Everything you need to know about Siscomex and how to access it

Trading products abroad is not as difficult as it seems. By implementing the right processes, importing and exporting can be hassle-free. However, this type of trading was not always as accessible as it is today.

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Until the end of the 1990s, the register and control of these negotiations were carried out in a much more backward way: on paper. The problem with this type of method is that, to finish an import, for example, it was necessary to fill in several forms with carbon copies.

From 1997, the register of imports in Brazil started to be done by SISCOMEX Importação. In 2012, this system was updated to SISCOMEX Importação Web, a single flow of information that enables all stakeholders, both public and private, to enter information and statements in successive stages, according to the established flowchart, thus standardising procedures.

The information provided is unique and therefore everyone has the same view. The one in charge of explaining how SISCOMEX works is Wilson Sons Agency and Shipping Specialist, Monica Baldo.

Keep reading to know more!

What is Siscomex

The Single Foreign Trade Portal is an initiative of the Federal Government, which reformulated the import, export and customs transit processes. Thus, the Integrated Foreign Trade System (SISCOMEX) was developed, an integration system used exclusively for foreign trade operations in the country.

In addition, through integration, all information on activities related to exports and imports is combined. Baldo explains the structure of the system:

“There are several subsystems that make up SISCOMEX, such as SISCOMEX Carga (maritime and river movement data), SISCOMEX Mantra (information on movements by air), SISCOMEX Trânsito (creation and management of movements via DTA – Customs Transit Declaration, or DTT — Transfer Transit Declaration), SISCOMEX Exportação (currently replaced by the Single Portal)”, says the specialist.

The main purpose of the SISCOMEX Portal is to simplify legal processes for the commercialization of Brazilian goods with the completion of documents and steps and reduction of government requirements.

Thus, Brazil is now on par with the more developed countries, providing great benefits in reducing time and money, which consequently improves the competitiveness of national goods abroad.

In view of all benefits provided to companies in the sector and to Brazil in the foreign market, it is extremely important to be aware of the operation of the system and take advantage of all government facilities.

Siscomex pillars

The Integrated Foreign Trade System is based on three important pillars:

• Integration of Intervening Parties.
• Redesign of Processes.
• Information Technology.

Based on these pillars, the goal is to simplify the integration of intervening parties, reformulating and updating processes based on the development of associated technological means, as well as of the systems in charge of their management.

Check below a detailed description of each of the pillars introduced above:

Integration of Intervening Parties

The first level of integration between those operating in foreign trade was prepared with the participation of government and the private service intervening parties.

At the second level, the goal was to integrate and adapt foreign trade procedures, information and document requirements. That is, with the integration of government agencies and private intervening parties by means of a system, duplications and physical documents that were required could be eliminated.

The connection between government agencies is an addition that enables sharing of activities with more predictability for agents. This progress is the result of the integration of intelligence with the sharing of data between operators, associated with the use of constant resources and management tools.

The goal in this case is the development of intelligence systems capable of finding irregularities in executions based on legal and fiscal parameters, ranging from tax illegalities to violation of technical and environmental regulations.

For exporting companies, the great benefit is the improvement of the risk management system, with better high-risk operational performance. This promotes growth of competence in foreign trade mechanisms, as well as reduction of costs for private companies involved as well as for the government.

The third level deals with the integration between computer-based systems. This was a great evolution, considering that previously, the systems of foreign trade were not able to integrate other information systems, as they were not compatible with each other.

Integration of systems seeks to strengthen SISCOMEX’s main purpose of being, in the words of specialist Monica Baldo: “An administrative instrument that integrates activities such as recording, monitoring and controlling foreign trade operations through a flow of information, computerised and unique”.

Redesign of processes

Foreign trade progress has generated different needs for government control over time by adding new procedural steps. However, they were not always in sync with the general export or import method.

The agglomeration of such stages added to the growth of flows in the control of goods generates bottlenecks, delays and unpredictability for transactions, increasing costs: a serious cascading effect problem that harms workers, companies and public agencies.

Such a disorderly situation requires a huge amount of work to redesign the process, involving everyone’s participation. The mapping of these processes, together with the need for real data and documents, will enable an analysis of the export and import scenario, making it possible to find flaws and provide improvements.

It is in these situations that processes are remodelled, seeking more efficiency and the exclusion of unnecessary steps and impositions.

Information technology pillar

The third pillar is the computerization of processes that were restructured, using more modern and advanced technological resources.

New means will be created to facilitate management of information flows. Several of the modern systems will be updated with integration solutions to allow data sharing (even old ones) with other systems.

In addition, the insertion of data for external users will be unified, according to the idea of “single window”.

It is essential to point out that users will only be able to access the SISCOMEX Portal if they have a digital signature and digital certificate generated in the domain of the Brazilian Public Key Infrastructure — ICP-Brazil.

