Guatemala

The procedure will start at the import window of the Ministry of Agriculture, through the electronic platform SIGIE. The documents required, depending on the type of product may include: the phytosanitary or sanitary certificate or corresponding export certificate, commercial invoice, bill of lading, certificate of free sale, packing list, and certificate of origin (applied for re-exported products). To receive an import permit, an application form with the above-mentioned forms must be submitted electronically along with a fee that ranges between US$ 1.25 and US$ 31.00, depending on the type of product. Before the e-platform was launched, import permits took 24 hours, now, it’s a matter of 10-20 minutes.

Present tariffs applying per import permits are:

• Animal origin products: $6.25
• Canned animal products: $6.25
• Plant origin products: $31.25
• Processed plant products: $1.25

For processed foods and all products of animal origin, the import window of the Ministry of Health will require that the application be signed and stamped by Food Control. This is done to verify that the product has a sanitary registration number. If it is a sample to be registered, Food Control will also require a Free Sale Certificate to process the request. These certificates are generally issued by state health or agricultural departments and certify for wholesomeness. Under the new U.S. Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), FDA is also issuing these types of certificates. The application and certificates are received in the offices of Food Control (zone 8). Office hours are from 07:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday. Food Control also has an on-line platform for registration, SNRSA-G, which is presently undergoing revision and improvements.

Food Control and MAGA will authorize the import permit. At the same time, the Customs Authority (SAT) will analyze the Declaration of Import Goods electronically submitted by the importer and will define the risk category of the product according to customs records (importer’s history, valuation, origin, and applicable taxes, etc.). It is important that all quantities in all the documents match, if not, clearing customs will be a major problem. Do not add boxes to a container once the documentation has been totaled, and always make sure that the totals on the phytosanitary or sanitary certificate equal the exact amount on the invoice. If there is any discrepancy, the container will be held, and clearance will be extremely difficult. This creates a significant problem to the importer, as sometimes samples not listed or notified are included in the shipment, delaying the whole cargo for weeks until a Certificate of Free Sale arrives, or the decision to destroy the undeclared products is made. It is important to note that a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) system still applies for various commodities, with a five to 20-year phase-out period under CAFTA-DR. Please visit the Foreign Commerce Administration Directorate (DACE) at the Ministry of Economy web site for detailed information on TRQ administration in Guatemala. After the import certificate has been issued, this document is provided, along with all the abovementioned documents, to the customs official. The importer then pays duties to the Customs Authority under the Tax Superintendence SAT. Duty payment is done in the form of a deposit at either of the two banks that are approved, and the deposit slip becomes the proof of payment.

Once at port of entry, the product will also be inspected by the Inter-Regional Organization for Plant and Animal Health (OIRSA). This is a regional inspection entity in Central America that has been delegated the responsibility of quarantine actions at customs points of entry by the Ministries of Agriculture of the region. Whether the imported product comes by air, land or sea, inspectors from OIRSA will be on site to perform a visual inspection of the imported products before authorizing release from customs. OIRSA might decide to take samples for quarantine pests, especially in the case of raw agricultural products and coarse grains. After the laboratory diagnostic is reported, fumigation might be required. It is recommended to request an «in-transit fumigation certificate», to reduce the chances of OIRSA spraying shipments with methyl bromide. In the case of OIRSA taking samples of the product, and if it is a processed product or fresh produce not intended for planting, please immediately notify the FAS Guatemala office to avoid unnecessary delays for laboratory analysis. OIRSA will also inspect thoroughly for the treated wood pallet symbol (see Figure 8), which is called the International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures # 15 or ISPM-15 rule of the IPPC, intended to avoid spreading of wood pests in international trade. If even one wooden pallet is identified without the ISMP-15 symbol, all the cargo will be unloaded to search for other nonmarked pallets and the cold chain might be interrupted. In this last case, shipment will be on hold for additional 3-days, waiting for treatment of the pallets. Some importers take photos of the pallets for verification purposes, in case of questions later, but it is not required.