The Dutch Customs has signed a contract with IBM for a major tariff project in which IBM will provide the licences for ArcticTARIFF – a comprehensive web-based tariff system for customs administration authorities in European Union (EU) countries.  Arctic Group AB is the engine behind ArcticTARIFF and the development of the integrated master tariff system; an initiative set to bring the Dutch Customs closer to its goal of achieving ‘safe, swift and simple movement of goods’ across external borders via modern information technology systems and superior electronic data management facilities.

The Netherlands is currently the world’s 9th largest trade nation and records a trade volume of approximately USD537.5 billion and USD485.3 billion in exports and imports respectively1. The Port of Rotterdam is also Europe’s largest habour with an annual throughput of more than 400 million tonnes of goods.  To effectively manage the heavy traffic of goods, the Dutch Customs has thus invested in Arctic Group’s core IT-solution.

The ArcticTARIFF system is highly compatible with EU requirements and provides customs administrations the flexibility of configuring it to accommodate application of national regulations. oOther European countries such as the United Kingdom and Luxembourg are already using the ArcticTARIFF solution and its implementation within the Dutch Customs is expected to enhance and expedite all transactions related to duty calculation of imported and exported goods, as well as the handling of quotas, surveillance and anti-dumping measures.

The award of the Dutch Customs contract has added yet another key milestone achievement for Arctic Group and is testimony to its expertise in providing leading customs solutions.