The Trade Union received an application from the wife of a seafarer who was detained by the Egyptian customs authorities for having a prohibited item in his luggage.
The seafarer's contract ended, and he left the board in one of the ports of Egypt to return home. Upon arrival at the airport, customs inspected his luggage and found there an unmanned aerial vehicle - a drone, which a seafarer brought on a voyage to capture beautiful sea views.
At the time of publication, the seafarer spent almost two days at the airport. All this time, the customs office was figuring out his intentions for bringing a drone with him to Egypt. It is clear to us that the seafarer did not plan to engage in espionage, filming secure facilities like a port. However, the proceedings of the authorities take time and make the seafarer's family worry.
According to the Embassy of Ukraine in Egypt, the local authorities will confiscate the drone (which the seafarer agrees to) and deport the offender. But if the seafarer filmed something prohibited, he faces criminal punishment.
Taking this opportunity, we remind our readers: ignorance of the law is no excuse. Remember that the agent does not always warn seafarers of the customs control peculiarities of the country of departure.
Therefore, the list of universally prohibited goods for import is standard:
- Toxic, narcotic, psychotropic, radioactive substances;
- Firearms and cold weapons, ammunition, explosives;
- Information materials containing the propaganda of religious, racial, or ethnic hatred, calls for violence (materials are prohibited in any form and on any data medium);
- Information materials of morally questionable content (in Islamic countries, even a picture of a topless girl violates the public morals);
- Animals and objects from them, if the species is included in the lists of Washington Convention (CITES). However, there are exceptions like sturgeon caviar.
We recommend paying attention to the specific restrictions in every particular country that the seafarer is transiting, in which he joins or disembarks from the ship to fly home.
For example, in the largest seafarers' crew change hub, it is prohibited to transport more than 200 cigarettes, and you have to pay $ 5 for each imported pack. Electronic cigarettes and even nicotine patches are also strictly prohibited. Chewing gum is also prohibited in Singapore, importing it into the country's territory is punishable by a year in prison and a $ 5,500 fine.
Thus, among other things, fresh and canned meat (including poultry meat - chicken, turkey), absinthe and any other alcoholic beverages containing wormwood, as well as candy with liquor, homemade canned food, smoked and cured meat are prohibited to the import into the United States. Fish and non-canned caviar, some fruits and vegetables, dairy products, and eggs from some countries are also prohibited.
You better be careful when importing drugs into the United Arab Emirates. Lists of drugs that are prohibited and controlled in the UAE consist of hundreds of names. Questions from customs may arise about painkillers and drugs containing painkillers, such as tramadol or codeine. By the way, the UAE prohibits the import of three-layer nylon fishing nets if someone decides to go fishing on the voyage.
