DFWC President Branquinho urged delegates to get behind the Duty Free: Trusted Transparent Secure Campaign, at the South American duty free association's first conference post-Covid.

The Duty Free: Trusted, Transparent, Secure campaign continued its work to highlight the duty- and tax-free industry’s zero-tolerance approach against illicit trade, counterfeiting, intellectual property theft and all forms of criminality at the 2023 Tax Free World Association Asia Pacific Summit in Singapore.

At a panel event discussing the region's recovery, representatives of the Duty Free: Trusted Transparent Secure campaign said the sector must "amplify our existing credentials as an authentic and trusted industry"

The Duty Free World Council (DFWC), the global voice for the duty free and travel retail industry, and Tax Free World Association (TFWA), the association that brings together 520 supplier companies to the duty free and travel retail industry, have released a position paper on tackling illicit trade, counterfeiting, and intellectual property theft. It sets out five key recommendations, and calls on national governments and cross-border enforcement agencies to work with industry to put an end to the practice. Read the full position paper using the link below.

Duty Free World Council President represents the Duty Free Trusted Transparent Secure campaign at The Economist Global Anti-Illicit Trade Summit in Warsaw, Poland. Sarah Branquinho discussed the impact of illicit trade and counterfeiting on our duty- and tax-free industry, and the reputational harm criminal activity causes.

Media coverage of our campaign- Duty Free: Trusted, Transparent, Secure

Recent work by the OECD has shown that Free Trade Zones can offer advantages to businesses through lighter regulations, but also generate opportunities for illicit trade. Read more about the OECD's “Recommendation of the Council on Countering Illicit Trade: Enhancing Transparency in Free Trade Zones" here. It is important to know that duty- and tax-free sales are not free zone sales. Duty free sales take place in a highly regulated retail environment e.g. airports, ports, ferries, cruise ships and land border shops, and their operations are governed by national customs authorities. Our supply chain is one of the most secure in the world with processes and technologies in place to provide for verification of registration, compliance, certification, review and audit.

Statistics released by Airports Council International (ACI World), culled from data from airports in all parts of the world in 2016, offer an intriguing insight into the relative values of different segments of non-aeronautical revenue generation.

Media coverage of our campaign - Duty Free: Trusted, Transparent, Secure

Media coverage of our campaign - Duty Free: Trusted, Transparent, Secure

Media coverage of our campaign - Duty Free: Trusted, Transparent, Secure