How to access Siscomex

In order to ensure the use of SISCOMEX web, the Brazilian Internal Revenue Service determines some provisions, in which the importer or exporter taxpayer must comply with some items, as described below.

Digital certificate

The digital certificate must be made available by a qualified certifying authority, company or body with an active registration with the Brazilian Internal Revenue Service for the delivery, issuance, renewal or revocation of digital certificates “e-CPF” (for individuals) or “e-CNPJ” (for legal entities).

Qualification

Qualification of the company or person wishing to operate in foreign trade must be registered with the Brazilian Internal Revenue Service and accredited by that body to access the SISCOMEX web.

After completing his registration, the user will be able to connect to the guiding package, which is related to his/her profile, and to the emulator, which is granted by an exclusive website, controlled by the Brazilian Internal Revenue Service.

Registering on Siscomex web

To register on the SISCOMEX web access page, the importer or exporter user, already in possession of the digital certificate, needs to access the link SAS SISCOMEX Web Access and add their data in accordance with the website requirements.

Accessing Siscomex web

Based on your data, the SISCOMEX web system will provide all items relevant to your business to be installed on your computer. After the software is installed, a window will request the user’s credentials, through their digital certificate, before opening the SISCOMEX web system login window.

Having the digital certificate and fully registered with the Brazilian Internal Revenue Service, the importer or exporter taxpayer should only click on the link SISCOMEX Importação Web or SISCOMEX Exportação Web. From there, it is necessary to provide the credentials of the digital certificate. The home page will be displayed in the SISCOMEX web environment.

What are the bodies interconnected by Siscomex Importação Web

The bodies that make up SISCOMEX are separated into three classes: managers, consenting parties and users. Find out below who makes up each group:

Managers

• Central Bank of Brazil (Bacen);
• Internal Revenue Service;
• Foreign Trade Department.

Consenting Parties

• Bank of Brazil (BB);
• National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN);
• Federal Police Department (DPF);
• Department of Foreign Trade Operations (DECEX);
• National Department of Fuels (DNC);
• Brazilian Institute of Cultural Heritage (IBPC);
• Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA);
• Ministry of Aeronautics;
• Ministry of Agriculture and Supply;
• Ministry of Science and Technology;
• Ministry of Health;
• Ministry of the Army;
• Secretariat for Strategic Affairs of the Presidency of the Republic (SAE/PR);
• Base Products Department (SPB).

Users

• Bodies of direct and indirect administration, intervening in foreign trade;
• Financial institutions qualified to operate in foreign exchange, with access to the Central Bank Information System (SISBACEN);
• Financial institutions approved by the Foreign Trade Department to issue import authorization;
• Individuals and legal entities working in foreign trade, such as depositories, exporters, importers, transporters and their legal representatives.

Siscomex import and export processes

According to Baldo, the import process is currently carried out by SISCOMEX Importação — a system that allows users to perform activities restricted to the profile in which they are qualified and related to administrative treatment and customs clearance for imports, such as:

• Request for Import License (LI);
• Import Declaration Registration (DI).

“Some functions are already being tested on the Single Portal to be migrated to this platform in the future”, she adds.

Export

During export, the clearance of cargo to be shipped is carried out, and such operations are covered by the DUE (Single Export Document), an electronic file that contains customs, administrative, commercial, financial, tax, fiscal and logistical information, and which characterises the export operation of the goods supported by it, in addition to defining the framework of this operation.

After shipment and after a period of 8 days, as long as the cargo information is declared in CE Mercante (Bill of Lading) and in the same way as the DUE, the annotation will be automatically carried out through the Single Portal.

However, this only occurs if everyone in the flow has done their part in the process, in a simplified way, and deadlines are met (maximum of 7 days after the end of the operation). Remembering that it is necessary to generate the DUE before the cargo is shipped. Check out more details about each member of the process below:

• Exporter: clears cargo to be shipped and has all the necessary approvals;
• Agent/Shipowner: records CE Mercante in the DUE the information related to the shipment;
• Trustee: delivers cargo to the CNPJ of the operating agent representing the shipowner (even if it has registered CE Mercante);
• Port Operator: records Bill of Lading attesting the cargo actually shipped.

How did it happen before Siscomex?

Processes were extremely bureaucratic and required the provision of numerous documents. SISCOMEX, initially developed for export cargo, required the exporter to perform an export registration (RE), which identified the cargo and other relevant data

Such records were compiled in Dispatch Requests (SD) or Export Declaration (DDE) and could be one or more RE for each SD or DE.

After shipment, it was up to the agent (representative) to forward a copy of export manifests and execute the registration of loads actually shipped in SISCOMEX Exportação (SD or DDE) related to each bill of lading, aiming at registering the cargoes with the RFB.

Upon importation, the cargo to be nationalised was registered, and various corresponding documents were presented for inspection approval. In the case of importation, shipowners’ agents (representatives) had to forward printed manifests of all ships, as well as their translation, according to the standard model for each bill of lading.

