The Philippine Star

Landbank, BOC streamline payment system

- By LOUISE MAUREEN SIMEON

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Land Bank of the Philippine­s (Landbank) have teamed up to facilitate a digital payment scheme for various customs processes.

In a statement, BOC said it inked a memorandum of agreement with Landbank for the use of the latter’s Link.BizPortal for the digital payment of miscellane­ous fees.

Landbank’s Link.BizPortal is an electronic payment facility that allows clients to pay for products and services via the internet from both the government and the private sector.

The agreement is part of BOC’s overall thrust toward modernizat­ion and digital transforma­tion in Customs processes.

Customs Commission­er Bienvenido Rubio said the utilizatio­n of a digital payment system would further enhance operationa­l efficiency, reduce bureaucrat­ic red tape and improve overall service delivery.

By leveraging the capabiliti­es of the Link.BizPortal, the BOC aims to streamline payment processes, minimize delays and provide a more convenient and user-friendly experience for stakeholde­rs.

“We are not only facilitati­ng smoother transactio­ns, but also fostering greater transparen­cy and accountabi­lity,” Rubio said.

Among the portal’s salient functions include the ability to handle small and largevalue payments and allow real-time debit from payor’s account and batch credit to merchant’s account.

Likewise, it generates and issues online payment confirmati­on via email and other functional­ities that will improve the transactio­n experience of stakeholde­rs.

The Link.BizPortal aims to reduce the direct and indirect costs associated with physical cash or distributi­on of in-kind goods, as well as establish the tracking of financial flows, resulting in less corruption and theft.

It also targets to de-clog lobby traffic and save on operation costs.

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