Customs and borders
URA customs systems: ASYCUDA World and related platforms
Short answer
- System
- ASYCUDA World 2
- Login
- asyworld.ura.go.ug 2
- First ASYCUDA in Uganda
- 1997, version 2.7, as reported 1
- ASYCUDA World go-live
- Late August or early September 2013, as reported 1
- Password expiry
- About 90 days 2
- Linked platform
- Uganda Electronic Single Window 3
History
The EastAfrican reported on 7 September 2013 that Uganda went live on the upgraded internet-based ASYCUDA World the week before 1. The paper said Uganda first adopted ASYCUDA in 1997 with version 2.7 and moved to ASYCUDA++ in 2004 1. It quoted URA officials including Commissioner for Customs Richard Kamajugo and Commissioner General Allen Kagina 1.
ASYCUDA is a programme of UNCTAD. An EAC and UNCTAD ASYCUDA leaflet says ASYCUDA World was set up in Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda to support the Single Customs Territory 4.
Who can use it and how to get access
- Users include licensed clearing agents, bond keepers, customs officers, cargo handlers and importers or exporters 2.
- Download the user rights form from the URA help tool, have it signed by the company chief executive and stamped 2.
- Have the Customs Station Manager approve it and submit it through the help tool under Creation of user Rights 2.
- Log in at asyworld.ura.go.ug or through the single window. The system runs in a browser and needs Java 8 2.
- Passwords expire after about 90 days. URA says sharing a password can lead to criminal charges and suspension of company operations 2.
What happens in the system
The agent captures, validates and assesses the declaration and attaches scanned documents of up to 500 KB each 2. The system generates a PRN for payment at a bank 2. Customs officers raise queries in ASYCUDA and agents answer there 2.
The leaflet says the system supports a single customs declaration for goods bound for Uganda and Rwanda and mutual recognition of clearing agents across the region 4.
Connected systems
The Uganda Electronic Single Window is built on ASYCUDA World. URA leads it and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives coordinates it 3. The Regional Electronic Cargo Tracking System, launched by Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda on 24 February 2017, tracks transit goods under customs control 6. A URA project manager wrote in February 2019 that the regional system is based on a Ugandan system URA began in 2013 7.
Data quality research
A paper published by the International Centre for Tax and Development and the Institute of Development Studies in September 2024 studied ASYCUDA World data at URA 5. The authors found import data sound overall. They found export values in URA's system more than double those in international databases and said exporter details were often untraceable under the single customs territory 5. They found inconsistencies between ASYCUDA World data and VAT and income tax returns 5.
Common questions
What is ASYCUDA World?
It is URA's customs system for declarations, assessment, payment references and queries 2.
How do I get an ASYCUDA World account in Uganda?
Submit a signed and approved user rights form through the URA help tool 2.
When did Uganda start using ASYCUDA World?
The EastAfrican reported in September 2013 that Uganda had gone live the week before 1.
Is the single window part of ASYCUDA?
URA says the Uganda Electronic Single Window is built on the ASYCUDA World platform 3.
Rules and charges change. Check the official source linked on this page before you pay or travel. Spotted an error? Email [email protected].
Sources
- The EastAfrican: Upgraded Internet cargo system goes live in Uganda (7 September 2013)
- Uganda Revenue Authority: Automated System For Customs Data (ASYCUDA World) (24 June 2024, modified 2 September 2024)
- Uganda Revenue Authority: Uganda Electronic Single Window (UESW) (24 June 2024, modified 2 September 2024)
- EAC and UNCTAD ASYCUDA Programme: ASYCUDA in Action, Regional Integration: Single Customs Territory (undated leaflet)
- ICTD and IDS, Jova Mayega, Ronald Waiswa and Jane Nabuyondo: How Clean is Customs Data? Data Management in Uganda Revenue Authority (27 September 2024)
- World Customs Organization: Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda officially launch Regional Electronic Cargo Tracking System (27 February 2017)
- WCO News, Geofrey Balamaga: Countries in East Africa cut transit time (21 February 2019)
Related
- How customs clearance works in Uganda
Step by step customs clearance in Uganda: URA's ASYCUDA World, clearing agents, documents, payment by PRN, the single window and cargo tracking.
- Malaba and Busia border posts on the Uganda and Kenya border
Malaba and Busia one stop border posts between Uganda and Kenya: legal basis, launch dates, funding, traffic, audit ratings and digital plate fitting.
- Uganda's digital tax stamps (DTS): status, costs and findings
How URA's digital tax stamps work: goods covered, stamp prices, penalties, how to verify a stamp, the SICPA contract and the court case.
- What Uganda's Auditor General and other official bodies found
Dated Auditor General findings on Uganda customs border posts, national ID renewal and the import inspection portal, with official responses.
- Uganda Electronic Single Window: how it works and its status
The Uganda Electronic Single Window lets traders file import, export and transit permits once. Launch date, agencies on it, funding and reported results.