The Ministry of Finance of Costa Rica and the United States Department of Homeland Security signed a memorandum to strengthen customs cooperation between the two countries through the exchange of information, risk analysis, and the prevention of smuggling and other transnational customs crimes.
The agreement, in effect since its signing on September 22, establishes a framework for sharing information related to cargo manifests and means of transport used in maritime, air and land operations. Among the data that can be exchanged are information about the sender and recipient, the description and weight of the goods, containers and customs declaration numbers.
As part of this cooperation, the U.S. authorities will provide the General Directorate of Customs with selected information from cargo manifests and will be able to alert when the information from Costa Rica matches cargo or entities identified as high-risk. Technical assistance is also envisaged to strengthen national manifest analysis capabilities.
For its part, the General Directorate of Customs will provide information on national cargo manifests and must ensure compliance with the confidentiality standards established for the processing of the data exchanged.
The measure seeks to strengthen the mechanisms for risk control and management in international trade operations and, at the same time, contribute to the security and facilitation of the supply chain between the two countries.