The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has introduced new validation requirements for vehicle registration plates and container numbers captured during Customs processing, as part of efforts to improve cargo identification and strengthen the accuracy of Customs declarations.
The changes have been implemented in the Automated System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA) under the Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) Upgrade Project. According to URA, the enhancements are intended to ensure that scanned cargo images are correctly matched to the relevant Customs declarations and that vehicle and container identifiers are accurately captured throughout the clearance process.Under the new requirements, vehicle plate numbers must be entered as continuous combinations of letters and numbers, without spaces, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters.
For example, a plate displayed as “UBD 123 A” must be entered into the system as “UBD123A,” with the sequence of characters remaining exactly as displayed on the physical vehicle.URA has also introduced separate fields for recording front and rear vehicle registration numbers at the point of departure. Customs officials and other stakeholders will be required to capture the registration appearing on each plate in its respective field, with both entries subject to the same requirement for continuous alphanumeric characters.The new validation requirements also apply to shipping containers, whose identification numbers must be captured in accordance with the internationally recognised ISO 6346 structure.
A standard container number comprises three letters identifying the owner or operator, one equipment-category letter, six serial-number digits and a final check digit.URA has directed that the entire container identification number be entered as one continuous alphanumeric value. For instance, a container marked “ABCU 123456 7” should be captured as “ABCU1234567,” without spaces, hyphens or other special characters. The authority stressed that no character should be omitted, substituted, rearranged or incorrectly entered.Clearing agents, freight forwarders, transporters and other affected stakeholders have consequently been urged to verify vehicle and container identifiers carefully before submitting Customs documents.
Vehicle numbers appearing on declarations, T1s and Exit Notes must correspond with the actual vehicle presented for Customs processing, while container numbers should be checked against the physical container or relevant shipping documents.URA said strict adherence to the new requirements will help reduce identification errors, improve the matching of inspection images with Customs declarations and enhance the efficiency of cargo clearance. Stakeholders have therefore been advised to ensure that all vehicle plate and container numbers are captured completely and accurately to avoid complications arising from incorrect entries.
