A portcullis is a latticed grille or gate made of wood, metal or a combination of the two. The portcullis often appears as a device or emblem in heraldry, such as that employed as the symbol for the Palace of Westminster, London. Another example is where a portcullis formed the crest of the now defunct HM Customs and Excise. They have used the badge for some centuries. Apparently, the portcullis came to be regarded as a symbol representing the gates of the kingdom, that is, the seaports; which were, of course, the seats of operation of the Customs. In fact many Customs administrations incorporated the portcullis in their emblems prior to the 1990’s. The former Department of Customs and Excise, South Africa, likewise bore a portcullis in its coat of arms. (I will endeavour to locate a picture of it in due course).

The portcullis is the traditional symbol of Customs. It is a symbolic representation of a nation’s ports, that is, the gates through which international trade must pass. For centuries, the role of gatekeeper has fallen to Customs. The Customs Co-operation Council (now known as the World Customs Organization), was an early proponent of the need for Customs authorities to reconsider their traditional approach to international trade control, and to abandon the ‘gatekeeper’ mentality that has dominated their thinking for hundreds of years. Such a mentality often sees Customs intervene in commercial transactions simply for the sake of intervention. They have the authority to do so, and no one is keen to question that authority.

In this day and age, however, social expectations no longer accept the concept of intervention for intervention’s sake. Rather, the current approach is “intervention by exception”. Intervention when there is a legitimate need to do so. Intervention based on identified risk. 

At the same time, the trade facilitation agenda is gaining increasing momentum, as the Doha Ministerial Declaration and subsequent decisions of the General Council of the World Trade Organisation have sought to intensify international commitment to further expedite the movement, release and clearance of internationally traded goods, including goods in transit. These decisions are replicated in the World Customs Organisation’s Convention for the Simplification and harmonisation of Customs Procedures , more commonly known as the Revised Kyoto Convention. (I will discuss this in more detail in a future blog.) 

The success of implementing such agenda is heavily reliant on the ability of Customs to raise the portcullis in an effort to achieve an effective balance between trade facilitation and regulatory intervention. It requires political will of governments, which often does not readily understand the notion of give and take; especially countries where revenue derived through Customs accounts for a significant portion of its gross revenue income.