EXPORTER PORTAL USER MANUAL

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION... 2 1 LOGIN... 2 1.1 EXPORTER PORTAL URL... 2 1.2 LOG-IN PAGE... 3 1.3 CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT... 4 2 HOME PAGE... 7 3 ACTIONS... 10 3.1 PENDING TASKS... 11 3.2 PCA - CERTIFICATE REQUEST... 12 3.3 PARTIAL SHIPMENT REQUEST... 26 3.4 NEW SHIPMENT... 27 3.5 COPY A REQUEST... 30 3.6 REGISTRATION/LICENSING/PRODUCT CERTIFICATE NIGERIA... 30 3.7 COMMUNICATION... 36 4 STATUS... 38 4.1 SEARCH / FILTERS... 38 4.2 SERVICE REQUEST... 42 4.3 ACTIONS... 43 5 PARTIAL SHIPMENT... 46 5.1 VIEW MAIN ITEM DESCRIPTION... 47 5.2 ACTIONS... 48 6 REQUESTED APPLICATION... 50 6.1 STATUS... 50 6.2 ACTIONS... 52 6.3 COPY A REQUEST... 53 7 COMMUNICATION... 54 7.1 CREATING A NEW EMAIL THREAD... 55 7.2 SORTING/VIEWING THE THREAD... 56 1

INTRODUCTION The Exporter Portal is for exporter applying to a Product Conformity Assessment Certificate. This external application was designed for exporter to apply and monitor the progress of their respective shipments, communicate directly with SGS, upload documents and request for partial shipments. 1 LOGIN 1.1 EXPORTER PORTAL URL The system will send the URL to exporter s email address automatically once a service request is accepted by SGS. Please refer to below sample. 2

The URL can also be requested by the exporter from SGS. The same email address will be used as login name in the application. User will only supply his/her password. The URL of the Exporter Portal should be accessed using any of the following browsers: Mozilla Firefox Chrome 1.2 LOG-IN PAGE The login page will be similar to below snap shot. Log in Page To be able to log in to the External Portal, the following credentials are required: 1. Email Address Enter the email address. This must be the same email address that you sent to SGS. If there is a need to change your email address, please contact SGS. 2. Password On the initial log in, user must register his password. 3. Create Your Account If user does not yet have any account in the application, he should register an account to be able to access the application. *Creation of an account is illustrated below. 4. Login After entering your email address and password, click LOGIN. The system will direct you to the home page. 5. Forgot Password Forgot your password? Simply click on the link FORGOT PASSWORD and the application will send an email to you. 3

1.3 CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT A. To register a new account, click CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT B. Fill in the required information, click on the box I m not a robot and click on the REGISTER button. 4

C. A registration email will be immediately sent to your email address. D. Check your email as soon as possible and access the link sent. It will allow you to finish the registration and define your password. Important note: The link is valid only for 10 minutes. 5

E. Define the password. Log in to the application using the password defined F. On the first log-in, the portal will require you to read and accept the SGS Terms and Conditions, and different policies. Tick the box I Agree to the: to accept. The other box refers to receiving information via email on existing SGS programs or campaigns. Tick the box if you don t prefer to receive them. Click OK to proceed. 6

2 HOME PAGE You will find five modules when you log in: i. Action (Default at home page) ii. Status iii. Partial Shipment iv. Requested Application v. Communication Each of these modules will be presented separately. 7

Home Page 1. Actions Allows exporters to register his request through the Actions available. This section also lists the Task to be completed by the exporter to facilitate his request. 2. Status This section provides the details of the existing Service Request of the exporter and lets them check the status. It also allows exporters to upload the required documents for a particular Service Request. 3. Partial Shipment This module becomes available only when Project Service Request has been registered by Exporter and validated by SGS. This allows the exporter to send a request for a new partial shipment against a valid project. 4. Requested Application Allows users to enter details of the document Request for Certification (RFC) as well as upload documents. 5. Communication This is the communication module between the exporter and SGS. Exporters can send communication to SGS through here and vice versa. 6. Language Language of the portal is set to English (EN). 7. Contact Us Serves as a directory of SGS contact persons. 8. Help Provides useful references on how to use the Exporter Portal. The exporter can access and download the User Manual, and or view the following videos: PCA Certificate Request, Partial Shipment Request, Uploading Document, and how to Create and Answer Email. 9. Log out Action button to log out from the system. 8

