ASEAN has made substantial progress in trade facilitation over the past decade, driven by a range of regional initiatives and commitments, together with sector-specific agreements on transit and customs co-operation. These initiatives helped AMS make important steps in streamlining border procedures, enhancing transparency, and expanding the use of automation. Nonetheless, progress varies considerably by policy area and Member State. Addressing these gaps will be critical for ASEAN to fully realise the economic benefits of trade facilitation, strengthen resilience in the face of global disruptions, and seize new opportunities from international trade. Drawing on the analysis undertaken with the OECD TFIs, the following recommendations outline potential priority actions to deepen and sustain progress in trade facilitation across the region.
Deepen the link between domestic and regional border agency co-operation. Strengthening inter-agency coordination within countries – through fully integrated NSW systems, shared risk management frameworks, and clear legal mandates for information exchange – will provide the operational basis for more effective cross-border co-operation. Building on this domestic foundation, ASEAN should expand the scope and functionality of regional initiatives such as the ASW and ACTS to include more document types, to enhance joint inspections, broadening connectivity with other economies and regions, extending ACTS coverage to more modes of transport, and harmonise operating procedures.
Close the gap between ASEAN trade facilitation commitments and their implementation in practice. While ASEAN’s legal frameworks and action plans set ambitious objectives, performance remains uneven across Member States. Prioritising capacity building, peer learning, and targeted technical assistance can accelerate the adoption of best practices in automation, advance rulings, appeal procedures, and border agency co-operation. Fully implementing existing commitments – as well as those upcoming in the upgraded ATIGA context – will help unlock cost savings, reduce clearance times, and strengthen supply chain resilience in a more complex trade environment.
Accelerate automation and procedural streamlining to build resilience. Automation and simplified border procedures have allowed supply chains to remain flexible and responsive during disruptions, enabling goods to be rerouted more quickly and essential inputs to continue flowing. ASEAN should promote the full integration of risk management tools, pre-arrival processing, and electronic payments into customs and other border agency systems, ensuring interoperability across the region to maximise efficiency gains.
Integrate trade facilitation reforms with the broader digital trade agenda. The digitalisation of trade processes, including the use of electronic certificates, digital signatures, and interoperable platforms, should be aligned with ASEAN’s wider efforts to boost the digital economy. Extending digitalisation efforts beyond border formalities to cover all stages of trade transactions will help reduce administrative burdens, including for SMEs, and prepare the region for increasing volumes of parcels while managing security and compliance risks.
Continue prioritising transparency as a driver of predictability and adaptability. Accessible, comprehensive, and regularly updated information on trade procedures, fees, and regulatory changes is essential for businesses to adapt to evolving market conditions and policy shifts. ASEAN should continue improving the quality and completeness of information published through customs websites, enquiry points, and national trade portals, and extend transparency measures to cover upcoming regulatory changes and the results of public consultations.
Further work on the OECD TFIs tailored to the ASEAN context can help ensure that measurement and monitoring reflect the region’s specific frameworks, priorities, and implementation pathways. Aligning the TFIs covering ASEAN more closely with ASEAN’s own instruments – such as the upgraded ATIGA, the ASW, and the ACTS – would allow for more precise benchmarking of progress, identification of AMS-specific bottlenecks, and targeted capacity-building interventions. In addition, incorporating ASEAN countries into emerging work on digital Trade Facilitation Indicators (dTFIs) and environment-related Trade Facilitation Indicators (env-TFIs) would provide the region with valuable tools for assessing readiness and performance in areas that are increasingly shaping global trade. A deeper dive across the different TFI policy areas in ASEAN would therefore be essential to capture not only progress but also the specific challenges that remain, ensuring that reforms are effectively prioritised and sequenced. Finally, there is also potential to explore how these reforms impact trade costs, trade flows, and the resilience of regional and global supply chains.