The number of companies initiating the registration process on the government’s newly-launched e-Business Registration Platform has ballooned to 5,227, taking full advantage of the reduced red tape and shorter timeframe.
Six ministries and state-run institutions have been integrated into a business registration system on the platform, also known as the Single Portal, which was launched on June 15 by government representatives.
The six ministries and state institutions listed in the system are the ministries of Interior; Economy and Finance; Commerce; and Labour and Vocational Training, as well as the General Department of Taxation and the Council for the Development of Cambodia.
Another six are planned to be incorporated.
As of October 28, 1,892 companies had successfully registered on the Single Portal, its data show. That figure was just 287 on July 29.
As of that same day, 523 companies were under final review, while 2,638 others have cleared a preliminary review and are “registered for reservation”, awaiting the final review. Another 174 are under preliminary review.
Finance ministry spokesman Meas Soksensan previously said the Single Portal would require companies to complete a one-time business registration form, taking a maximum of eight days.
He noted that all data submitted by the companies under the Single Portal will be automatically forwarded to all ministries and state-run institutions incorporated into the system.
Finance ministry secretary of state Phan Phalla has said that, under the scheme, the commerce ministry cut registration fees by 40 per cent and patent tax for the year of registration by 50 per cent, while waiving registration tax on new registration documents.
“Businesspeople are no longer required to take a photo and scan their fingerprints immediately after listing,” he said.
Cambodia Chamber of Commerce vice-president Lim Heng chalked up the uptick in registrations to the newly-signed bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) between Cambodia and China in conjunction with the trade preferences already offered by the EU and the US.
“We are taking another step towards the Chinese market, the world’s largest market, through the bilateral FTA between Cambodia and China, as more companies prepare to register and invest in Cambodia.
“This is an opportunity for Cambodia to entice more companies that produce goods for export to the US [and European markets] to register their businesses in the Kingdom.
“Registering a business through the information technology platform saves time and significantly trims informal costs,” Heng said.
Soksensan told The Post in August: “Under the initiative of [finance] minister [Aun Pornmoniroth], the system has greatly facilitated the registration procedure for online businesses in harmony with the government’s Industry 4.0 development policy which aims to modernise the technology infrastructure.
“The goal [of the platform] is to build a better investment environment and attract more investment to Cambodia.
“This is the duty of the Ministry of Economy and Finance which seeks to ensure macroeconomic stability. At the same time, we want our economy to grow under favourable investment conditions, compelling us to cut a lot of red tape,” he said.
The Single Portal can be accessed at registrationservices.gov.kh.
