-
The Bureau of Customs has created a portal where exporters can register and apply for an electronic certificate of origin
-
Paper-based COs are no longer accepted by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations since January 1, 2024, except when there are technical issues
-
Full implementation of the e-CO follows the January 1 enforcement of the ASEAN-wide Self-Certification Scheme
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has created a portal where exporters can register and apply for an electronic certificate of origin (e-CO), https://eco.customs.gov.ph/.
Paper-based COs are no longer accepted by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) since January 1, 2024.
Full implementation of the e-CO follows the January 1 enforcement of the ASEAN-wide Self-Certification Scheme (AWSC) and in compliance with one of the Priority Economic Deliverables (PED) under Indonesia’s ASEAN chairmanship this year, which is full implementation of the e-CO through the ASEAN Single Window (ASW).
A CO, or Form D, is an international trade document attesting that goods in a particular export shipment are wholly obtained, produced, manufactured, or processed in a particular country. The CO, which also serves as an exporter’s declaration, has to be submitted to secure preferential tariffs as provided under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).
Full implementation of the e-CO means ASEAN members may only issue and accept e-CO Form D to claim/grant ATIGA tariff preference, and that paper-based CO should only be issued when the countries’ respective national single windows (NSW) or the ASW are on downtime.
With the full implementation of the e-CO through the ASW, ASEAN earlier said the time of application and submission of CO Form D would be substantially reduced, while the administrative costs of processing documents would be minimized. In the meantime, the authenticity of the Form D data would be secured to reduce the risks of fraudulence while ASEAN customs authorities can now save more time for verifying Form D.
In addition to creating a portal where exporters can register and apply for an e-CO, the BOC has also been conducting information sessions to guide exporters on how to register and use its e-CO portal while a user manual providing a step-by step guide on navigating features of the platform is available in BOC’s website.
Exporters may email BOC’s Export Coordination Division at ecd@customs.gov.ph to know more about e-CO procedures and formalities as well as certified exporters under the AWSC. – Roumina Pablo
