To fight fraud, ease flow of goods: Customs announces online clearance for airline passengers.

The innovation was announced in a communiqué, signed December 1, by the Director General of Customs, Edwin Fongod Nuvaga. 

According to the release, the online application, dubbed: Customs Cmr in English or Douane Cmr in French, will go operational come January 1, 2024. 
The creation of the app, Fongod said, is part of trade facilitation, simplification and automation of customs procedures, through a mobile non-intrusive control application carried out by the Customs Department service.

The application, the note further indicated, will be available for download on Google Play and App Store.

The app, according to the Customs Director General, will replace the traditional paper forms, which were usually handed out to travelers by airline authorities each time they had to travel. 

He went on to call on all travelers to Cameroon to do well to download the application and fill the questionnaire. 

Fongod indicated that a team at the other side of the machine will systematically validate the declarations before the arrival of travelers at airports in Cameroon.

Going by the release, passengers will be required to provide details such as: their travel number, passenger identity, passport number, goods transported and any other relevant information to ensure traceability.

An official at the Customs Department is quoted as having explained that the measure seeks to speed up Custom’s operation at the level of airports as well as fight against fraudulent activities.

The move, according to officials, aligns with government’s objectives to modernise the Customs Department and boast the procedure to fight customs fraud.

The information filed by the passenger, the same source said, is stored on the passenger’s phone and the reference number in the form of a QR code is placed on the luggage which will be remotely scanned by Customs agents upon arrival for necessary checks before such are picked up by owners.