In November 2011, two ministerial decrees were issued by the Egyptian authorities concerning these two sectors: Ministerial Decree No. 626, of November 17, 2011, concerning the imports/exports in Egypt of fabrics, garments made with the use of dyed or colored yarns and carpets and rugs (Amends the Import & Export Law and The Examination and Control System of Procedures on Imported and Exported Commodities in relation to the import of textile manufacturing products); and Ministerial Decree No. 660 of 24 November 2011, which instead concerns the imports/exports of natural and artificial leather, bags, footwear and their parts (Amends the Import & Export Law and The Examination and Control System of Procedures on Imported and Exported Commodities in relation to the import of leather products).
Both decrees impose the obligation to accompany the goods in question by a Certificate of Inspection and Control, a provision which, after being postponed twice by the Egyptian Ministry of Industry and Foreign Trade, will enter into force on 30 March 2012 (originally the decree was in fact supposed to take effect from 30 November 2011; postponed to 31 January of this year, its entry into force was further postponed to 30 March).
The Certificate of Inspection and Control in question, to be presented to the Egyptian customs alongside the goods in question, must be issued by a laboratory or certification body which is recognized either by ILAC (International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation), or by a other body, either Egyptian or foreign, provided that it is approved by the Ministry of Foreign Trade.
Some names are suggested among the inspection and control bodies that operate according to the international standards ISO 17020 and ISO 17011: INCOLAB, SGS, INTERTEK, Bureau Veritas and the Egyptian EGAC.
The authentication of the Certificate by the Chamber of Commerce and the Egyptian Embassy in the country of origin of the goods is also required. Among the other requirements that this Certificate must comply with, the decree provides for the obligation to indicate, for each type of goods, relative information: quantity, value, country of production, name of the production plant and relative address, name of the importer site, and results of analyzes and controls which guarantee the conformity of the product with the technical specifications recognized in Egypt.
In this regard, the Egyptian body GOEIC (General Organization for Export & Import Control), upon arrival of the goods at the customs, is authorized to carry out checks on some samples.
