Customs office extends manual customs services<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Directorate General of Customs and Excise
\nhas agreed to extend the manual processing of import customs
\ndeclarations until June 15.<\/p>\n
Director General Soehardjo Soebardi said he agreed because not
\nall importers had subscribed to the electronic data interchange
\n(EDI) system.<\/p>\n
\"Not all importers are ready to implement the EDI system so
\nthe manual system is extended for another 45 days, although
\nmanual processing of documents takes longer,\" Soehardjo said here
\nover the weekend.<\/p>\n
The directorate general had required all importers to submit
\ncustoms declarations through the EDI system or diskettes (to be
\nprocessed at the EDI) starting May 1.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Importers Association's chairman, Amirudin
\nSaud, had urged the customs office to extend the transition
\nperiod by eight weeks so importers could better prepare.<\/p>\n
Most importers had not yet subscribed to the EDI system, and
\nhad to process their customs declarations manually, Amirudin
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"Most of them don't even understand how to prepare customs
\ndeclaration forms on a diskette,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Through the EDI system, importers can send their customs
\ndeclarations electronically to the customs office and
\nelectronically pay import duties to their recipient banks.<\/p>\n
The system electronically connects the customs office with
\nimporters, shipping firms, foreign exchange banks and port and
\nairport authorities.<\/p>\n
Currently only 2.5 percent of all importers and three foreign
\nexchange banks subscribe to the system.<\/p>\n
The government subsidizes the operation of the EDI system to
\nencourage related parties, especially importers and banks, to
\nsubscribe to it.<\/p>\n
The EDI system would speed up document processing and customs
\nclearance for the release of goods from the port, Customs
\nDirector Permana Agung said.<\/p>\n
Importers and customs brokers have complained that the
\nmovement of containers from Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta and
\nTanjung Perak port in Surabaya, East Java, has been slow due to
\nthe slow processing of customs documents.<\/p>\n
They also complained that too many import consignments had
\nbeen ordered to the red lane, requiring physical inspection.<\/p>\n
Containers took up 97 percent of the terminals' capacity
\nseveral days ago before decreasing to some 80 percent over the
\nweekend when some were transferred to private container terminals
\nfor stacking.<\/p>\n
Stacking containers at private terminals costs importers more.<\/p>\n
Permana said the customs office alone could not be blamed for
\nthe slow movement of goods because many parties, including the
\nport authority, were involved in clearing goods from customs
\nareas.<\/p>\n
But he again pledged to facilitate quicker clearance of goods
\nfrom customs areas by forging better coordination with port,
\nairport authorities, banks and customs brokers. (rid)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/customs-office-extends-manual-customs-services-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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