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Piers and wharves must apply for an authority to operate as a customs facility and warehouse with the Bureau of Customs
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Piers/wharves must register and apply as a CFW within 30 days upon receipt of a memo issued by Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio
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Failure to do so will be subject to operational suspension or closure
Piers and wharves must apply for an authority to operate as a customs facility and warehouse (CFW) with the Bureau of Customs (BOC), according to a memo issued by Customs commissioner Bienvenido Rubio.
In Office of the Commissioner (OCOM) Memo No. 55-2024 dated October 10 and signed October 21 by Rubio, piers/wharves are required to apply as a CFW within 30 days upon receipt of the memo or risk being suspended or closed.
The registration and application is pursuant to Customs Memorandum Order (CMO) No. 18-2022, which provides rules for the establishment, supervision, operation, and control of CFWs.
READ: BOC rules on setting up CFWs now in effect
The CMO implements Customs Administrative Order (CAO) No. 09-2019, which provides guidelines on the establishment, operation, supervision, and control of CFWs under the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act. It aims to protect government revenues and the imported goods stored in CFWs, and preventing customs fraud.
CFWs are facilities for temporary storage of goods established and authorized by BOC. These include container yards, container freight stations, seaport temporary storage warehouses, airport temporary storage warehouses, and other premises, for customs purposes. Other types of CFWs are terminal facilities, off-dock CFW, off-terminal CFW, and inland container depots.
Operators of terminal facilities with existing contracts granted by the Philippine Ports Authority and other ports authority will be authorized to operate as a CFW, provided they comply with the additional requirements and conditions as may be imposed by BOC.
All CFWs, including their expansion, extensions, and additional facilities will be considered as part of customs premises subject to the supervision and control of BOC, which shall impose such conditions and other regulations as may be deemed necessary for the protection of government revenue, and of the goods stored therein.
BOC will be responsible for the issuance of an Authority to Operate a CFW, including the imposition of different sets of requirements for their establishment, maintenance, and operation, setting forth the rights and obligations of operators, and the penalties and sanctions for violation of these rules.
Only authorized CFW operators are allowed to handle and store imported goods that are immediately discharged from arriving aircrafts, vessels, and other means of operational transport.
To ensure compliance with requirements and conditions in CAO 09-2019, all existing public bonded customs warehouses are reclassified as CFWs without prejudice to all the rights, conditions, and obligations already acquired or vested prior to the effectivity of CMO 18-2022. – Roumina Pablo
