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The Bureau of Customs is preparing for full implementation of the ASEAN customs declaration document portal
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The portal is expected to be launched in April
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Philippines is now able to exchange ACDD with Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Thailand using the ASEAN Single Window
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The ACDD will help achieve full ASEAN economic and trade visibility and cross-border cooperation
The Bureau of Customs is preparing for full implementation of the electronic exchange of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations customs declaration document (ACDD) and launch of the ACDD portal this April.
“Optimizing the management of trade facilitation activities has been a major key component of the BOC’s goal to achieve full economic and trade visibility and cross-border cooperation within the region. We hope to fully implement the electronic exchange of the ACDD, conduct follow-up consultations with our stakeholders and officially launch the ACDD portal in April 2022,” BOC Management Information Systems and Technology Group (MISTG) deputy commissioner Allan Geronimo said in a statement.
Geronimo, who is also vice chair for technical matters of the National Single Window-Technical Working Group (NSW-TWG), led a consultation and briefing session on the ACDD on March 3.
The briefing provided an opportunity for BOC officials, who will play vital roles in the ACDD implementation, to seek clarifications on the draft customs memorandum order for the implementation and gain better understanding of how to navigate the ACDD operations portal and the BOC routing platform.
These offices include MISTG, which will be responsible for extracting data elements from the BOC export single administrative document and for general administration of the ACDD operations portal; the Export Coordination Division, which will monitor all outbound ACDD messages; Export Division, which will support the conduct of outreach sessions for exporters, importers, and customs brokers; and the Risk Management Office, for the use of inbound ACDD messages to support its risk management activities.
The Philippines successfully participated on January 21 in the live operation of the ACDD using the ASEAN Single Window (ASW) and is now able to exchange the ACDD with Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Thailand.
This development came after BOC said in December 2021 that the Philippines had started exchanging electronic ACDD using the live environment of the ASW. BOC earlier said once parameters have been approved by ASEAN, the Philippines may start exchanging live ACDD data in the ASW production environment by December 2021.
The ACDD is a multipurpose document that is used to facilitate exchange of export declaration information among ASEAN member states. The ACDD portal, meanwhile, connects the ASW to TradeNet.
READ: TradeNet is online platform for PH National Single Window
BOC noted that the expected benefits for participating traders include potential reduction in customs clearance time for consignments, which are supported by the ACDD and imported into exchange-ready advanced manifest system.
The ASW is the regional initiative to speed up cargo clearance and promote regional economic integration by enabling the electronic exchange of border documents among the 10 ASEAN member states. TradeNet, meanwhile, is the country’s national single window, which is a prerequisite to connect to the ASW.
In December 2020, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Singapore started exchanging the ACDD through the ASW, followed by Malaysia and Thailand from March 31, 2021, while the remaining ASEAN member states were expected to join the live operation within 2021.
In August 2021, BOC said it completed the bidding of its ACDD system, which, when implemented, would enable the Philippines to electronically exchange ACDD on the ASW and help the country to digitize trade processes and maximize the potential of intra-ASEAN trade.
READ: PH joins ASEAN live electronic exchange of customs declaration document
Aside from the ACDD, the ASW also allows the electronic exchange of trade documents such as the electronic Certificate of Origin Form D under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, and the electronic phyto-sanitary and animal health certificates that the regional group plans to exchange soon.
Currently, electronic certificates of origin can be exchanged by Philippine exporters with other ASEAN member states. BOC and other government agencies are also working to onboard all trade regulatory government agencies (TRGA) to TradeNet this year to allow online application for import and export permits. Earlier, BOC said 21 TRGAs are already onboard TradeNet, while the remaining more than 50 will be onboard this year.
