Asean and EU’s new online customs system set to boost trade in Asean

The ACTS was developed with the support of the European Union.
The new online system will reduce intra-Asean trading challenges and enable companies to benefit fully from the Asean Economic Community (AEC) and the free movement of goods across the region, Asean said.
In 2017, Asean Economic Ministers set the twin goals of reducing trade transaction costs by 10 per cent by 2020 and doubling intra-Asean trade between 2017 and 2025. To realise this goal, the ACTS has been developed to allow businesses to lodge e-transit declarations directly with Asean Customs Authorities and to track the movement of their goods from loading at departure to delivery at the final destination.
“The implementation of the ACTS plays a vital role in facilitating seamless movement of goods in the region. I believe the system would be an excellent tool in enhancing Asean’s trade and production networks as well as establishing a more unified market for its firms and consumers,” said Lim Jock Hoi, the Asean secretary-general. 
“The ACTS could also support post Covid-19 recovery to accelerate the transit movement of medical supplies, vaccines and personal protective equipment within the member States,” he added.
Under the ACTS, the private sector can make a single Customs transit declaration that covers the transport of goods across multiple Asean countries, without the need to make repeated Customs declarations or change vehicles at each border. Special arrangements allow reliable traders to load their goods at their own premises in the country of departure, and to deliver the goods to their own premises at destination. Faster Customs clearance at borders helps accelerate transit movements, and reduce the time and expense of carrying out regional trade in goods, to the benefit of producers and consumers across the continental Asean region, Asean said.
The system is managed by a permanent ACTS central management team based in the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta, with support from the EU-funded ARISE Plus programme. Regional and national ACTS helpdesks are available (see https://acts.asean.org).
"The ACTS is a remarkable achievement that is testament to the strong, dynamic and long-standing partnership between Asean and the European Union,” said Koen Doens, director-general for International Cooperation and Development at the European Commission. 
“The ACTS will make the movement of goods by road quicker and easier across the borders of the participating Asean member states, thereby reducing costs for businesses and citizens. The EU is proud to have joined Asean to make the ACTS a reality, providing European technical expertise and 10 million euros since 2012, in addition to the 5 million euros invested by our Asean partners,” he added.
ARISE Plus has provided extensive ACTS training for stakeholders in the public and private sectors, including Customs authorities, government transport agencies, freight forwarders, transporters, banks and insurance companies. Following the ACTS pilot activities in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, the system has now been formally launched for general use. The first successful ACTS transit movement occurred on October 23 and 24 with a truck travelling from Singapore via Malaysia to Thailand. The system will soon be available in Myanmar, and depending on business needs may later be expanded to Brunei, Indonesia and Philippines.
"We are excited to have the Asean Customs Transit System in place,” said Yukki Nugrahawan, chairman of the Asean Federation of Forwarders Associations. 
“The freight forwarding community will be one of the main beneficiaries of this system, as it offers simplified Customs and transport control procedures between different Asean member states, and provides predictability on door-to-door delivery times and most importantly reduced transport costs. The ACTS will significantly accelerate transit movements across the region and help us reduce time and expenses of carrying out cross border trade in Asean,” he added.