Customs Changes and BESW Update

To Our Valued Customers,

We use this opportunity to update you on the new Bahamas Customs Management Software that is coming online at the end of the month – October 29th. The new initiative is part of an overall government program called the Bahamas Electronic Single Window (BESW). Our understanding is that this will eventually connect all government agencies together, allowing them to report to each other (NIB, Business License, Agriculture, Customs, VAT, Real Property Tax, etc.) and the Customs department is the first step in the process.

We are one of the first companies moving onto the system and there are still a lot of unknowns that we will be challenged with. We have begun initial training and have discovered some inconsistencies that the programmers are dealing with, and we still do not have full comprehension of the system. As we do our best to implement this new system, we ask for your patience as we work out the “kinks” with this new Customs process. We may encounter delays to the processing of Customs entries that are beyond our control, however, we will do our best to coordinate with each of you during the ramp up of this new initiative.

Thank you for your continued support over the years and we appreciate your understanding during this transition. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will endeavor to answer your questions to the best of our knowledge.

We are asking all of our customers to register with BESW over this coming week as this will become mandatory to continue clearing your goods. Please email BESW@BAHAMAS.GOV.BS. (This will replace the old system of filing a C-44 with your broker each year)

Business’ need to provide:

• Business License
• VAT Registration
• Full Name for Company Contact/Administrator
• Scan of NIB card for Administrator
• Contact Number

Personal Customers need to provide:

• Full Name
• Contact Number
• Scan of NIB Card or Permanent Resident/Work Permit Card for Non-Bahamians