PHILEXPORT one-stop shop to sign CO while ECD is closed

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PHILEXPORT office in Pasay City. File photo courtesy of PHILEXPORT.
  • Exporters should go to the Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (PHILEXPORT) office in Pasay City to have their certificate of origin (CO) signed while the Bureau of Customs’ (BOC) Export Coordination Division (ECD) remains temporarily closed
  • The ECD may still be reached by email and through BOC’s Customer Care Portal system for instructions on processing and to respond to exporters’ queries
  • PHILEXPORT’s One-Stop Export Documentation Center has a designated customs officer to sign the COs

Exporters should go to the Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (PHILEXPORT) office in Pasay City to submit their certificate of origin (CO) and have it signed while the Bureau of Customs’ (BOC) Export Coordination Division (ECD) is temporarily closed.

The temporary closure is “in light of the growing concerns” with rising COVID-19 cases in the country and in support of government measures to prevent further spread of the virus, according to a March 29 memorandum by Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group (AOCG) deputy commissioner Edward James Dy Buco. ECD is under AOCG.

In a separate notice, BOC said: “Rest assured that we remain fully committed to servicing all our clients while we endure the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.”

While closed until further notice, the ECD may still be reached via email or the BOC’s
Customer Care Portal System (client.customs.gov.ph) to process exporters’ instructions
and respond to their queries, according to the notice.

Dy Buco confirmed to PortCalls in a text message that a customs officer is assigned to PHILEXPORT’s One-Stop Export Documentation Center.

Part of the confederation’s services, the one-stop shop processes export declarations by air and by sea such as COs, as well as the export commodity clearances of BOC, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and Bureau of Plant Industry.

A CO is a document declaring in which country a commodity or good was manufactured, and under many treaty agreements, it is required for cross-border trade so as to determine whether certain goods are eligible for import or are subject to duties.

The one-stop shop will be open until March 31 (half-day) and will temporarily close during Holy Week, resuming operations on April 5.

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