Subic Bay International Container Terminal, Inc. (SBITC) will soon be opening its One-Stop Shop (OSS) facility in Subic port, preceded by a dry run set for April 20.
Expected to help expedite processing of shipments in the Northern Luzon hub, the OSS will house staff from the SBITC, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) seaport operations, and Bureau of Customs (BOC)-Subic in one location.
BOC offices to be found inside the facility are the BOC’s Transshipment Unit, Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group, Entry Processing Unit, Management Information System and Technology Group, X-ray, and Collection Unit/Releasing. Port users will also find BOC officials such as the examiner (COO III), appraiser (COO V), and chief of assessment within the premises.
In an advisory dated April 15, SBITC said the OSS “promotes seamless transaction flow where customers can toggle between counters to address BOC and SBMA requirements,” and is only 15 steps away from the SBITC Billing Center.
There is also a business lounge equipped with Wi-Fi connection where customs brokers and forwarders can wait in comfort while making their transactions at SBITC, or make last-minute corrections or adjustments prior to payment.
SBMA will also provide free shuttle service to ensure clients get around the zone easily and conveniently.
SBMA chairman Roberto Garcia earlier said the establishment of the OSS is in response to the request of port users to have the offices of government agencies involved in clearing shipments situated close together so that applicants won’t have to go to their different buildings scattered around the Freeport zone to follow up on their transactions.
Garcia said that if the shipper’s documents are complete and in order, processing in the OSS can be done within four hours “as long as the queue is not long.”
The OSS is located on San Bernardino Road, Subic Port District in Subic Bay Freeport Zone. Specifically, it can be found inside the terminal compound beside SBITC’s Billing Center.
Meanwhile, to further encourage more shipments to Subic port, SBMA has adopted a one-day accreditation process for the benefit of port users. SBMA has removed “all the other burdensome requirements” in accreditation to entice customs brokers, freight forwarders, and truckers to service the port, according to Garcia.
He noted that the one-day processing of temporary accreditation will only require applicants to produce the company’s business registration, the company license, and the names of its employees. As for members of the Philippine International Seafreight Forwarders Association, Inc., an endorsement from the organization is needed. The temporary accreditation is valid for six months. – Roumina Pablo
