A document known as an export license, which is issued by the administration of the shipper’s export nation, enables the licensee to take part in the export of specified commodities to particular destinations. If you want to export specific Jamaican products to other nations, you might need to obtain an export license. For those who intend to export in exchange for financial gain, an export license is more necessary. Therefore, it is not necessary to acquire an export license if you are exporting for personal or non-commercial reasons that will not result in any revenue generation.
Furthermore, you need to familiarize yourself with the Trade Board Ltd., a significant organization in the. The Trade Board is in charge of issuing import and export licenses for specific goods that might have an impact on the nation’s social, economic, and environmental elements in a way that is compliant with the international requirements of the World Trade Organization Agreement for Import Licenses. The application for an import permit must be submitted with the export license.
In the following situations, an exporter is exempt from registration requirements:
- Deliveries that are labeled as personal effects shipments or non-commercial shipments that won’t generate any income (customs form C87).
- Imported goods are intended for short-term consumption and will then be exported again (customs form C87).
- These might be goods brought in for a trade fair or racing vehicles for a race.
- Products are exported for later re-importation (customs form C87).
- An illustration of such a scenario would be returning products to a foreign manufacturer for repairs.
- Items for which duty has already been paid but have been reexported (customs form C87).
Products Requiring Import/Export Licensing
Import
The following products require import licenses in Jamaica:
- Motor Vehicles
- Firearms & Ammunition
- Hydrogen, Rare Gases, and other Non-Metals
- Sulphuric Acid, Oleum
- Propellant Powders
- Explosives
- Milk, Milk Powder, and certain concentrated extracts
- Plants and Plant extracts
- Recreational equipment
Export
Only 18 products currently need an export license in Jamaica, namely:
- Motor Vehicles
- Wood – Lignum Vitae and Logwood Only
- Plasma – in any form
- Antique Furniture
- Antique Paintings
- Eggs (N.O.P)
- Ammunition (explosives and firearms)
- Petroleum Oils
- Scrap Metal (Incl. Scrap Batteries)
- Scrap Gold/Silver
- Coffee
- Pimento
- Live animals
- Endangered Species
- Brown sugar
- Jewelry (Excluding those from earth metals)
- Ores – Minerals and metals including Bauxite, Alumina, and Gypsum
- Shells (subject to Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species administered by NEPA)
Application Requirements
- You may apply directly online using the Ministry of Agriculture Trade System (MOATS) https://www.moatrade.gov.jm/MOA/.
- The importer’s Tax Registration Number (TRN), including the branch number where applicable.
- A maximum of twenty (20) items per application form. (There is no limit on the number of applications that can be submitted at any given time).
- One (1) cheque per importer. This cheque may cover the cost of several application forms bearing the TRN of the same importer only. Payments cannot be combined on a single cheque for different TRN holders and/or permit applicants.
- Consignor information including name, address, contact number, and email address
- Total weight of goods ( stated in kilogram or pounds)
- Product information such as
- Origin
- Contact details of the processing facility
- Scientific Name of the product (where applicable)
- Upon registering to use the online service, users desiring to effect electronic payments will be required to provide an email address for receiving confirmation of their transactions.
- Automatically Generated Receipts
On completion of the application process, applicants will be provided with an automatically generated printed receipt.
Following Document Submission
The Jamaica Trade Board Ltd. will handle everything after you have turned in your documentation. The processing staff will now compare the submitted information to the data stored in their system. At this point, the Processing Officer’s primary duty is to guarantee that the exported goods adhere to export laws. Additionally, they might want to examine the potential export products. You will receive your export license if the processing officer determines that your application, supporting documents, and export product are in good order. You should also be aware that the Trade Board will not process applications that are not complete. Once all necessary supporting documents have been received and the application fee has been paid, the Trade Board considers the application to be finished.
