WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/TF/W/61 
14 September 2005 
 (05-4021) 
Negotiating Group on Trade Facilitation Original:   English 
  
 
COMMUNICATION FROM THAILAND 
  
 The following communication, dated 12 Septem ber 2005, from the Delegation of Thailand, is 
being circulated in advance of the Negot iating Group meeting of 19-20 September. 
 
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TRADE FACILITATION:  THAILAND'S EXPERIENCES 
 
1. This paper provides a summary of Thailand' s recent achievements in terms of the 
simplification and computerization of the customs cl earance system, as administered mainly by the 
Thai Customs Department and also other related agencies. 
I. RECENT DEVELOPMENT IN THAILAND 
A. U
SE OF ELECTRONIC DATA INTERCHANGE (EDI) 
2. The Customs Department has implemented the EDI for documents such as invoice, 
declaration, vessel/flight schedule, sea/air cargo manifest, bay/stowage plan of occupied and empty container location list and credit/debit advice.  It has also implemented the EDI for the Import and 
Export processing system at major customs sea ports and airports since January 2000.   
3. The system helped facilitate trade flows by linking exporters and impor ters to the Customs 
Department and at the same time offered a wa y to electronically settle tariff calculations and 
payments.  It also saved cost and time for businessmen by reducing the number of clearance procedures to a minimum.  At present, approxi mately 90 per cent of all declaration forms are 
processed through this system.   
4. Apart from the existing EDI via the Value Added Network or VAN, the Thai Customs 
Department has also provided the web-based EDI system as another alternative to importers and 
exporters, especially the SMEs, for the on-line Customs declaration.  Currently, the Department is in 
the process of developing the web-based system th at could reliably and securely serve all kinds of 
import and export declarations.  In the future, the EDI via VAN will be replaced by the web-based 
EDI provided that the latter is fully developed. 
5. Along with the EDI system, the Electronic Fund Tr ansfer system (EFT) has also been put in 
place to accommodate importers and exporters to settle the payment of customs duties through the 
EDI system.  Now the EFT has be en used at the Bangkok International Airport Customs Bureau, 
Bangkok Seaport, Laem-Chabang Sea port and, recently, at CRC Seaport (private-run seaport) and 
Lard-krabang Inland Container Depot (ICD).   TN/TF/W/61 
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 B. "O
NE DAY CLEARANCE " PROJECT  
6. In August 2004, the Customs Department, in coope ration with the Port Authority of Thailand 
(PAT), the Thai Airways International Public Co mpany Limited and the Airport of Thailand Public 
Company Limited launched the "One Day Clearance" project.  The objectives of the One Day Clearance Service are to accelerat e the clearance of inbound and outbound cargoes so that importers 
and exporters can move their cargoes within 24 hours, and to reduce the time of information exchange 
between the four agencies.   
7. Thai Customs has streamlined its working pr ocess by implementing an electronic information 
system incorporated with the Port Authority of Th ailand to ensure that the importers can pick up the 
declared goods within one working day, provided th at the required documents are properly submitted.  
Under this project, the Customs Department must complete the inspection process within 7 days and 
the other related agencies will have 17 hours to comple te their tasks.  The new system began at the 
3 major ports of entry: Bangkok Port, Laem Chab ang Port and Bangkok International Airport.   
C. S
INGLE WINDOW E-L OGISTICS  
8. The Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) has taken forward the 
"Single-Window e-Logistics" initiative proposed by  the National Economic and Social Development 
Board as one of the national agenda priorities to enhance the overall competitiveness of the country 
through an efficient logistics-related information fl ow.  The project will deliver a national information 
network with a single web interface that enables th e exchange of electronic documents and services 
among government agencies, businesses and logistics co mmunities so as to eliminate inefficiencies in 
administering cross-border transactions and maxi mize the business value of ICT in fulfilling all 
import, export, transit-related regulatory and transportation-related requirements. 
9. To advance the development of this project, MICT has established a National Blueprint in 
developing core IT systems that will facilita te the exchange of commercial and regulatory 
documentation necessary for trade and logistics.  Sp ecifically, the blueprint provides the functional 
and technical architecture and the development road map for the standardization, simplification and 
harmonization of legally binding trade-related electronic doc uments and business processes.   
10. A pilot project, or so-called One-Stop Export Se rvice Center, led by the Department of Export 
Promotion and Thai Customs Department is now being implemented taking initially into account 
functions and requirements of 8 agencies based on Customs value framework to provide a web-based 
Single Window Entry system that enables exporters to apply for trade permits and licenses/certificates 
through centralized e-Forms.  The second phase of th e project will incorporate relevant technologies 
such as digital signature and data water mark ing to enable exporters to print approved 
licenses/certificates from their own Personal Computer.   
D. ONE-STOP EXPORT SERVICE CENTER  
11. As mentioned above, Thailand is now opera ting the Pilot Project on Single Window for 
exporters naming the One-Stop Export Service Center .  This new multi-governmental agency unit was 
created in early June 2002 within the Export Pr omotion Department to expedite the process of 
granting export certificates.  The Center aims to shorten the application process by one week, granting approval to food exporters within one to three days.   
12. The Center targets at providing export services to manufacturers of varied items among which 
agricultural products and textiles are first priorities.  The Center is maintained by 20 officers led by a 
Director who is appointed by the Export Promoti on Department.  There are 14 officers who come 
from 6 sectoral ministries (Comme rce, Finance, Agriculture, Indus try, etc.) and take care of  TN/TF/W/61 
 Page 3 
 
