New border management system, better security

Budget 2010 provides $75.9 million of capital funding over the next four years for a new joint border management system (JBMS), Customs Minister Maurice Williamson says.

The new system will bring Customs and MAF Biosecurity processes together under the same system, providing improved security and productivity at New Zealand's borders.

"This investment delivers on the Government's pre-election commitment to protect New Zealand's primary industries by enabling Customs and MAF Biosecurity to work more closely at airports and New Zealand's other entry points," Mr Williamson says.

"The computer systems at Customs and MAF were more than 12 years old and could no longer support the increasingly diverse demands of border management and the increased volumes of trade and travel."

Modernising the aging computerised border management system will deliver significant benefits for industry and travellers.

"The JBMS will improve efficiency and biosecurity protection at the border by modernising New Zealand's border management. It will provide what we call a ‘trade single window', which will give importers and exporters a single electronic point of access to border agencies," Mr Williamson says.

The new system will also support more streamlined and simplified border clearance, meaning reduced compliance and operating costs for businesses.

"It will benefit travellers by making it easier for Customs and MAF Biosecurity to get low-risk passengers across the border with less manual intervention."

The capital funding for the new joint border management system will come from two Votes - $69.2 million from Vote Customs and $6.7 million from Vote Biosecurity.