports in Benin.
The regulation got implemented in 2006. Despite being a 14-year-old regulation, some exporters are still unaware of this, and they get enormous amounts of penalties and suffer from severe consequences for not having the certificate.
What are the required documents?
- Bill of Lading: It contains details about the exporter, the importer, the weight of the goods, the shipping line, the vessel name, etc.
- Freight Invoice: This is only required if the freight cost isn’t on the commercial invoice.
- Commercial Invoice: It includes the details of the goods, the freight cost, the incoterm, and some other charges if there is any, etc.
- Export Customs Declaration: This is a document that is prepared by the Customs Officials of the exporter country and lists the goods getting transported and has a detailed description of them.
- Packing List: This document contains all the details of the goods, especially the total weight.
What will happen if you don’t have it?
You must have this certificate validated five days before the arrival at the latest or the consequences won’t be pretty. The penalty in the form of significant regulation charge determined by the Benin National Port Officials is imposed to the cargo owner.
Pricing
Certificate cost depends on the number of Bill of Ladings and the containers, the country of origin, the port of discharge, etc. This is why we can’t give you an exact price for the ECTN. But if you share your shipment’s details with us we can provide you the best charges for your certificate. We offer free quotation.
