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EXDOC Grain and Horticulture
What is EXDOC (Grain & Horticulture)?
Who needs to be connected to EXDOC?
How does it work?
EXDOC hours of availability
Now
Future
What is EXDOC (Grain & Horticulture)?
Export Documentation (EXDOC) provides the electronic lodgement of export documentation from exporters to the AQIS, the Australian Customs Service and the Australian Bureau of Statistics and meets all legislative and reporting requirements.
Since early 1998 AQIS has been extending the EXDOC system to the dairy, fish, grains and horticulture export industries. EXDOC has been available for grain exports since late 2000 and for horticulture exports since early 2001.
EXDOC (Grain & Horticulture) is able to offer clients a single window to government and will eliminate the replication of information currently required by three government departments. A single electronic message can be used to complete the following functions:
- lodgement and processing of grain and horticulture export documentation for AQIS
- obtaining customs Export Declaration Numbers (EDN) for clients if they elect to do so. Clients can also obtain their EDN through their normal procedures.
- reporting to Australian Bureau of Statistics
Who needs to be connected to EXDOC?
Everyone who:
- raises, processes or receives the existing 'notice of intention to export' (NOI ie. EX28 and/or EX222), ie. exporters, packing establishments, agents, brokers etc and/or
- prepares Phytosanitary Certificates, Certificates as to Condition, sampling certificates etc.
How does it work?
Information contained on the manual documents (EX28/222) is keyed into accredited third party software by the exporter on their computer, this creates a Request For Permit (RFP) and is sent to the AQIS program EXDOC.
After inspection and certification of the product (AQIS or Certification Assurance [CA] inspection), the details in the RFP will be verified and authorised by an AQIS officer through EXDOC. Once authorised the exporter/client can have the export documents printed at their nominated premise.
Eventually, notification of export certification will be forwarded directly to the importing country's National Plant Protection Organisation through E-cert, to enable speedier clearance of importing cargo. AQIS inspection and certification of product will not change. Australia will still meet its international obligations to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and International Plant Protection Commission (IPPC) on sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) matters. E-cert is expected to be delivered for grain & horticulture commodities over the next three to five years.
Clients are able to amalgamate RFPs into one certificate or split the RFP into many certificates to the same country.
EXDOC hours of availability
The EXDOC system operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The system has a 24 hour / seven day a week helpdesk for enquiries relating to communication and EDN issues.
Program specific support is currently limited to regional office hours and out-of-hours by appointment.
The grain and horticulture exports programs are investigating extending program specific support to approximately 20 hours a day, seven days a week with the implementation of EXDOC Plant Program hubs located on the East coast and West coast of Australia.
Now
EXDOC is available to all grain and horticulture exports (including plant products).
All consignments of grain and horticulture commodities to Taiwan must be accompanied by EXDOC generated certification. BAPHIQ no longer accepts "manually" issued certification.
Future
Whilst the grain and horticulture programs can not mandate EXDOC, except where requested by overseas trading partners, it would like to phase-out "manual" certification over the next five years.
To further complement EXDOC generated certification, the programs are testing E-cert with a number of its key trading partners, with expected delivery of full functionality over the next three to five years.