Note: Some notes on the changes in the new version of the portal will pop-up in the homepage as soon as logged in. his should be read. Click OK when done. 9

3 ACTIONS This module provides exporters the following actions for registration of their requests: PCA Certificate Request Partial Shipment Request Registration / Licensing Communication Actions also lists the exporter s current tasks to be completed, and five most recent requests. 10

3.1 PENDING TASKS Below are some of the common tasks you can find under Overview module depending on the status of your Service Request: Task Type Description A document upload is missing A required document needs to be uploaded. Draft RFC to be sent RFC is still not submitted. Similar task appears if requests for RFR/L or for Renovo is drafted. New message to read New message was received. Upload your payment receipt Payment Receipt document needs to be uploaded. To be able to see the details and execute the task, click the Access button. Exporter portal will bring you to the Service Request or to the module where task needs to be executed. 11

3.2 PCA - CERTIFICATE REQUEST Use this functionality to create a Request for Certificate. To search, type in at least the first three letters of the country destination in the field Country Destination. Take for example the country Kenya. You may type Ken The system will automatically display the country which matches to the search you have entered. Select and click New Request. The portal will then take you to the registration page. This page allows users to enter details of the document Request for Certification (RFC), as well as upload documents. 12

Expand each section to be able to complete the form. Please refer to the snapshot below : 13

Before filling-up the form, the exporter should carefully read the important notes of the RFC form : displayed on top 14

Supply the requested information: A. General question: This section should provide basic information of the request from the exporter. Country destination Defaulted to contract country and its corresponding contract code based on the selected destination country by the exporter. Who will collect the Certificate of Conformity? Tick the box: Importer or Exporter Import Declaration (e.g. contract Cameroon) Enter the existing Service Request no. or Reference no. This field is not a requirement to be supplied for other contracts, thus not seen displayed. For other contracts though, the label of this field differs based on the contract being applied for, such as: Import Declaration - Service Request no. for Cameroon IDF Service Request no. for Kenya contract DII Service Request no. for Burundi contract Form M Service Request no. for Nigeria contract IDF number not yet available Applicable for KE71. Tick the box should the SR number is not yet available. UCR no. This information is required under Kenya contract. Enter the Unique Consignment Reference number. 15

Examples of the format of this section are shown below for some contracts: Contract: Kenya Contract: Cameroon Contract: Tanzania Note: The fields described are not displayed for some contracts like Renovo. 16

B. Please enter the details of the parties This section consists of six party cards: Seller, Buyer, Place of Inspection, Supplier (if different than Seller), Manufacturer (if different than Seller), and Other (if different than the parties mentioned e.g. Agent, Freight Forwarders). Each field in the party card must be supplied with accurate information. The portal will display a red text underneath the field if incorrect format of the contact details is entered. Fields with asterisk are considered a required field. Some examples are shown in the snapshot below: 17

In completing the party card, please also note of the following action buttons found at the bottom. Pay for SGS Service: Select the Party who will pay for SGS service. Only one can be selected. Once Pay for SGS Service is ticked, TAX ID# must be provided. USE PREVIOUS: Applies to exporter who has previously applied an RFC. Select this button if the same party is to be used in the new RFC application. Choose the party to be used, and the portal will automatically fill in the party card. Fill in the other fields to complete the details of the party. CREATE NEW: Select if new party other than the previous or existing party is applying for an RFC. The portal automatically fills in the user log- in s email address when this action is selected. Fill in the other fields to complete the details of the party. Same as Seller -For Place of Inspection card, select this option to identify the inspection place if the same as seller party. 18

