A post-clearance audit (PCA) support mission was delivered to the State Revenue Committee (SRC) of the Republic of Armenia and took place in Yerevan, Armenia from 13 to 17 March 2023. The objective of the mission was to enable the SRC to gain a better understanding of the implementation of PCA, in accordance with Article 7.5 of the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement (WTO TFA) and with the WCO’s PCA tools. The mission was funded by the Customs Cooperation Fund of Germany (CCF/Germany). It was conducted by a team consisting of a lead PCA official from the WCO Secretariat and Technical and Operational Advisers on PCA from the Customs Administrations of Germany and Kenya.

The Head of the SRC’s Post-Release Control Department, Ms. Gohar Sahakyan, officially launched the PCA support mission and expressed her gratitude to the WCO, CCF Germany and the experts for their ongoing support. She described the SRC's vision, implementation strategies and activities related to PCA operations and challenges.  The greatest challenge for the SRC in implementing PCA aligned with international standards is shifting from transaction-based to trader-focused audits. She concluded by underscoring the expected outcome for the SRC, namely initiating trader-focused PCAs.

The five-day support mission was attended by 15 participants, mainly from the Desktop Customs Audit Division, Customs Information and Risk Analysis Division, Field Customs Audit Division, and Customs Transactions Control Division. The participants received detailed guidance on the WCO PCA concept, targeting framework, systems-based audit concept, audit cycle process, and risk management system review. During the course of the mission, experts from different jurisdictions shared their current experiences.

The mission drew to a successful close with the participants displaying enthusiasm for piloting their first trader-focused audit (systems-based audit), in accordance with the WCO Guidelines for Post Clearance Audit and with international best practice. In addition, the participants expressed their sincere appreciation for the practical experiences that had been shared with them and which would prove useful when conducting their trader-focused audit. Finally, they also conveyed their gratitude for the support provided by the WCO, CCF Germany and the PCA experts.