Duration: 1 hour
On 8 November, EuroCham’s Transports & Logistics Committee hosted a half-day forum to discuss the modernisation and digitalisation of customs processes. The private sector voiced their concerns and the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE) of Cambodia outlined their vision for 2024 and beyond. We were pleased to welcome HE Dr. KUN Nhem, Director General of the General Department of Customs and Excise to this event.
The private sector concerns included pushing for the full adoption of the ASYCUDA system, faster pre-arrival processing, reduced red tape, and fully remote and digital options for submitting paperwork.
Transport and Logistics Chairman Bunthan Suy advocated for increasing the de minimis threshold in Cambodia, which currently allows for good worth $50 or lower to qualify for simplified customs procedures. In the White Book 2024, the committee recommends a threshold of between $300 and $500, which is comparable to Singapore’s threshold of $295.
“We understand the GDCE has a concern on tax collections, but for the purpose of the development of the SMEs and also to accommodate the development of global e -commerce, we believe that these policy changes on de minimis will help SMEs to reduce their administrative work, to reduce costs and make it easier to access to the international market.
As mentioned by Zoltan Kish, Gateway Manager at DHL Express, express shipment can unlock potential for SME growth. In our fast-paced world, overnight shipping (even across continents) is the norm, and customs clearance process that take too long can prevent SMEs from growing.
H.E. Pha Eng Veng, Deputy Director General of the GDCE, laid out concrete plans to address many of these issues, including updated pre-arrival processes to be ready by January 2024, express consignment likely by 2024, and further evolution of the National Single Window system.
A big thanks to our expert panel, including Vice-Chairman of the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce Oknha Kouch Peng and our moderator Liubov Popova, Mekong Project Manager at MAERSK.