C. Please enter the goods to be shipped Details of the goods to be shipped should be declared in this section. Documents such as Final Invoice, Proforma Invoice and transaction documents must be attached in this section too. How to upload the documents: Note : Authorized file types are the following: txt, pdf, doc, docx, xls, xlsx, jpg, jpeg, png, tif 1. Click the button to add the document. 2. Select the document type. 3. Browse the document from your files and upload. 4. Provide the details (example Proforma Invoice) such as Invoice type, Incoterm, Invoice amount, currency, Invoice number and document date. How to add the items : There are two options on how the items can be added: 1. Click the button to add the items one at a time. Always click SAVE. 2. For multiple items, click GET TEMPLATE to add them via excel using a template. Fill up the excel template. save in your computer then click Import Items, browse and upload the excel file. Save 19

Refer to excel template below : To fill up the following columns, the data should be selected from the drop-down list. Any other characters are not valid: Unit Country of Origin Goods Condition Assembly State 21

When the lines are uploaded, you may still edit or delete them through the following action buttons: 22

D. Please enter the method of Shipment The details of the shipment should be provided in this section: 1. Identify the Shipment method by selecting from the drop down list: Air, Transport on Fixed Installation, Inland Waterways, Land, Multimodal (Combined), Post Mail, Rail, Sea or Unknown. Select the Cargo type from the dropdown list: Dry Bulk, Liquid Bulk, FCL or Other no. of Container. 2. Enter the country of Supply, the country of Loading, and the country of Discharge. 23

3. Upload the available shipping documents by clicking the button. The following documents can be uploaded in this module: Transaction documents such as the Letter of Credit, Packing List or Similar, Quality Document, Transport documents which includes Airway Bill, Bill of Lading, and Other Transport Document. Note: If the label of each sections is green this means the information required has been completed. Otherwise, it has to be rechecked to complete the missing information. When all the available information has been entered, you may proceed to: CLOSE Close the registration form DELETE Delete the registration form, only for 'SAVE' forms. SUBMIT Submit the request, the registration form will be processed, and modification is no longer possible. DOWNLOAD AS PDF Download a pdf copy of the form. 24

The submitted RFC form appears under MY 5 MOST RECENT REQUESTS lists. Once the SR Reference appears, the status can be checked under REQUESTED APPLICATION module. The details of the RFC can be viewed in both modules and a copy of RFC in pdf. format is downloadable. 25

3.3 PARTIAL SHIPMENT REQUEST This facility will only be displayed when there is a Project Service Request with the right exporter email. It allows the exporters to apply or request for a new partial shipment through their existing valid Project Service Request. Without valid Project Service Request: When valid Project Service Request already exists: 26

3.4 NEW SHIPMENT 1. To request for a new partial shipment Service Request, click on the dropdown list: 2. Select the Valid Project Service Request to which you need to apply the request: 3. Click New Shipment button. 4. The portal will bring you to the Valid Project Service Request selected and allows you to submit new document (e.g. Invoice) for the new partial shipment request by clicking the + button. 27

5. Select the document type from the drop down list. 6. Upload the document, enter the Invoice amount (for Invoice type document), the Reference number (ex. Invoice number) and Issuance date of the document. 7. Submit when done. 28

8. Upon uploading of document, the portal sends it automatically to SGS and a new partial Service Request is registered. 9. The new partial Service Request will appear under Status module. 29

3.5 COPY A REQUEST You can copy the information already filled in from your 5 most recent requests by clicking on the button on the right hand side: 3.6 REGISTRATION/LICENSING/PRODUCT CERTIFICATE NIGERIA Request for Generic Registration and Licensing can be applied in this section. This is also used for application of Product Certificate request under Nigeria contract. 30

Similar to PCA-Certificate Request, the portal will bring the exporter to a form which needs to be filledup. There are only three sections that needs to be completed for this request. 31

