Overview
The BESC — Bordereau Électronique de Suivi des Cargaisons — is the electronic cargo tracking note required for sea shipments to Burundi, which discharge at Bujumbura (via Dar es Salaam). It ties the shipper, consignee, cargo and freight values on your Bill of Lading to a single reference that customs can reconcile before the cargo is worked. Filing deadline: At the port of loading; final Bill of Lading within 5 working days of pre-validation. Cargo that only passes through on its way to a landlocked neighbour is treated as in-transit and still needs a certificate, so the routing has to be documented from the start.
Discharge ports
Required documents
Official BESC Document Sample
Verify the layout, stamps, and BESC customs format of a validated Burundi loading certificate:
Application process
- 1SubmitSend your Bill of Lading and Commercial Invoice, with the Freight Invoice if freight is not shown on the commercial invoice.
- 2Draft & invoiceWe prepare a draft certificate and a fixed-price invoice within 1 hour on average.
- 3ApproveYou review the draft and confirm every detail before anything is filed.
- 4PaymentThe fixed-price invoice is settled so the file can go forward for validation.
- 5ValidateThe certificate is validated and the final BESC number is confirmed.
Timeline
| Step | Duration |
|---|---|
| Submit documents | Your action |
| Draft & invoice | 1 hour on average |
| Approve draft | Your action |
| Payment | Your action |
Special rules & HS codes
Rule 1
The BESC number is issued at validation, so it cannot be supplied in advance.
Rule 2
Final, dated MBL is required prior to validation.
Rule 3
Shipper, consignee and notify parties address must match between all documents.
Rule 4
Weight on export declaration must match the BL.
Rule 5
Statistical value on export declaration must match the commercial invoice.
Rule 6
Shipper owned containers must have the tare weight mentioned on the BL.
Rule 7
This number can be transmitted to the shipping line in order to obtain the required BL number. For validation of the BESC we need the final Bill of Lading.
Rule 8
A pre-validated certificate has to be completed within its validity window or it is cancelled.
Official sources
Official Burundi ECTN (BESC) sources
The Burundi BESC is required by Burundi’s Ministry of Finance under Ministerial Ordinance 540/409 of 18 March 2014.
accessed
Top 3 causes of Burundi BESC rejection
- BESC number is not printed on the Bill of Lading.
- Invoice has not been stamped by the local Chamber of Commerce.
- Total weight differs by more than 5% between BL and packing list.
Case study: Burundi ECTN Case Study: Reconciling Multi-Currency Invoice Values Before Filing
Specific questions: Burundi
Is the Burundi ECTN the same as the Burundi BESC?
Yes. Searches for the Burundi ECTN mean the BESC (Bordereau Électronique de Suivi des Cargaisons), the name printed on the certificate. It is one certificate per Bill of Lading.
Since when is the Burundi ECTN mandatory?
Since 1 April 2014, counted from the Bill of Lading date, under Ministerial Ordinance 540/409 of 18 March 2014 of Burundi’s Ministry of Finance.
Does cargo for Burundi through Mombasa also need a Kenya ACD?
Not when it is in transit: Kenya’s ACD does not apply when both the Bill of Lading destination and the consignee are outside Kenya. The Burundi BESC is still required.
Frequently asked questions
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