More volunteer users have joined the Electronic Zone Transfer System’s (eZTS) first phase, which covers the internal transfer of goods within an economic zone, in the countdown to Phase 1’s mandatory implementation on August 16, according to the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).
PEZA Memorandum Order (MO) No. 2017-008 directs the mandatory implementation of Phase 1 of the eZTS once the pilot run ends on August 15.
READ: Phase 1 of PEZA e-transfer of goods system takes effect by Aug
Phase 1 encompasses the transfer of goods by an ecozone logistics service enterprise (ELSE) to an ecozone export enterprise (EEE) located within the same economic zone.
The eZTS program, which is being carried out with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) under Joint Memorandum Order (JMO) No. 02-2015, provides “a simpler and more efficient system for documenting and processing the clearance, release and transfer of goods between PEZA-registered enterprises.”
eZTS Phase 1 replaces a number of manually generated documents that ELSEs must at present secure from or submit to PEZA in order to store goods or deliver them to EEEs within the same ecozone.
Under the initial phase, manually generated permits and processes will be replaced by these electronically generated documents: electronic certificate, electronic LOA, electronic zone transfer document (eZTD), and electronic monitoring and liquidation ledger.
Schedule of implementation
In a July 14 advisory, PEZA-accredited value-added service provider (VASP) E-Konek Pilipinas, Inc. told clients that starting August 16, eZTS Phase 1 will only apply to import/procurement and supply activities from an ELSE to ELSE/EEE.
Pro-forma application form for enrollment in PEZA EZTS
In the third quarter of the year, once approved by the PEZA director general, implementation will cover indirect export sale of EEEs.
By the fourth quarter, again with the PEZA chief’s approval, it will cover storage and retrieval, and by the first quarter of 2018, will also apply to inter-zone transfer.
Phase 1 will only apply to the delivery of goods by ELSEs to their EEE clients within the same zone where the ELSE’s warehouse facility is located. This includes goods that are imported; goods indirectly imported from PEZA-registered EEEs, including those located in other PEZA zones; those purchased from enterprises in Freeport zones and non-PEZA special economic zones; those purchased from Board of Investments-registered export producer enterprises; and goods locally purchased from suppliers in the domestic territory.
All other types of warehousing/logistics service operations carried out by ELSEs will continue to be covered by the existing manually generated LOAs, processes, and forms. Mother LOAs to ELSEs required to be issued by the PEZA director general will likewise continue to be covered by manual LOAs and processes.
Enrolment needed
All ELSEs and EEEs covered under Phase 1 are instructed to enrol in the eZTS. No enrolment fee will be charged by PEZA and its accredited VASPs.
MO 2017-008 notes that the VASP through which the EEE filed the online application to nominate its ELSE (eCertificate) should be the same VASP the ELSE will use to apply for the eLOA and eZTD, and to comply with tagging requirements in the eZTS.
All ELSEs and EEEs are encouraged to enrol with all PEZA-accredited VASPs so they can immediately shift to another VASP should the primary one encounter operational downtime or system interruption.
It is up to the ELSE and EEE to agree on which VASP to designate as their primary, secondary, and tertiary service provider.
Although the eZTS is web-based and available 24/7, filing of applications for eCertificate, eLOA, and eZTD must be done within regular office hours and work days.
EEEs and ELSEs with several zone locations should enrol each one separately with the eZTS.
Only if the eZTSs of all VASPs are down for at least four hours or if acts of nature render the system totally inaccessible will the system be reverted to manual processing. – Roumina Pablo
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