What is a Certificate of Origin?
A Certificate of Origin (CO) is a document which identifies the origin of goods being exported. It helps determine whether certain goods are eligible for import and tariff rates and is required by customs in the buyer’s country to determine the origin of the goods.
Two Types of Certificates of Origin
There are two types of COs, namely ordinary COs and preferential COs.
An ordinary CO, also known as a non-preferential CO, indicates that the goods do not qualify for any preferential treatment.
On the other hand, a preferential CO allows buyers to pay lower or no customs duty when they export their goods under a Free Trade Agreement or Schemes of Preferences.
Who Issues Certificates of Origin?
In Singapore, Preferential COs are issued only by Singapore Customs while ordinary COs are issued by Singapore Customs or by selected organisations or Chambers of Commerce.
What is Smart eCO?
A collaboration with the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce (SICC), VCC’s Smart eCO (electronic certificate of origin) solution is the world’s first blockchain eCO solution. It allows traders to apply and submit their ordinary CO applications conveniently through a web-based system. The applications will then be verified and approved by SICC via Smart eCO, and this allows traders to check their approved applications easily online at their convenience.
The Blockchain technology of this solution prevents reproduction and modification of data and the embedded QR code feature makes it simpler for exporters, chambers, and other users of CO to verify the authenticity of the COs without incurring huge implementation cost.
Pay For Your eCO Applications With GIRO Or Credit Card
Now, to give more flexibility, vCargo Cloud’s Smart eCO also accepts credit card payment on top of the existing GIRO payment mode.
With the credit card option, simply apply your eCO in 4 simple steps:
Reach out to us at [email protected] for more information on our Smart eCO solution.