MALACAÑAN PALACE

MANILA

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 142

IMPLEMENTING THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) AMONG THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE PARTICIPATING MEMBER STATES OF THE ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS (ASEAN) ON THE SECOND PILOT PROJECT FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A REGIONAL SELF-CERTIFICATION SYSTEM (“SECOND PILOT PROJECT”)

WHEREAS, ASEAN Leaders decided to establish an ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by 2015 and adopted the AEC Blueprint at the 13th ASEAN Summit on 20 November 2007 to establish ASEAN as a single market and production base, making it more dynamic and competitive as an economic region where there is a free flow of goods, services, investment, skilled labor and capital;

WHEREAS, the Rules of Origin (ROO) play a crucial role in the achievement of a free flow of goods within the ASEAN single market;

WHEREAS, the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), which was signed on 26 February 2009 in Cha-am, Thailand, and entered into force on 17 May 2010, provides for a framework to realize the free flow of goods in the region;

WHEREAS, Article 38 and Annexes 7 and 8 of ATIGA provide for the relevant modalities and procedures for the application of the preferential treatment to goods falling within the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA);

WHEREAS, Executive Order (EO) No. 850 (s. 2009), which was issued to implement tariff reduction/elimination commitments in accordance with the obligations under Articles 19 and 21 of ATIGA, requires compliance with the applicable ATIGA ROO and its Operational Certification Procedure (OCP), including the submission of a valid Certificate of Origin (Form D), in order to avail of preferential tariff rates under ATIGA;

WHEREAS, the initiative to adopt a self-certification scheme in ASEAN emanated from the decision of the 22nd AFTA Council Meeting in August 2008 to develop mechanisms that will enhance the AFTA ROO and streamline certification procedures in line with the AEC Blueprint;

WHEREAS, pursuant to the “Work Plan for the Development and Operationalization of an ASEAN Self-Certification Regime,” endorsed by the 23rd AFTA Council Meeting, the MOU on the First Pilot Project was signed on 30 August 2010 by Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia and Singapore;

WHEREAS, following the decision of the 25th AFTA Council Meeting in August 2011 to allow other ASEAN Member States to have their own self-certification pilot project under a set of rules and conditions different from the First Pilot Project, the MOU on the Second Pilot Project was signed on 29 August 2012 by the Philippines, Indonesia and Lao People’s Democratic Republic;

WHEREAS, the President of the Philippines ratified the MOU on the Second Pilot Project on 14 March 2013; and,

WHEREAS, during its meeting on 26 June 2013, the NEDA Board approved the Philippine implementation of the MOU on the Second Pilot Project.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BENIGNO S. AQUINO III, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:

SECTION 1. Objective. The MOU on the Second Pilot Project, which is attached as an integral part of this Order, aims to implement a regional self-certification system within the AFTA, in preparation for the development and operationalization of an ASEAN-wide Self-Certification System by 2015.

SECTION 2. Self-Certification Scheme. Under the self-certification scheme, there shall be no need to present a Certificate of Origin (Form D) in claiming tariff preferences as it allows Certified Exporters to self-declare that their products have satisfied the ATIGA ROO by making such declaration on the commercial invoice.

SECTION 3. Procedural Arrangements. The MOU on the Second Pilot Project shall be implemented according to the modalities set out in its Annex.

SECTION 4. Obligations. Throughout the implementation of the MOU on the Second Pilot Project, the Philippines shall accord to goods originating from other participating Member States the preferential tariff treatment set out in Article 19 of ATIGA, upon the submission of either a Certificate of Origin (Form D), or an Invoice Declaration made by a Certified Exporter in accordance with the Annex of the MOU on the Second Pilot Project and the regulations of the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

SECTION 5. Implementing Agency. The BOC shall be the implementing agency for the MOU on the Second Pilot Project, and shall perform the following functions:

a. Grant, suspend or revoke the status of Certified Exporters, subject to the qualifications/criteria/conditions it may impose;

b. Monitor the proper use of the Certified Exporters status, including the verification of the authenticity and validity of the Invoice Declarations made;

c. Monitor compliance of Certified Exporters with the laws, rules and regulations pertinent to exportation and importation; and

d. Perform other appropriate functions consistent with the implementation of the MOU on the Second Pilot Project.

A Customs Administrative Order shall be issued by BOC for this purpose after consultations with relevant stakeholders.

SECTION 6. Repealing Clause. All issuances, orders, rules and regulations, or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Order are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

SECTION 7. Separability Clause. If any provision of this Order is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 8. Effectivity Clause. This Order shall take effect immediately upon publication in a newspaper of general circulation and shall remain in force until the termination of the MOU on the Second Pilot Project.

DONE, in the City of Manila, this 14th of October, in the year of our Lord, Two Thousand and Thirteen.

(Sgd.) BENIGNO S. AQUINO III
President of the Philippines

By the President:

(Sgd.) PAQUITO N. OCHOA, JR.
Executive Secretary

References: Memorandum of Understanding among the Governments of the participating Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the Second Pilot Project for the Implementation of a Regional Self-Certification System

Annex – Operational Certification Procedure

Source: Malacañang Records Office

Office of the President of the Philippines. (2013). [Executive Order]. Manila : Malacañang Records Office.