Trade of goods between Saudi Arabia and Qatar has resumed through the Abu Samra border crossing Sunday, Feb. 14, Qatar’s General Authority of Customs announced.

Commercial cargo movement between Qatar and Saudi Arabia through the Abu Samra Port restarted on Sunday morning, after remaining suspended for more than three and a half years.

Due to COVID-19, the General Authority of Customs (GAC) has announced a set of regulatory and precautionary measures for truck drivers and import and export managers. 

Truck drivers coming from the Salwa Border Port in Saudi Arabia must obtain a certificate authenticated by the Saudi Ministry of Health, proving that they have been tested for COVID-19 at least 72 hours prior to the date of entry into Abu Samra port.

Drivers and trucks transporting goods to Qatar via Abu Samra are not permitted to enter the country, and the goods will be unloaded and re-loaded onto local trucks by the importer or his representative in the port, according to prior coordination with the port administration.

Trucks and drivers return to Salwa port in Saudi Arabia immediately after the completion of the unloading process at Abu Samra port and that all importers of goods through Abu Samra port are obligated to prepare local trucks suitable for transporting the goods that are received, and to notify Abu Samra port administration of the dates and numbers of the trucks in advance to facilitate the procedures for entering the port.

The GAC explained that customs procedures on imported goods are carried out at the port in accordance with the provisions of the Customs Law and its implementing regulations and the customs procedures guide.

The customs declaration for the restricted goods is presented to the competent authority through the electronic customs clearance system (Alnadeeb), to take the appropriate decision regarding them.

The statement said due to a prolonged shutdown at Abu Samra port, and the transfer of specialized laboratories to other locations within the state, samples of the goods will be taken for examination and analysis by the competent registration authorities in the country, and it will be released after the importer undertakes that the restricted goods won’t be disposed until approval was given by the competent authority, except the goods of a dangerous nature, will be kept at the port until the results of the examination and laboratory analysis appear.

The Customs obligated all exporters of goods through the Abu Samra port to the Salwa port to comply with the instructions issued by Saudi Customs before proceeding to export or re-export the goods, in order to avoid any delay or rejection of the goods upon arrival at the Salwa port.

It also stated that goods exported or re-exported from Qatar are transported by local trucks through Abu Samra port to the Salwa port, as determined by the Saudi authorities at Salwa port in this regard.

The controls and procedures described above apply to the shipment of transporting animals through Abu Samra port.

It is expected that the scheduled maintenance work at Abu Samra port will start during the second quarter of 2021 for a period of approximately 14 months, with the continuation of passenger and commercial movement through the port in accordance with the requirements of the scheduled maintenance 

The land border between Qatar and Saudi Arabia was shuttered in mid-2017 after a quartet led by the kingdom imposed a blockade on Qatar. The blockade was lifted on January 5th after the countries involved singed a joint declaration to restore the ties, during a GCC summit held in the Saudi governorate of Al Ula.