The exporter applying for this request must supply the following information: 32

A. General Question: In the first section, the exporter simply needs to select the type of request he s applying for. B. Please enter the details of the parties This section consists of 4 party cards : Seller, Supplier (if different than Seller), Manufacturer (if different than Seller), and Other (if different than the parties mentioned e.g. Agent, Freight Forwarders). How to fill up this section is basically the same with PCA Certificate Request, please refer to the same topic in section 3.2. C. Please enter the goods to be shipped Details of the goods to be shipped should be declared in this section. Documents such transaction documents (Letter of Credit, Packing List and or Quality document must be attached in this section too. How to fill up this section is basically the same with PCA Certificate Request, please refer to the same topic in section 3.2. 33

For Request for Registration and Liscensing, the contract for which it is being applied for should be indicated in the field Applicable Contract. In excel template, this is also mandatory. Applicable country should be selected from the dropdown list. Note: If the label of each sections is green this means the information required has been completed. Otherwise, it has to be rechecked to complete the missing information. 34

When all the available information has been entered, you may proceed to: CLOSE Close the registration form DELETE Delete the registration form, only for 'SAVE' forms. SUBMIT Submit the request, the registration form will be processed, and modification is no longer possible. DOWNLOAD AS PDF Download a pdf copy of the form. The submitted RFC form appears under MY 5 MOST RECENT REQUESTS lists. Once the SR Reference appears, the status can be checked under Status and REQUESTED APPLICATION modules. The details of the Registration and License transaction can be viewed in both modules and a copy of RFC in pdf. format is downloadable. 35

3.7 COMMUNICATION For any questions about the portal or for any request, click Contact Us action button. The portal will take you to the Communication module. Enter all the required information: Recipients: Choose from the available email address in the picklist. Subject: Type in the subject of your request. SGS Number (optional): This refers to the existing Service Request applied. The communication comes with usual email editor, file attachments and can support images, copy paste. Click SEND when done. Your email will be sent, and will be displayed in the list of your communications. If you click CANCEL, the drafted email will be discarded and portal will bring you back to Overview module. 36

4 ST ATUS This module lists all your existing Service Request, including the new ones just registered. It provides details of the shipments, main status, the submitted documents, and still missing documents. 4.1 SEARCH / FILTERS To help you in searching for the correct service request to upload documents or send a communication to SGS, the application has provided several ways to filter the list. 1. Enter search to filter the list. This is a dynamic search. Dynamic search will return result as you type the search criteria. It allows you to filter the list by: SR Number Importer Name Importer Country 38

Example: Search by Importer Name 2. Filter by Status. Drop down list is provided to select the status to be filtered. Waiting Final Documents Final Documents Submitted Cancelled Service Request Statement issued Final Documents Received Rejected Inspection Payment receipt rejected Certificate process Certificate Issued Waiting for Fee Payment Document(s) uploaded and under review 39

3. Arrange the list by (A Z or Z A) SR Number Importer Name 40

Importer Country These filters can be combined for a more accurate search result. 41

4.2 SERVICE REQUEST 1. Service request details includes the following: SR Number Exporter Name Importer Name Importer Country Global Value Status date Main Status Missing documents 2. View the Item Description: Click the icon below to see the details of your shipment. The portal will return the Main Item Description of the service request. Click again to hide the main item description. 42

4.3 ACTIONS There are only two actions that can be done for the service request: Send Document and Send a Communication to SGS. Both are available for all service request status except for Cancelled service request, where only Send a Communication to SGS action button is available. See Document - This action button brings you to another page which shows the submitted document. For no document submitted yet, no document is displayed below the Service Request. *There is a facility in each SR to add a document. Close button brings you back to the main page of the Shipment module. * Below example shows Main Status Waiting Final Documents. To submit a document, click to add a document. 43

