Human Resources

The occupations represented in the IT Sector staff working in the Head Office in Banja Luka and four regional centres (Tuzla, Sarajevo, Mostar and Banja Luka) are: electrical engineers (B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering - Computer Science and Communications), mechanical engineers (B.Sc. in Engineering) and economists (B.Sc. in Economics).

Information System

The ITA Information System is a complex, distributed system consisting of three main information subsystems: Customs subsystem, VAT subsystem and Single Account subsystem. The ITA information infrastructure hardware consists of over 90 different servers, 2300 workstation computers, 500 printers and 400 communication devices. Working on different platforms (UNIX, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP and 98) this information system is used by more than 3500 users daily, enabling throughput of 2100 customs declarations, on average , representing a daily transfer of goods with the value of BAM 4, 3 million and over 40,000 VAT returns every month.
By virtue of the availability and expertise of the IT Sector experts this information system provides a reliability rate of more than 99.95% online time. During online time, and also thanks to professional management, this system has never caused extra waiting time to the ITA business processes. The IT Sector is the central point linking all ITA sectors and is also considered to be the blood stream of the ITA.

Communications Infrastructure

The IT Sector is responsible for design, implementation and maintenance of the ITA computer network. This network is a complex and distributed system. It is also one of the largest computer networks in our country, covering the complete territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Over 3000 devices and 3500 users use this communications infrastructure. The ITA is responsible for maintaining this complex system. The IT Sector experts are successfully managing this complex infrastructure, from solving even the most difficult problems, reconfiguring the system to meet end-user needs to partial modifications caused by changes of communications channels and their bandwidth. We use innovative technologies such as GPRS and other wireless communication technologies in order to extend our network to those locations, usually border crossing points, where there is no ordinary communications infrastructure.
Being responsible for monitoring the hardware and software infrastructure we have prepared disaster recovery procedures for major hardware, software and communications network failures. Thus the ITA is provided with a stable communications environment. The IT Sector provides the ITA with the computer systems with exceptionally reliable infrastructure. We are proud to announce that system down-time is less than 4 hours per location per year. This is less than 0, 05% of total working time.

Customs Information Subsystem

The Customs Information Subsystem, Asycuda™, is the main support for customs business processes in the ITA. The customs business processes require this system to be distributed, covering the complete territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our installation covers 80 locations and consists of:

• 90 servers
• 1.300 workstation computers
• 400 printers
• 390 communication devices

It is used by over 2500 users, ITA employees and traders. More than 2100 customs declarations are processed daily.
The IT Sector maintains this complex infrastructure, providing installations and modifications to the system components.
The Customs system in use, Asycuda™, has been fully operational at inland customs stations and border crossings since 2002. This complex system consists of User and Configuration Modules. The User Modules encompass the processing of customs and transit declarations which are submitted electronically by DTI (Direct Trader Input). DTI is moving towards paperless business processes in customs. The multiple inputs of customs and transit declarations have completely disappeared. Now the customs officers can focus on the thorough physical examination of high risk goods. We are providing user support for external and internal users, serving as a help-desk for more than 15000 assistance-requests every year. They can always be informed about news, instructions and all changes done by the IT Sector according to legislative changes, related to Asycuda™ system.
The IT Sector uses configuration modules for system setup and programming calculation of all import duties, calculation of VAT, customs tariff setup, preferential agreements and selectivity criteria. Every day we update reference data such as: registered traders, exchange rates, user names and passwords for external and internal users, codes for customs warehouses.
When it is necessary the IT Sector experts perform modifications of rules for calculation of all import duties, customs tariff setup and the setup of fields on customs declarations. One of the most important things in system modification is coordination with all ITA sectors. The IT Sector is a member to all committees working on issues related to customs and customs information system. We are very proud that nowadays all external and internal users of the Asycuda™ system are completely reliant upon the system information during their daily work. All necessary changes related to introduction of VAT within customs information subsystem were done on time. Since October 2005 we have carefully planned some modifications, certain tests were conducted and on January 1 all modifications in the customs information subsystem were implemented. The first working day of customs offices in 2006 was marked with registering and calculating VAT in the whole territory of BiH.
The CEFTA Agreement (Central European Free Trade Agreement) entered in force on 22 November 2007 and it was fully incorporated into the customs information subsystem as well as the SAA with EU, first part on 1 July 2008 and the second part on 1 January 2009.

Improvements

We developed additional customs modules and improvements of installed Asycuda™ customs system. When the existing functionality of the system did not meet the ITA needs we developed modules and systems closely linked to the Asycuda infrastructure.

