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Destination Inspection
Products and Commodities inspection at the port of entry
Overview
Destination inspection-is a conformity assessment and Certification of imported goods at the port of entry, for goods coming from countries that KEBS does not have an appointed inspection agent. All goods arriving at the port of entry without Certificates of Conformity (CoCs) and don’t qualify for exemption as are per legal notice 78 are also subjected to destination inspection in order to establish their compliance to the requirements of relevant Kenya Standards or approved specifications.
Application for local CoC/CoR
A Certificate of Conformity (CoC) is a certified document issued by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), which assures that commodities have met the required standards & specifications. When a consignment arrives in Kenya without a CoC, indicating that the consignment was inspected at the country of origin, an importer is required to obtain a local CoC. The certificate is only issued after successful inspection & verification of the consignment is carried out by KEBS.
Import Inspection, Certification And Clearance Procedure
i. Procedure for quality inspection of goods at the port of entry
- The importers/clearing agents are required to submit import documents through the single window system.
- Kebs officers review the submitted documents to determine the nature of consignment. i.e whether goods are regulated by other government agencies, are accompanied with a valid manufacturer’s exemptions, Goods under Diamond Mark of Quality (Dmark) scheme, goods with ministerial waivers, goods under the PR scheme, and goods manufactured and certified by the east Africa Community (EAC) countries.
- Importer of goods subjected to destination inspection are required to pay applicable inspection fees as per the imports inspection fees schedule and execute a bond of the same amount in favour of KEBS.
- KEBS inspectors undertake verification at the port of entry and generate an inspection report.
- Samples may be drawn and submitted to KEBS laboratories for analysis against the relevant Kenya standards or approved specifications as may be appropriate.
- KEBS OICs shall forward inspection report and/ or laboratory test report to KEBS Head of Inspection for determination of conformity to requirements of relevant Kenya Standards or approved specification.
- KEBS Head of Inspection in consultation with the Director- QA&I and the MDs office will communicate the final decision based on the reports referred in above to KRA and the importer.
ii. Import Inspection documents
- Unique Consignment Reference -UCR (mandatory).
- Proforma invoice (mandatory).
- Packing list (mandatory).
- Import Declaration Form (IDF).
- Copy of product technical specification from the manufacturer (if available)
- Manual / operating instructions (where applicable). The manual/instruction shall include English or Swahili translation
- Production data (i.e., Batch size and number, Name of manufacturer, Date of manufacture /Expiry
- Test reports from recognized laboratory tested against applicable standard.
iii. Inspection of goods under product registration scheme
This is a scheme designed to support destination inspection by easing the clearance process and facilitate trade. Goods under the PR scheme entering the country from countries where KEBS has appointed PVOC are subjected to destination at the same inspection fees as would have been charged by the PVOC partner at the country of origin.
iv. Used footwear and textiles products.
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v. Processing and clearing of goods
- If consignment showed compliance, a Certificate of Compliance (CoC) will be issued for clearance of goods.
- Importers/ Clearing agents of compliant goods shall present customs approved entries to KEBS Officers at the port of entry for final release provided the declared values and customs approved value are same. If there is any value uplift by Customs, then the importer/ clearing agent shall make additional payment of 5% destination inspection fee on the difference between the approved value and the initially declared value.
- For compliant goods, the bond executed by the importer shall be cancelled
vi. Handling of rejected /non-compliant goods
- Non-compliance Consignment are issued with a non-compliance report and is denied entry into the country.
- Importers of rejected goods shall be expected to re-ship the goods back to the country of origin at their own cost within KEBS stipulated timeline.
- All rejected goods not re-shipped within 30 days from the date of rejection are destroyed by KEBS at the importers expense.
- Importers of goods destroyed by KEBS shall forfeit their bonds.
vii. How to avoid rejection of imports upon inspection for quality
The importer should inform his supplier about the requirements of the Kenya Standard(s) covering the commodity he intends to import. He should enter an agreement with the supplier that if the product does not meet the requirements of the relevant Kenya Standard(s) when inspected at the port of entry in Kenya , it will be shipped back to the country of origin at the supplier’s cost.
The importer has a responsibility to purchase the applicable Standards and ensure that goods imported are compliant to the requirements of the standard. Standards may be purchased at the Kenya Bureau of Standards Head Office in Nairobi or at the KEBS Regional Offices in Mombasa, Kisumu and Eldoret or from KEBS webstore
viii. Processing and clearing of Motor vehicles, spare parts and mobile equipment
Pursuant to the provisions of Legal Notice No.78 of 28th April 2020; All new motor vehicles and new mobile equipment are exempted from PVOC requirements on condition that they are accompanied with a Manufacturer’s warranty or type approval Certificate. Therefore, new motor vehicles and mobile equipment are cleared based on provision of a valid Manufacturer’s warranty or type approval Certificate.
Used Motor vehicles, Motor vehicle spares and Mobile equipment
KEBS has contracted Quality Inspection Services Inc. Japan (QISJ) to offer inspection and Certification services of Used Motor vehicle, mobile equipment’s and spare parts of coming into the country from Japan, UAE, Thailand, Singapore, South Africa and UK. Vehicles exported to Kenya from these countries are required to be inspected and comply with the requirements of KS 1515:2000 – Kenya Code of Practice for Inspection of Road Vehicles and should be accompanied with a Certificate of Roadworthiness (COR) issued by (QISJ).Used Motor Vehicle , spares and mobile equipment from countries where KEBS does not inspect
Vehicle found to be non-compliant with the requirements of KS1515 are issued with a non-conformity Report (NCR) and are required to be reshipped to the country of supply or destroyed at the importers expense.
Countries whose goods are to be inspected at the destination
Goods from these countries are to be exempted from the PVoC and are to be inspected at the port of entry:
| Zone No. | Zone | Countries |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indian Subcontinent | Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal |
| 2 | Far East | North Korea |
| 3 | Australia, New Zealand and Polynesia Islands | Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Polynesia Islands, Samoa |
| 4 | Ex-Soviet Union Republics | Estonia, Latvia |
| 5 | Eastern Europe | Albania, Bosnia- Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Romania |
| 6 | Nordic Countries | Iceland |
| 7 | Middle East | Israel |
| 8 | Maghreb Countries | Algeria, Morocco, Western Sahara |
| 9 | North Africa | Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, Sudan, Tunisia |
| 10 | West Africa | Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cote D’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo |
| 11 | Central Africa | Angola, Central Africa Republic, Congo Brazzaville, DRC, Gabon |
| 12 | Southern Africa | Botswana, Madagascar, Malawi, Seychelles, Zambia, Zimbabwe |
| 13 | United Kingdom and Ireland | United Kingdom and Ireland |
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