Select the document type you need to submit from the pick list. Click the panel and upload the document to be submitted. Type in the Invoice number and the invoice date. 44

Click Submit when document is uploaded. Cancel button brings you back to the main page of the Shipment module. The Invoice is now attached to the Service Request. The status of the Service Request updates from Waiting Final Documents to Final Documents Submitted. Send a communication to SGS - this action button brings you to the Communication module. 45

5 PARTIAL SHIPMENT Partial Shipment is initially not displayed to exporter s account: This module becomes available only when Project Service Request has been registered by exporter and validated by SGS. 46

This lists the exporter s existing Project Service Request. It displays the following column: SR Number Shipment Type Importer Name Importer Country Exporter Global Value Currency External Reference Status Invoice date And has the following facilities: View the main description of the project Service Request Actions includes: o See partial shipments for this contract o See document o Send Communication to SGS 5.1 VIEW MAIN ITEM DESCRIPTION Click the icon below to see the details of your shipment. The portal will return the Main Item Description of the service request. Click again to hide the main item description. 47

5.2 ACTIONS See partial shipments from this contract - Allows you to view the Service request applied under a valid project. The shipments applied under the Valid Project Service Request are listed in the Shipment module. Simply click on the icon See partial shipments from this contract The Project Service Request below shows one partial shipment: See document - This action button brings you to another page which shows the list of submitted document for every request of partial shipment. No documents are attached when no partial shipment is requested yet. The document list displays the following columns: Type Doc.. Category Document Date Document Reference Submit/Reception Date Attached file. 48

Close button brings you back to the main page of the Request Partial Shipment module. The list of the documents can also be filtered according to status: You may also view the document from the list. Place your cursor to the file name of the document then click to open/view the file. Send Communication - this action button brings you to the Communication module. Refer to section 3.7 49

6 REQUESTED APPLICATION This module displays all your Certificate requests and its current status. It also shows the following information: Document nb SR Reference Document type Value Currency Description Destination Submission date Status 6.1 STATUS The service requests can be filtered according to its current status: Draft, Sent or Processed. 50

Draft : Filters all certificate requests not submitted yet. Sent : Refers to request that has been submitted. Waiting to be processed. Processed : When the registration form is completed and submitted by user, it is then sent to another SGS application system. The request is processed and a Service Request number is assigned under SR Reference column. 51

6.2 ACTIONS Certificate Requests module provides only two action buttons. These two allows you to see the details of your request. Access : When you select the SR and clicked the access button, the portal opens the Request for Certification (RFC) form of your particular Service request. Download PDF : Downloads the Request for Certification in PDF document. 52

6.3 COPY A REQUEST You can copy the information already filled in from a previous request by simply clicking on the righthand side button. 53

7 COMMUNICATION The Communication module allows exporter to send and receive an email. The exporters can attach their documents in this module, and it also serves as an INBOX where the email threads are stored. This module can also be accessed through action button in Shipments and Request for Partial Shipments modules. It is to be used if exporter wishes to make an inquiry to a particular Service Request. 54

7.1 CREATING A NEW EMAIL THREAD To send an email through the main communication tab simply click on New Message. The new thread page will be displayed. Enter all the required information: Recipients: Select the recipient from the dropdown list. Subject: Enter the subject of your email. SGS Number (Optional): Enter the Service Request number. The communication comes with usual email editor, file attachments and can support images, copy paste. 55

Once sent, the email appears in the list of communications with automatically system generated reference number. Please refer to column # sign. 7.2 SORTING/VIEWING THE THREAD These can be done by clicking on the different icons below: Filter by All Status threads. Return all threads, answered or not. Return all threads that were answered by SGS 56

Show/hide details of the thread: Sorting by #, or by SR Number, or Created date and time, or Updated date and time. 57

Read/Answer action button brings you to the content of the email message sent and the reply received from the recipient. This allows you to Cancel which closes the email, Mark As Read after reading the email messages, and or Send when you have drafted your reply. 58