Strengthening control and supervision of luggage of people on entry

Officials of the Entry Luggage Customs Procedure Team, Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch check baggage through a scanning machine. Photo: T.Dịu

Specifically, recently, the General Department of Vietnam Customs requested Hanoi Customs Department and the HCM City Customs Department to direct the international airport border gate customs branch under their control to strengthen the control and supervision of luggage of people on entry.

Furthermore, Customs Branches needed to strengthen to review information in advance for flights on entry from Europe, the US, Japan, and South Korea to screen individuals and groups of passengers carrying large amounts of luggage for inspection and strict control when carrying out customs procedures.

During the supervision process, if detecting more than unclaimed 5 pieces of checked baggage on the conveyor belt, the units should arrange for customs officers to check the number of luggage tags in the entry aircraft file.

If the baggage is unclaimed and not on the entry flight list, the customs authority will make a record for the airline due to failing to declare customs declaration information for the entry aircraft.

In addition, the General Department of Vietnam Customs also requested the international airport border gate customs branch to strengthen online supervision to monitor the entire terminal while implementing customs procedures for key flights.

Moreover, monitoring by camera for critical areas in the terminal, such as the loading and unloading area of checked baggage from the means of transport brought from the aircraft on entry to the conveyor system to return luggage to passengers.

In case of detecting the behavior of not putting luggage on the conveyor belt for screening, the customs authority should take pictures and coordinate with the airport authority to handle it. Conducting customs seal and putting in the warehouse to store and send the list of abandoned and lost luggage of key flights provided by airlines, scan and take pictures of the scanned images to send to General Department of Vietnam Customs; the return of lost luggage must be supervised by Customs authority.

The General Department of Vietnam Customs also requires customs units to coordinate with the airport authority to arrange entry and exit gates for operation units which have direct contact with incoming and outgoing aircraft (meals, cleaning, mechanics) at the place where scanners are installed to scan all equipment and tools of the individuals and units as mentioned above. In this area, a surveillance camera is connected to the Customs office.

In addition, the General Department of Vietnam Customs also requested the above two customs units to review the entire surveillance camera system of Customs at the airport, clearly report each damaged camera, and propose alternative solutions to the General Department of Vietnam Customs. If a violation occurs or is used to smuggle or illegally transport goods across the border in areas where surveillance cameras are damaged, it shall be handled following the law.