The Bureau of Customs has partnered with ARISE Plus Philippines, funded by the European Union, to strengthen trade facilitation.
Key areas of focus include Integrated Risk Management (IRM), Authorized Economic Operator (AEO), e-commerce clearance, taxation, and the operationalization of the Philippine Trade Facilitation Committee (PTFC).
A series of activities were implemented from March 2023 to February 2024, aligning with the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) and the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).
Consultations were held with the Customs e-Commerce Technical Working Group to discuss e-commerce developments related to the draft Customs Administrative Order (CAO) and Customs Memorandum Order (CMO).
Customs, ARISE Plus PH to strengthen trade facilitation
Sep 5, 2023 05:41 AM
At a glance
The Bureau of Customs has teamed up with ARISE Plus Philippines, funded by the European Union, to improve trade facilitation.
In a statement, Commissioner Bienvenido Y. Rubio said the bureau and the European Union-funded group have joined forces to discuss projects focused on digitalizing processes and simplifying procedures to facilitate secure trade.
In particular, the focus is on Integrated Risk Management (IRM), Authorized Economic Operator (AEO), e-commerce clearance, taxation, and the operationalization of the Philippine Trade Facilitation Committee (PTFC).
The ARISE Plus PH project aims to promote inclusive economic growth in the Philippines over a four-year period.
The group also partnered with various private and government sectors, such as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).
During the second year of collaboration between the Customs and ARISE Plus PH, they conducted several consultations with the BOC e-Commerce Technical Working Group.
These sessions focused on e-commerce advancements and discussed the draft Customs Administrative Order (CAO) and Customs Memorandum Order (CMO).
Additionally, the BOC’s Philippine Postal Corporation in Mall of Asia (BOC-PHLPOST MOA) was also included in the line-by-line review of the draft memorandum of agreement (MOA).
On the other hand, the Interim AEO Office and Risk Management Office (RMO) recently met to finalize inter-agency sharing guidelines for the IRM and AEO programs.
To help the BOC implement a dynamic AEO program, A gap analysis for The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) AEO Mutual Recognition Agreement has commenced. This includes the participation of the Trade Regulatory Government Agencies (TRGAs) and the economic operators.
In an attempt to stretch out an awareness of the trading community, a series of public outreach activities are underway.
This is to also help TRGAs and PTFC support BOC in complying with existing international commitments like new or updated requirements. (Gabriell Christel Galang)