Trading community to be further relieved of Customs paper work hassle
The ongoing improvement in the online import export documentation system of the Department of Customs via the Internet will further relieve the trading community of paper work, undue delays, and unnecessary queuing at customs corridors, a top official said.
A team of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) experts will be visiting Sri Lanka to provide expertise to upgrade efficiency of Automated System for Customs Data system (ASYCUDA World) connecting more relevant state agencies with he online platform, Jagath P. Wijeweera, Director General of Customs revealed.
He disclosed that the main state institutions and private agencies involved in the export and import sector such as the harbours, airports, banks, BOI, Tea Board, Custom House Agents, Freight Forwarders, Shipping Lines, and Sri Lanka Ports Authority have been linked to the online platform.
It facilitates the electronic submission of Customs Declaration and allied documentation between the Customs and relevant agencies, he added. An electronic payment system is also in place linking the Bank of Ceylon, People’s Bank and Sampath Bank According to Customs sources, there are around 2000 Custom clearances per day, 55 per cent of which are exports.
“There are over 50,000 registered importers in the country and only a small percentage use the automated system”, a senior official of the Customs told the Business Times adding that almost all the major exporters are using this facility.
The aim of the ongoing automation improvement process is to minimise hassle in cargo clearance and minimising face to face contacts between the trading community or their agents and officials.
The “ Customs’ ” Paperless Exports Clearance Initiative’ has reduced the number of documents in the export process, to 4-5 documents from 12-16 documents in the recent past, he revealed.
A 100 per cent electronic submission system will be developed in the near future in keeping with the development in the world trade. Although it has now been decided to allow the electronic submission of digitally signed Customs process documents viz. Bills of Entry, Shipping Bills, the non-acceptance of electronic signatures in these documents by some of the state institutions connected to imports and exports has become a major stumbling block for e-documentation at present, he said.
This matter would be settled with the intervention of the Finance Ministry, he added.
Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake has given an assurance that he will take necessary action settling any legal issues when accepting e-signatures.
He told the inaugural ‘Ease of doing Business Forum’ in Colombo recently that exporters and importers would not have to go from one institution to another as they can file documents on line using the electronic data exchange system.
If all the taxes are paid, importers should be able to clear the cargo in ‘zero time’,” he said adding that Sri Lankan importers and exporters should change their work times and pattern to suit the 24X7 Customs operation, which is a giant step towards trde facilitation.