Customs clearance
in Dubai.

Yes. Navo Shipping is registered with Dubai Customs and approved at Jebel Ali, so declarations are prepared in house rather than passed to a third party. That matters because most clearance delays are caused by handover gaps between the shipping company and an external broker.

Typically a commercial invoice, packing list, and the bill of lading or air waybill, plus a certificate of origin where the destination or a trade agreement requires it. Restricted commodities may need permits, a certificate of conformity or a pre-shipment inspection. The commodity and its HS code drive the list.

The Harmonised System code is an international classification number for goods. It determines the duty rate, whether any permit or restriction applies, and which authority has to approve the shipment. Getting it wrong is the single most common cause of clearance delays and unexpected duty.

Yes. We advise on classification based on the commodity, its composition and its use. The final declaration remains the responsibility of the importer or exporter of record, but getting the classification checked before filing avoids amendments, penalties and held cargo.

A certificate of origin states where goods were produced. It matters because preferential duty rates under trade agreements depend on origin, and some destinations require it regardless. It is usually issued or attested by a chamber of commerce.

Free zones are treated as outside the customs territory for duty purposes, so goods can be held there without duty being paid. Moving goods from a free zone into the UAE mainland is an import and triggers duty. Moving them out to another country is a re-export. Each movement is a separate customs event with its own procedure.

Re-export is sending goods out of the UAE that were previously imported into it, rather than produced there. It is common for cargo moving through Dubai as a regional distribution hub, and where duty was paid on import a refund may be available depending on the circumstances.

A deposit is a refundable sum lodged with customs on certain movements, typically temporary imports or goods leaving a free zone into the mainland pending re-export. It is released once the goods are proven to have left or been properly cleared, which is why closing out the paperwork matters.

It depends on the commodity, whether any permit or inspection is required, and whether the documentation is correct on first filing. Straightforward general cargo with complete documents clears quickly; anything requiring another authority approval takes longer. Preparing before arrival is what compresses it.

Cargo is normally held for a documentation discrepancy, a classification query, an inspection, or a missing permit. We identify which, prepare the response and file it. Holds accrue storage and demurrage while they run, so speed matters more than argument.

Some restricted commodities can be handled subject to the relevant authority approval. Food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, telecoms equipment and DG each have their own regime. Send the commodity and its intended use and we will confirm which approvals apply before you ship.

Yes. Customs clearance is available as a standalone service, including for cargo that arrived through another shipping company or carrier. We need the transport document, the commercial documents and the arrival details to begin.

A declaration that is complete, correctly classified and matched to its supporting documents clears quickly, because nothing has to be referred back. What causes delay is an HS code that does not match the goods, a value the entry cannot support, a missing permit for a regulated commodity, or a consignee name that differs between documents. Whether a shipment is selected for inspection also matters, and no agent controls that.

The importer or their agent files a declaration electronically, selecting the regime that matches what is actually happening to the goods. Duty and fees are assessed and paid, any permit from the authority regulating that commodity is attached, the shipment is either released or selected for inspection, and the delivery order is then obtained from the carrier so the cargo can leave the terminal. Preparing the declaration before the cargo lands is what keeps that sequence short.

Three separate things that are often confused. Customs duty and VAT are assessed by the authorities on the value of the goods and are not a service fee. Government declaration fees are set by Dubai Customs and vary by regime. The clearing charge is what an agent charges for preparing and filing. Storage, demurrage and inspection costs are extra and are driven by how long the cargo sits, which is the part you can actually control.

Not necessarily. A company holding its own customs registration can file its own declarations. Most use an agent because the classification, the permit requirements per commodity and the free zone procedures are where errors get expensive, and because an error found at the border costs storage as well as time. If you file your own, we can still handle the freight.

Dubai Trade is the online portal through which customs and port transactions are submitted, and Mirsal 2 is the Dubai Customs declaration system reached through it. Between them they are where a declaration is filed, assessed and released. You will see both names on the paperwork, which is why it helps to know they are the platform rather than two separate processes.

It depends what was wrong. A wrong HS code that does not change the duty is treated differently from an undervaluation that does, and penalties are set by the authorities rather than negotiated. The practical cost is usually the delay: the entry is held, the cargo accrues storage, and an amendment takes longer than getting it right first time. This is why the declaration is checked against the documents before submission rather than after.