Lang Son Customs Department builds trust in the business community

	Lang Son launches digital border gate platform at Huu Nghi border gate
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	Lang Son stops receiving trucks transporting fresh fruits and flowers to border gates

Customs officer of Hữu Nghị Customs Branch inspects imported goods. Photo: H.Nu

Automate the customs clearance process

The city is firing on all cylinders with well- equipped and busy border gates and the lines of trucks and containers is always bustling.

Despite the pandemic, which negatively impacted import and export activities, it is estimated that the total turnover through border gates in Lang Son province still grew strongly with an impressive figure of US$3,857 million, an increase of 46% compared to 2020.

Tax revenue from this activity also reached VND7,750 billion, an increase of 87.51% over the same period in 2020 and the fees for using infrastructure was approximately VND552 billion. At this time, although in Lang Son province, only Huu Nghi, Chi Ma and Dong Dang international border gates maintain customs clearance, all work to ensure import and export is still very exciting with an urgent atmosphere, facilitating most businesses.

Speaking with Customs News about the results achieved, Mr. Nguyen Huu Vuong, Deputy Director of the Lang Son Customs Department said now 99% of procedures related to import and export goods of enterprises are carried out via the VNACCS system.

The implementation of declarations on the system is completely automatic, helping businesses take the initiative in time, reduce paperwork and declaration procedures, thereby, reducing customs clearance time and saving costs for businesses.

In addition, the implementation of the project on electronic tax payment and 24/7 customs clearance is also a breakthrough in the collection and payment of taxes, fees and charges in accordance with the law for import and export activities which also helps to reduce tax payment and customs clearance time.

In addition to the application of information technology systems of the Customs authorities to advance business processes, over the years, Lang Son province has also expended resources to invest in functional areas and logistics services. As a result, import and export of goods, entry and exit of people and vehicles through border gates, including Huu Nghi international border gate, Tan Thanh border gate are increasingly open.

Talking to reporters, Director of Huu Nghi Border Gate Customs Branch Nguyen Tien Bo said that in the roadmap of administrative procedure reform, the unit has also recently implemented a lot of new processes which apply online technology such as implementing automatic customs management supervision; promoting the provision of online public services; deploying the National Single Window and ASEAN. In particular, in September 2021, Huu Nghi Customs is also one of the first units to pilot the digital border gate platform for Lang Son province.

Together with Huu Nghi, Tan Thanh and Chi Ma Customs Branches have been making efforts to reform and modernize.

Typically, at Tan Thanh Customs Sub-Department, which mainly imports and exports agricultural products, fruits and aquatic products, there are more than 400 businesses each year that carry out import and export activities through this border gate. During the fruit season, on average, about 2,000 tons of agricultural products move across the border every day. Ms. Dao Thu Lan, Director of Tan Thanh Customs Sub-Department, xaid that in order to create favorable conditions for import and export activities, more than 99.6% of declarations are currently processed automatically and customs clearance time for customers in the Green declarations is only from 1-3 seconds.

Mobilize the most of domestic strengths

With the achieved results, Lang Son Customs is gradually affirming its role in the general socio-economic development of Lang Son province. In recent years, budget collection in Lang Son Customs

Department has left many good impressions. In particular, despite being heavily affected by the Covid-19 epidemic, in 2021, an impressive number of VND7,750 billion in state budget collection and payment shows that Lang Son Customs has been mobilizing its strengths to overcome difficulties and successfully completing the task.

The impressive achievement is thanks to the fully awareness of the importance to the organization of personnel with the motto "Doing all the work, not running out of time". Moreover, the Customs Office regularly promotes the reform of administrative procedures, step by step applying information technology to all fields and stages of work; publicizing documents related to customs procedures, holding dialogues and collecting feedback from businesses, promptly dealing with enterprises' problems during customs procedures.

Thanks to such effective measures to reduce costs, time for businesses and increase the capacity of customs clearance the image and position of Lang Son Customs has improved which created trust for the business community, party committees, authorities and people in the province.

Promoting that achievement, Lang Son Customs will focus on implementing the Customs modernization reform plan for the 2021-2025 period, continuing to maximize its advantages to facilitate customs clearance of import and export goods.