Customs Department has export-import turnover of "hundred billion dollars"

The professional activities at the Bac Ninh Customs Department. Photo: T.Trang.

Apart from the objective factors due to the socio-economic development of the province, to obtain this result, it was a great effort by the unit to facilitate trade and improve the business environment for enterprises in its management area.

Visiting the Thai Nguyen Customs Sub-Department in the days near the Lunar New Year, the exciting working atmosphere made me quite surprised. The customs officers were still wrapped up in their work justthe same as on normal working days, maybe, the thingsthat gave aTet atmosphere here were the presence of a kumquat tree and a peach branch to decorate the work area. For years, the customs staff here have worked duringboth the holidays and Tet. Especially the Lunar New Year, all export and import activities of the enterprises have still taken place as normal days in the area.

Not only the Thai Nguyen Customs Sub-Department, but the sub-departments such as the Yen Phong Customs, the Bac Ninh Customs, the Bac Giang Customs… were also excited. This is understandable, because all enterprises operating in the area are big FDI enterprises, they do not have Tet days off likeVietnamese people, therefore, all export and import activities are carried out normally, even if the surroundingsare flooded in Lunar New Year atmosphere.

As a newly established Customs Department and put into operation from the end of 2012, the Bac Ninh Customs Department is in charge of customs management in three provinces: Thai Nguyen, Bac Ninh and Bac Giang. In the operation area there isno seaport, no airport, no international border, the Bac Ninh Customs Department is only in charge of the customs management for large industrial zones. Therefore, the customs management at Bac Ninh Customs Department is quite typical where total import and export turnover of goods is rather large.

Meeting casuallytheHead of the Bac Ninh Customs Department, Tran Thanh To, when he was checking and givingNew Yeargreetings to his units, he said happily that the Bac Ninh Customs Department made customs procedures for about 2,600 customs declaration sheets on average every day in 2017. Although there was a lot ofwork, the unit always ensured the time to deal with the customs procedures for enterprisesand had not incurred any delaysorcongestionin the export-import activities.

To support the enterprises well, the Department has implemented many forms of support, including the application of information technology in management of export-import goods; To grasp, resolve petitions, difficulties and obstacles for the enterprises actively.

According to the Head of Bac Ninh Customs Department, the unit always emphasized the working principle of "accompanying the enterprises", understanding thoroughly the enterprises. Therefore, during many past years, the unit focused on reforming customs procedures and modernization, withefforts to improve the enforcement apparatus to meet management requirementsand create good conditions for the enterprises in the customs procedures.

There were many occasions for the Customs News reportersto attend enterprise dialogue meetingswiththe Bac Ninh Customs Department and to be in contact with a number of customers carrying out procedures through the area regularly.The reporters acknowledgeand praisethe promotion of law dissemination to the business community. The enterprises said that the Bac Ninh Customs Department had been very active in using various forms such as sending documents, publicizing documents, propagating on the provincial portal and other media means to reach the enterprises. Thanks to the constant maintenance of contacts, dialoguesto resolve arising problems werecarried outtimely and correctly, so that, most enterprises in the province observe the law well. In addition, the Bac Ninh Customs has strengthened its cooperation with other agencies and departments in the province to exchange and provide information and solve administrative procedures quickly and accurately. In particular, some activities were remarkable, such as coordinating with the provincial Tax Department in the management of tax refund, coordinating with commercial banks and connecting online with the State Treasury to implement the electronic tax payment via banks. Thereby, the fee and charge payment time for enterprises was shortened significantly.

In particular, to solve the "problem" of reducing costs in production and business activities, improving the efficiency and profitability of enterprises operating in the area, the Bac Ninh Customs Department built the organizational structure in the direction of creating the most favorable conditions for enterprises by setting up the customs unit carrying out the procedures in the key industrial zones.

In a talk with the reporters of the Customs News, General Director of the GoerTek Vina Co., Ltd - Mr. Jung Dae Young was happy to share, that GoerTek Vina Co., Ltd. was established from the end of 2013 with an initial capital of US$ 4 millionand withonly about 400 employees in the beginning. Up to now, after more than 4 years of operation, the investment capital of the company is US$ 45 million with over 12,000 employees. “Our company has got a lot of support from the Bac Ninh Customs Department right from the beginning; with enthusiastic support withconsultationsof customs procedures, guiding the legal documents for making the facilitation, solving customs procedures quickly and removing the arising problems timely…theyhave created a favorable investment environment for the FDI companies for them to want to invest in Vietnam,” affirmed Mr. Jung Dae Young.

To evaluate the Bac Ninh Customs Department, Mr. Nguyen Tu Quynh, Chairman of Bac Ninh People's Committee, affirmed that despite being newly established, the Bac Ninh Customs Department had asserted itself step by step and had made important contributionsfor the economy – social development in Bac Ninh province in particular, and Bac Giang and Thai Nguyen provinces in general.

A new spring is coming, and for the Bac Ninh Customs, the 2017 resultswill be the driving force for them to continue striving to fulfill their tasks in 2018.