Advantages of the Siscomex system

The decision to use SISCOMEX, which enables government management and inspection of Brazilian imports and exports, prompts the need to make the process more efficient, skillful and consistent.

In an efficient and volatile market, too much rework can be irremediable and lead a company to operational ruin. For this reason, it is essential that responsible directors, who are concerned with leveraging resources (human, time and money), should be aware of management technology. And Baldo insists on reinforcing:

“We have information, time optimization, digitalization of documents, agility in service, more security, database creation, control of operations, monitoring of operations and better management of risks.”

When using a system integrated with SISCOMEX, activities involving exports will likely improve their performance a lot. We will talk more about the benefits of technology integration below.

Reduction of bureaucracy

In the SISCOMEX Portal, procedures related to administrative processes are minimised, and the importer or exporter’s operation becomes more simplified, since all actions are organised in a single system. For example, if you need to verify some data, you can do it faster.

Development of database

Because all information is found in the portal, a database referring to foreign trade is automatically created. Thus, the government can review performance indexes or pull out statistics. The Brazilian Internal Revenue Service has better financial control regarding operations that take place at Brazilian borders and ports.

Digitalization of documents

Several paper documents have lost their place to more technological (digital) versions, for example: the electronic tax note.

In the foreign trade scenario, where there is a large amount of documents, digitization prevents important records from being damaged or lost over time.

Control of illegal operations

Information contained in the existing database on the SISCOMEX Portal allows the government to map foreign trade negotiations and then recognize possible illegal actions.

Follow-up of operations

With the integrated system, the customs agent is able to follow each step of the import and export procedures quickly. Thus, it will always be aware of the latest version of the process and will be able to keep the customer informed about the status of the operation.

One of the benefits of this is being able to maintain a transparent relationship between the customs broker and the importer or exporter, in which he is providing services. 

Who should use Siscomex?

Generally, the main users of SISCOMEX Importação Web are importers through customs agents. In this case, they end up being their legal representatives, servants of the Foreign Trade Department, the State Treasury Departments, the Internal Revenue Service, consenting bodies and legal representatives of Trustees.

Qualification to use the Siscomex Portal

It is necessary to have a qualification at Radar to use the tools in the SISCOMEX system. But what is this all about anyway?

It refers to the Registration and Tracking of the Operation of Customs Interveners, the system that gathers information related to foreign trade. Each person carrying out commercial negotiations with a foreigner, whether importing or exporting, is required to have this qualification.

To obtain it, it is necessary to file an application at an Internal Revenue Service unit. Both individuals and legal entities can apply.

Certification at Radar ensures that the importer or exporter carries out procedures in accordance with legal requirements. As it enables the use of the SISCOMEX Portal, it is possible to reduce administrative costs and access procedures with less bureaucracy, in addition to all the benefits that we highlighted above.

There are four types of qualification:

• Radar for individuals: for those who need to import for their own consumption or for collectors. Foreign trade procedures for carrying out professional work, such as artists, artisans and rural producers.
• Express radar: for those who carry out imports worth up to U$50k per semester, or who intend to export without value limits.
• Limited radar: for those who want to import goods worth between U$50k and U$150k per semester.
• Unlimited radar: for taxpayers who import an amount above U$150k per semester.

Achieving certification at Radar is free of charge. However, the request can be complex, as it involves bureaucratic measures, administrative mechanisms and the submission of documents. It is necessary to be very careful, as a small mistake can lead to the rejection of your request.

What are the regulatory bodies of Siscomex?

Among the important bodies of the Ministry of Economy, we can highlight the Internal Revenue Service Department (SRF), whose responsibilities, in addition to collecting taxes, are the organisation, execution and supervision of federal tax management activities.

The Central Bank of Brazil is one of the bodies that make up the National Financial System and, with regard to foreign trade, coordinates and supervises exchange procedures related to international operations carried out by Brazilian companies.

The Special Department for Foreign Trade and International Affairs (SECINT) has the fundamental role of taking care of the development policy of the Brazilian industry, with the purpose of regulating and carrying out programs to promote foreign trade. Within this department, we can highlight the Foreign Trade Chamber (Camex) and the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex).

How Wilson Sons helps companies that use Siscomex

Baldo guarantees that, with teams trained and able to use the systems correctly and within due time, they are able to provide customs clearance, as well as shipment inputs.

On export, it is up to the agent (representative of the foreign shipowner) to ensure the registration and updating of CE’s (Bills of Lading), registration of shipments and registration of onboard supply, which also generates the annotation.

On import, the correct and timely declaration of CE’s avoids blockages and facilitates the clearance and nationalisation of cargo.

To conclude, SISCOMEX is a system that a few years ago emerged to improve administrative processes for international trade in Brazil, whether exporting or importing. It simplified the demands of customs brokers and made the process faster and more efficient. This was extremely important so that, over the years, more and more organisations could return to the international market. By the way, see also how Wilson Sons port intelligence works!