Norway's border with EU testing digital clearance system

(10 Feb 2019) Technological solutions being tested in Norway to digitalise customs procedures for cargo have been seized on by some in Britain as a way to overcome border-related problems that threaten to scuttle a divorce deal with the EU.
But the realities of this northern border also show the difficulties that persist.
In the heartland of Scandinavia, a slow flow of traffic makes its way through the hills separating Norway and Sweden.
While most border posts in Europe have vanished in the past decades, Norway's hard border with the European Union is clearly visible with cameras, license-plate recognition systems and barriers directing traffic to customs officers.
Norway's membership in the European Economic Area (EEA) grants it access to the Common Market, and most goods are exempt from paying duties, but everything entering the country must be declared and cleared through customs.
As the UK seeks to ease fears about the return of customs posts and vehicle checks along the Irish border after the withdrawal from the European Union, technological solutions being tested in Norway can offer elements of a solution, but also a warning at the difficulties they present.
Since September 2018, the customs office at Orje, located on the road connecting Oslo and Stockholm, has been testing a new digital clearance system that aims to speed up the transit of goods through customs by enabling cargo transporters to submit information online up to two hours before a truck reaches the border.
The procedure allows customs officers to process and conduct risk assessments before the vehicle pulls up to the border.
So far, only 10 Swedish companies have been admitted to the pilot project, representing just a handful of the 400-450 trucks that transit the border each day, but if successful it could be expanded.
A divorce deal between Britain and the EU has stumbled over how to guarantee an open border between the United Kingdom's Northern Ireland and EU member state Ireland after Britain leaves the bloc on March 29.
The Irish border area was a flashpoint during decades of conflict in Northern Ireland that cost 3,700 lives.
The free flow of people and goods across the near-invisible border now underpins both the local economy and Northern Ireland's peace process.
The EU's proposed solution is for Britain to remain in a customs union with the bloc, eliminating the need for checks until another solution is found.
But pro-Brexit British politicians say that would stop the U.K. from forging new trade deals around the world.
The British government says it's committed to preventing the construction of a physical border between EU member Ireland and the UK's Northern Ireland after Britain leaves the European Union.
It says technological systems similar to those in Norway could offer solutions, but the cautious roll-out of the system in technologically-advanced Scandinavia should be a warning to those who believe in quick-fix solutions to complicated problems.
In the six months since the trial began, officials say a number of problems have brought the system to a standstill, from snow blocking the camera, or WiFi issues preventing the barrier from lifting, to truck drivers participating in the trial who misunderstood which channel to take.
The programme also limits flexibility for transporters.
If a driver calls in sick and is replaced by another, or extra cargo is added to a shipment, then all the paperwork must be resubmitted online.
Yet a greater barrier to digitalising the border is the complexity of international trade.
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[@southerncaliforniadeplorab9363]

What do you do about the soft border areas!😨 ✏ Ediited here; This just looks like a bunch of computer warriors sitting at their desks, where are the active patrols along the open border? 😂 ✏1 more time,I forgot you already sold out your country to Muslims and the Islamic caliphate my prayers are with you.

[@lv3184]

Southern California Deplorable Henry Lindeman The border patrols and fences are at the EU’s external border, not at its internal borders.

[@felixklusener5530]

​This is a border between an EU country (Sweden) and a non-EU country (Norway). There are no customs employees at borders between EU countries.