The Imperial Trade and Commerce Authority, alternatively referred to as the Bureau of Commerce or, more simply, Imperial Commerce, functioned as an Imperial organization. Its purpose was to oversee and govern trade and commercial activities throughout the Empire. This entity controlled access to abandoned vessels by granting authorizations to scavengers, thereby managing who was allowed to salvage materials. Nevertheless, the agency gained a reputation for its excessively complex processes, demanding extensive documentation for authorization. The process of obtaining the necessary permissions to operate as a certified scavenger was often lengthy, potentially extending from several months to multiple years. Furthermore, it also granted authorizations for the transaction of particular goods, for example, both animals and droids.