PH joins Asean Single Window’s live operations

Further reduction in trade costs will be enjoyed by businesses in the Philippines after the country took part in the Asean Single Window’s live operations starting end-2019, the Department of Finance said on Friday.

“This means the Bureau of Customs, along with its export coordination division and export divisions in three pilot ports are now issuing the electronic certificate of origin (eCO) using the country’s National Single Window—the TradeNet platform,” Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said in a statement.

“The issuance of eCOs is in compliance with Customs Memorandum Order No. 15-2019 signed by Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero last March and shall be done by the Philippines initially with Indonesia and Malaysia,” Beltran said.

TradeNet would initially cover 7,400 regulated goods across 76 regulatory agencies, whose export and import documentary processes will be interconnected and simplified.

According to Beltran, “going live on the Asean Single Window lowers communication costs to as low as 10 percent of the original amount and encourages small enterprises to take advantage of preferential tariffs under Atiga (Asean Trade in Goods Agreement).”

The three Philippine ports piloting the Asean Single Window beginning on Dec. 30, 2019, were the Port of Manila, Manila International Container Port and Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

During a regional meeting held in Vietnam this month, Beltran said the Asean Single Window steering committee had decided to include the following three more documents for exchange across the platform: e-animal health certificate, e-Asean customs declaration document and e-phytosanitary certificate.

The Asean Single Window already allows exchange of over 460,000 customs and other trade-related documents.