Customs wants to make it easier

The World Bank this year ranked Thailand No 17 in its index for doing business, down from 16 last year. "We can improve our ranking by improving our paperless e-customs," Tanat Suvattanametakul, deputy director-general of the Customs Department, said yesterday.

He said importers and exporters could now pay customs tariff online.

The department will also deploy X-ray machines at checkpoints across the country to facilitate faster cross-border goods shipment.

Currently some border checkpoints do not have X-ray facilities to examine goods, he said.

The department is also working with 35 state agencies to create a single national window, expected to be completed this year, he said. This will help private firms to contact government agencies at a single point where they could get all services, from tax payment to licence approval.

As services have been improved by installing the electronics system, the government was able to save as much as Bt1.25 billion last year. This year, the government plans to achieve savings of Bt3.25 billion, he said.

The World Bank had ranked Thailand at No 10 in 2007 but as other countries upgraded their services for investors, this country’s ranking slipped, Tanat conceded.

However, if the department can work successfully with other state agencies, the country’s ranking could improve and will attract more foreign investment, he said.

Thailand needs to look at the Singapore model, as the city-state ranks first on the ease-of-doing-business index among 183 economies.

Investors in Thailand do not find it very convenient to pay taxes, start a business, get credit, or resolve insolvency. These procedures are time-consuming and create high costs for businesses.

The department is also working with other Asean countries to use the same platform for customs clearance by 2015 when the Asean Economic Community will be launched, he said.