Philippine links up with Asean Single Window

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has officially joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Single Window platform to help ease trade between the country and its neighbors in the region, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).

Citing a report made by Finance Undersecretary and chief economist Gil Beltran to Secretary Carlos Dominguez, the DOF said the country’s trade permit processing platform, TradeNet, has been linked up with the ASEAN Single Window  (ASW) since Dec. 30, 2019.

The DOF said TradeNet’s integration into the ASW platform would expedite cargo clearance and help promote economic integration within the ASEAN region.

Beltran, who is also the DOF’s anti-red tape czar, said going live on the ASW also “lowers communication costs to as low as 10 percent of the original amount and encourages small enterprises to take advantage of preferential tariffs under ATIGA (ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement).”

According to the DOF, the Philippines’ participation in the ASW platform means that the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and its export divisions can now issue electronic Certificate of Origin (eCO) to traders shipping their products to other countries in the region.

Three ports, namely the Port of Manila, Manila International Container Port, and the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, are participating in the pilot implementation of the eCO issuance. This will be done initially with Indonesia and Malaysia.

Meanwhile, the DOF said Beltran, in a meeting with other ASEAN representatives last Jan. 11 in Hanoi, Vietnam, reported that the ASW Steering Committee will add three more documents that can be exchanged via the platform.

These include the electronic phytosanitary certificate, animal health certificate and the ASEAN customs declaration document (ACDD).

“The ASW Steering Committee will also develop a roadmap to enable dialogue partners to join and exchange trade documents online with the 10 ASEAN countries,” Beltran said.

“It will also develop guidelines to handle cancellation or revision of documents exchanged and set Business Process Specifications (BPS) using the common header,” he added.

The Philippines’ link to the ASW, called the TradeNet, aims to facilitate the online processing of permits, licenses and other clearances for the export and import of goods across the region.