SEPANG: Airfreight forwarders will no longer be required to submit documentation in person to the Customs Department from Jan 1, with the process going fully digital.
Airfreight Forwarders Association of Malaysia (AFAM) chairman Thomas Mathew, who revealed this, said the department was carrying out trials for the Malaysian Customs Import Export Documentation System (MyCIEDS).
"The system was introduced in Port Klang for maritime freight forwarders about two years ago and it is now being expanded to airfreight forwarders.
"Trials began about two months ago at KLIA and other airports in the country," he said when met at the Anti-Corruption Symposium 2025 held here on Thursday (Sept 25).
With MyCIEDS, Mathew said airfreight forwarding agents need not have to personally hand in documents to Customs officers.
"The Customs Department began moving towards the use of technology to achieve this over the past year to limit face-to-face interactions.
"We don't have to bring the physical documents for submission as everything will be uploaded into the system," he said.
Matthew said the system would help minimise corruption by eliminating situations where offers of bribes or requests were made by either party.
"The documents will be examined by the officers for approval through the system. If there are any queries, the agent concerned will be contacted to furnish more details through the system," he added.
Matthew said the agent would only be called in for further explanation if needed or for physical verification of documents.
He said the move to introduce MyCIEDS would also help the national logistics sector develop in a more transparent manner.
AFAM currently has about 230 members, with 80% being multinational companies.
Customs director-general Datuk Anis Rizana Mohd Zainudin said recently that MyCIEDS would be implemented next year to help prevent revenue leakages and accelerate the move towards digitisation.
As of Sept 10, a total of 7,228 forwarding agents and 1,721 companies involved in import and export activities nationwide have registered as users of the system, she said.
