National Single Window Won’t Replace Customs Formalities, Official Clarifies

By DAPO OLAWUNI

The Nigeria Customs Service has clarified that the National Single Window Project which is expected to be launched in the first quarter of year 2026 is not coming to replace Customs formalities or take away the duties and functions of the Nigeria Customs Service.

National Public Relations Officer of Customs, a Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Dr Abdullahi Maiwada stated this on Wednesday while giving a lecture at the 10th Annual Seminar for Maritime Journalists organised by First Mediacon Network Limited in partnership with the Nigerian Shippers Council in Lagos.

Dr Maiwada said the Nigeria Customs Service is fully involved in the Single Window Project, and that the service is also engaging stakeholders on the use of its trade facilitation tools in order to make their cargo clearance seamless under the Single Window Platform.

“The Nigeria Customs Service is fully involved in the National Single Window Project, the Chairman of FIRS has visited Customs more than twice, there is a high level of collaboration and engagement.

“In terms of integration, our ICT Team are working closely with the National Single Window Committee. In terms of technicalities of tariff and trade, the Customs Tariff and Trade department are equally working with the Committee.

“Recently, we had a stakeholders engagement and Townhall Meeting in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano, all were in collaboration with Customs.

“The National Single Window is not working in isolation of the Nigeria Customs Service, we are working together as a team to make sure that the vision of Mr President is achieved by first quarter of 2026. We are part of it, we are fully embedded in it, and we would continue to support that project”

Dr Maiwada lamented that stakeholders have not been taking full advantage of the trade facilitation tools including the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Advance Ruling (AR) which the service has put in place.

According to him, from July 2024 to October 2025, the total application for Advance Ruling is 198 application.

“What we need to do is to continue to engage people for them to understand the value of this Advance Ruling so that they would come and apply. We cannot force people to apply, we can only persuade them to see reasons why they should use the trade facilitation tool.
For AEO, we have 96 list , full certification 21, provisional certification is 45, and we have three months provisional period to make sure that all the teething problems are resolved” he said

Speaking on the relevance of customs formalities like the Form M, Pre-arrival Assessment Report (PAAR), Post Clearance Audit (PCA) and others, Dr Maiwada reiterated that “The National Single Window is not here to take away Customs procedures and formalities, there are technical engagement sessions between customs and Single Window Committee where we even discussed the importance of PAAR.

“The PAAR is a pre-arrival document, PCA is a Post Clearance Audit, these are Customs formalities recognised internationally by WCO, they are all standardised. The Single window is not coming to replace Customs formalities, but to bring all agencies together under one single point”