 
 professional issues which are under the jurisdiction of their respective ministries.  Every export 
documents received will be handled immediately by th e Center and results will be returned within 1-2 
days.   
13. Every officer delegated by the ministries and de partments is authorized  to make decisions, 
stamp and be responsible for the results (it takes 30-60 minutes to handle documents at each stage of 
the process).  Only extremely comp licated cases which can not be se ttled properly by the Center will 
be forwarded to a higher level for thorough examina tion and final decision.  In this case, results can 
only be returned within 2-3 days (only in the case where the Center functions as a receive-return unit).  
In the process that documents are handled by pr ofessional sections, the Head of the Center can only 
coordinate and facilitate activities instead of direc tly interfering in professional decisions of officers 
who come from different sectoral ministries.   
14. The center will continue to provide licenses and certify food exporters until the Single 
Window system is fully developed to process all the information digitally.   
E. OTHER DEVELOPMENTS  
1. Appeal Procedures and Due Process  
15. A special Customs Appeal Committee was established under section 112 bis of the Customs 
Act to make decisions concerning any valuation di screpancy between customs officers and concerned 
importers.  In principle, if there are any discrepancies concerning valuation, tariff classification, amount of duty payable, origin of goods and quan tity of imported goods when the declaration and 
related documents are verified by customs officer s, the concerned importe rs, exporters, or their 
agents, can appeal the customs' decision at that time.   
16. The appeals can be made within specified time limits.  For example, under section 112 bis of 
the Customs Act (2002), importers and exporters have  the right to submit the appeals to the Customs 
Department within 30 days after the date of r eceiving the notice assessment. Further avenues to seek 
review by the Tax Court also exist and become available after the initial appeals process at the 
Customs Department is concluded.   
2. Risk Management Programme 
17. The Thai Customs Department has implemented this customs technique to simplify the cargo 
clearance since the year 2000.  To achieve the obj ective, the customs procedure was improved by 
introducing the post-clearance audit instead of the pre- clearance audit.  Furthe rmore, the trade-related 
profiling system has been developed so as to u se a reference data to identify high-risk goods.  
Recognizing the increase of trade volume, the Depart ment has also reduced physical examination by 
focusing on the improvement of the customs profilin g system, targeting techniques and upgrading the 
responding units and allocating more resource pers ons to increase the efficiency of post-clearance 
audit and risk management.   
3. Business Partnership 
(a) The Gold Card Privileges  
18. In order to facilitate and expedite the Cust oms procedures for import or export clearance, 
drawback, and tax compensation for the maximum be nefits of the reliable importers/exporters, the 
Customs Department has entitled Gold Card Class fo r importers/exporters that have qualifications as 
specified by the Customs Department.  The Gold Card members will receive the Customs privileges TN/TF/W/61 
Page 4  
 
 such as the exemption from inspection, the duty drawback approval at the time of submission of 
claim, etc. 
(b) Joint Customs Consultation 
19. The Customs Department has initiated the Joint Customs Consultation with the private sector 
in order to discuss and exchange information with regard to the problems or difficulties faced in the 
process through customs formalities.  Representatives from the private sectors, such as the Chamber 
of Commerce and the Federation of Industry, are also invited to such Consultation.  This Consultation 
is also used as a channel to distribute an update of  information on rules and regulations in order to 
enhance the business sector to comply with them.   
II. CONCLUSION 
20. Thailand hopes that the above-mentioned expe riences could in some way contribute to 
develop more constructive discussions am ong negotiating Members on this issue. 
21. We strongly believe that the extensive excha nge of views and integration of meaningful 
technical assistance and capacity building will certainly help bridge the gap and create a common understanding among WTO Members.  It is also su ggested that Members work in cooperation with 
each other in order to find a mutually satisfactory so lution that suits the interests of Member countries 
while sufficiently addressing concerns of developi ng and least-developed countries.  On our part, 
Thailand would be willing to coopera te and coordinate with other WTO Members in order to attain 
the ultimate objective of better Trade Facilitation.   
 
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