Morocco Tightens Customs Rules to Prevent Hazardous Material Stockpiles

Moroccan parliamentarians want to avoid the Beirut tragedy, reports Akhbar Al Yaoum. The new amendment to the 2021 Finance Bill concerns Article 106 of the Customs and Indirect Taxes Code relating to abandoned goods. It stipulates that goods deemed dangerous must be removed within a maximum of one week, renewable only once. According to the amendment, this renewal can only be granted under very specific conditions.

For the authors of this amendment, the objective is to put in place a legal framework to support prevention and security measures in the ports of the kingdom. As for the products deemed dangerous, it is up to the government to list them according to well-defined criteria, we are told.

According to the parliamentarians, abandoned goods are those that have not been declared within the prescribed time limit. These are also goods that have not been removed within one month from the date of registration of said declaration and for which the duties and taxes have not been paid or guaranteed under the conditions set by the customs code.