Customs office extends manual customs services
JAKARTA (JP): The Directorate General of Customs and Excise has agreed to extend the manual processing of import customs declarations until June 15.
Director General Soehardjo Soebardi said he agreed because not all importers had subscribed to the electronic data interchange (EDI) system.
"Not all importers are ready to implement the EDI system so the manual system is extended for another 45 days, although manual processing of documents takes longer," Soehardjo said here over the weekend.
The directorate general had required all importers to submit customs declarations through the EDI system or diskettes (to be processed at the EDI) starting May 1.
The Indonesian Importers Association's chairman, Amirudin Saud, had urged the customs office to extend the transition period by eight weeks so importers could better prepare.
Most importers had not yet subscribed to the EDI system, and had to process their customs declarations manually, Amirudin said.
"Most of them don't even understand how to prepare customs declaration forms on a diskette," he said.
Through the EDI system, importers can send their customs declarations electronically to the customs office and electronically pay import duties to their recipient banks.
The system electronically connects the customs office with importers, shipping firms, foreign exchange banks and port and airport authorities.
Currently only 2.5 percent of all importers and three foreign exchange banks subscribe to the system.
The government subsidizes the operation of the EDI system to encourage related parties, especially importers and banks, to subscribe to it.
The EDI system would speed up document processing and customs clearance for the release of goods from the port, Customs Director Permana Agung said.
Importers and customs brokers have complained that the movement of containers from Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta and Tanjung Perak port in Surabaya, East Java, has been slow due to the slow processing of customs documents.
They also complained that too many import consignments had been ordered to the red lane, requiring physical inspection.
Containers took up 97 percent of the terminals' capacity several days ago before decreasing to some 80 percent over the weekend when some were transferred to private container terminals for stacking.
Stacking containers at private terminals costs importers more.
Permana said the customs office alone could not be blamed for the slow movement of goods because many parties, including the port authority, were involved in clearing goods from customs areas.
But he again pledged to facilitate quicker clearance of goods from customs areas by forging better coordination with port, airport authorities, banks and customs brokers. (rid)