The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) says its revenue generation has increased since the successful implementation of the Pre-Arrival Assessment Reporting System (PAARS).

According to the Division, the various stakeholders and clearing agents could now get their clearance documents processed in less than 48 hours to clear their goods at the ports.

PAARS is a modernized system that has been developed by the Customs Division of GRA as part of the implementation of the National Single Window system to enhance revenue mobilization, improve border security and customs clearance, overcome duplication across regulatory agencies and promote trade facilitation.

GRA-Customs Division in a statement released said “PAARS has helped fish out the bad eggs in their caucus, as the robust and fast system has put an end to corruption when clearing of goods comes in place”.

It said the implementation of the PAARS has received praise from importers and clearing agents across the country.

“Ghana Customs has proven critics wrong by successfully taking over operations from the Destination and Inspection Companies (DICs) and has maintained an upward integrity so far”, the Division said.

“Trade facilitation for Ghana remains the heartbeat of its development, it is key to allow for the free flow of trade and overall, the results suggest that mostly Ghana’s economy will have great benefits from the successful implementation of trade facilitation thus the need to take concrete steps towards streamlining trade procedures”, it said.

George Blankson, Commissioner General of GRA

The Division noted that efficient movement of goods is key to maintaining trade competitiveness, and enabling effective engagement of firms, in particular small and medium enterprises, with regional and global production networks.

It added that implementation of paperless trade measures will be crucial in reducing trade cost and the continuous adoption of modern information and communication technologies.

New Module Introduced

After successfully implementing the Pre-Arrival Assessment Reporting System (PAARS), the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has introduced a new module to be implementation at the various ports in the country.

The new module, called “Used Vehicle Valuation” is expected to increase transparency, save time and cost for stakeholders in the import and export business.

The Used Vehicle Valuation Module will be used by various stakeholders to obtain their Customs Clearance and Verification Report (CCVR) for their used vehicle importation into Ghana.