Dubai Customs enhances Logistics Services at Dubai Logistics City to Aid Earthquake Victims

Dubai – 2 March 2023: Dubai Customs is currently focused on further improving the customs services available to passengers, tourists, and cargo at various locations throughout Dubai, including airports, cruise terminals, and Dubai Logistics City. This effort aims to support the growth of foreign trade, tourism, and travel, and to help achieve Dubai's economic goals by enhancing its reputation as a global hub for tourism and travel.

As part of the ongoing field tour program, His Excellency Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director-General of Dubai Customs and CEO of Ports, Customs, and Free Zone Corporation, visited the passenger operations customs center, as well as the air cargo customs center at Al Maktoum Airport. Additionally, he visited the inspection center in Dubai Logistics City.

During his visit, Musabih had the opportunity to meet with employees at each location and learn firsthand about the progress being made in the development of customs services provided to passengers at Al Maktoum International Airport, tourists on cruise ships, and private aviation terminals in Dubai South. He also gained insights into the progress underway in customs services provided to the cargo movement and facilities in the Logistics City.
Walid bin Darouish, Manager of the Passenger Operations Customs Center at Al Maktoum Airport, highlighted the center's accomplishments. He reported that in 2022, the airport terminal provided customs services and facilities to 4,362 flights, including 804 flights to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. In January 2023, the center handled 183 flights. Al Maktoum International Airport receives flights from various international cities such as Sochi, Berlin, Frankfurt, Nicosia, Moscow, Bucharest, Budapest, Milan, Rome, Düsseldorf, and Salalah.

Darouish provided details on the operations of the passengers' customs center at Al Maktoum Airport, stating that in 2022, the center handled 7,489 private jet flights and 653 in 2023. Last year, the center completed 668 customs transactions, and 21 transactions in January 2023. The center completed 12 seizure reports last year. He emphasized that continuous improvements in service quality are essential for efficiently handling increasing numbers of flights and passengers, while speeding up customs inspection and clearance procedures in the future.

Sami Issa, Manager of the Inspection Center at Dubai Logistics City, pointed out that the center processed approximately 147,000 customs declarations in 2022 and successfully completed 12 customs seizures. The Dubai Logistics City Inspection Center coordinates with Dubai South to develop a mechanism that facilitates the delivery of relief shipments from the International Humanitarian City to earthquake-affected countries. The center activated monitoring screens in the operations room to improve the performance of transporting the International Humanitarian City's shipments. The center enhanced the quality and speed of customs services provided for relief shipments heading to earthquake-affected countries.

Khalfan Jumaa, Inspection Manager at the Al Maktoum Cargo Customs Center, said the center completed 146,854 customs transactions for goods weighing 195,973 tons in 2022. These transactions were divided into 60,873 customs transactions for exports, consisting of goods weighing 84,160 tons, 60,649 customs transactions for imports, consisting of goods weighing 81,788 tons, and 25,332 customs transactions for re-exports, consisting of goods weighing 30,025 tons. The number of seizures completed was 14, and there were 858 false declaration violations.

Ahmed Mahboub Musbah said, "We are committed to improving the level of customs services provided at Dubai airports to offer exceptional facilities for tourists and passengers on their journeys through the emirate's airports. We have provided passengers with the smart iDeclare app, which allows passengers coming to Dubai to disclose in advance the goods, personal baggage and gifts, coins, and cash they are carrying. The application also provides the feature to request the completion of incoming transactions before arrival in the country, shortening their crossing time through the red path to complete customs procedures in less than four minutes. The second stage of system development will activate the artificial intelligence feature, enabling the application to recognize goods intended to be disclosed by simply capturing a picture and then providing the code and determining the payable customs duties."

He added, "At the Dubai Logistics City center, we are consistently improving the skills of our customs staff to provide top-notch customs services to our clients. Presently, we are responding to the urgent need to speed up the delivery of relief shipments from the International Humanitarian City to countries affected by earthquakes. Our customs services are crucial in ensuring that the much-needed relief materials reach those in need promptly. Moreover, we offer customs services of the highest quality and efficiency to traders and passengers at the air cargo center and passenger operations center in Al Maktoum International Airport. During the 2022 FIFA World Cup, our passenger operations center played a significant role in facilitating the movement of passengers and football fans. We also enable private aviation companies in the Dubai South area to move their flights with ease, supporting business travel and private aviation users and reinforcing Dubai's pivotal role as a global and regional hub for private aviation.”