• Improved reporting
  In order to increase report availability for management and other users in ITA we have successfully redesigned and implemented an improved reporting system, based on the customs information systems used in former entity customs administrations. This subsystem improved the quality of reports also reducing the time needed for report generation.
• Specialized control system
  We have designed and developed a specialized system for monitoring the transfer of customs declarations between customs offices servers and statistical servers in the regional centers and Headquarters. This software, the Watchdog control system, is a powerful tool capable of executing any kind of tests at a prescheduled time. At the moment we are carrying out eleven integrity tests at each location. This way we can monitor the accuracy of data on our statistical servers and act duly in situations when that accuracy is compromised. The Watchdog control system is closely linked to Asycuda™ but it has been developed independently of it, serving as an excellent control system for our customs information system.
• Automatic reconciliations of Customs declarations
  Specialized software intended for automatic financial reconciliation of customs declarations in the Asycuda subsystem. This software accelerates the processing of customs declarations reconciliations, eliminating the need for time-consuming, error-prone process of manual reconciliations. This complex subsystem is implemented successfully at all customs offices and border crossing points where customs duties are calculated.
• Compliance testing of bank files
  As part of the preparations for VAT introduction, we designed and implemented a software system, Shield 2006, for the compliance testing of bank files. The commercial banks which are part of the ITA Single Account subsystem provide digital files containing information about taxpayers’ payments. These files are entered in many diverse subsystems in the ITA:
  the application for automatic reconciliation of Asycuda declarations, the VAT application, the General Ledger application … We have recognized the need for a single control point for file-checking. This way we prevent the situations in which one bank file can be loaded in, i.e. the General Ledger Application but not in the VAT application leading to different information in different sub-systems. Shield 2006 provides error reports which are passed to originating Commercial Bank. This tool enables us find errors in a reliable and fast way, send precise information about such errors to the commercial banks, and help the commercial banks to correct files in the shortest possible period.
• Asycuda™ to General Ledger Application integration
  In the first quarter of 2006 we designed, with the assistance of CAFAO experts, and implemented a subsystem which automates the process of entering the information about types of revenue for all reconciled customs declarations in the Asycuda system, into the General Ledger application. This subsystem, CABase 2006, is a complex, distributed application that reduces the time necessary for process completion also providing new services previously not available.
• Software for warehouse inventory tracking
  This modern application provides inventory management for warehouses. The application keeps a record on origin for each item in the warehouse. The application is used in all regional centers and Headquarters in Banja Luka.
  
• Application for entry and exit invoices of VAT taxpayers
  The application provides comparing of entry and exit invoices of suppliers and buyers which are registered as VAT taxpayers. The implemented system foresees data exchange between the ITA systems and accounting systems of VAT taxpayers in the formats prescribed by the ITA.
  The information subsystem automatically verifies accuracy of files and all approved files are uploaded to central database. The files which are not approved are automatically shown on the generated reports. Therefore this report can be used as a source for corrections. The subsystem provides user-defined reports automatically detecting the cases with inconsistency in the user’s bookkeeping.
  
• Electronic monitoring of TIR Carnet
  This application represents the software interface between IRU (International Road Union) HQ Geneva and central server of the ITA used for processing the TIR Carnets. It enables data exchange on TIR Carnets within BiH and monitoring of goods in the TIR Carnets regimes transiting through BiH.
  
• Direct checks of vehicles and documents in the Interpol Database
  In order to prevent criminal acts and as result of cooperation with the Interpol national center in BiH, we developed information subsystem which enables us to check if a certain vehicle, identified by the chassis number, is on the Interpol’s warrant as stolen vehicle.
  Subsystem is exceptionally complex. Using the Interpol servers located at their central point in Lyon, mobile Interpol database installed at the ITA premises and specifically developed application which uses the web services of the mobile Interpol database and additional functions such as access records and access management, it enables carrying out of the previously mentioned check. These functionalities made the above described controls possible. This subsystem is closely integrated with Active Directory subsystem which is used for users’ management and rights.
  
• Applications for recording the VAT refund claims submitted by natural persons
  In order to provide controls and monitor the process of VAT refund to natural persons we developed a special subsystem. It is used at all border crossing points where the VAT refund to natural persons can be made. While developing this system we used the existing platform of ExDisc applications along with knowledge and experience gained in the course of ExDisc. development. The subsystem is a modern intranet application with user groups and access levels.
  
• ExDisc 2007 application
  The application provides export declaration tracking. In order to track the process of discharging the export declarations and prevent cross-border smuggling, we developed the ExDisc subsystem which enables keeping records on discharged export declarations and data on empty trucks exits. This information subsystem is used at all border crossing points and inland customs offices. Due to the fact that some border crossing points do not have permanent link with the ITA HQ where all servers are located, special attention is given to the subsystem functioning under the circumstances when connection is not available. Because of the requests for short- delay time at border crossing points of the trucks exiting BiH, and as less additional burdening of the officers using this application as possible, we used modern Web 2.0 technologies to make as fast and efficient application as possible. The application is used as a base tool for the data exchange called CIL with Republic of Serbia. This process commenced in February 2007 and with certain upgrades it will be the baseline data set for the SEMS project – electronic data exchange on transit and export declarations, and data on empty trucks on country exits.

VAT Information Subsystem

This is a complex, distributed information system consisting of:

• 12 servers
• 400 workstation computers
• 100 printers and
• Dozens of communication devices

It is used by more than 400 ITA officers enabling them the throughput of over 40000 VAT returns every month. The IT Sector experts in coordination with CAFAO have installed the subsystem and it is responsible for daily maintenance of the complete system. We monitor and control data flows on all communication lines used for this system. By the end of 2008 the IT Sector took over the source code applications. Thus the ITA has become an ownership of the VAT subsystem that was donated by the EU. The IT Sector introduced the VAT information system at the same time performing some other activities such as preparation of network infrastructure, hardware and software installations, preparation of the Active Directory infrastructure, etc.

Single Account Subsystem

All payments to the ITA are done through some of the ITA accounts opened at several commercial banks in BiH. Those banks are part of the Single Account of the ITA. The ITA has accounts at 13 commercial banks – 3 accounts per different type of payments in each of these banks. Every day there are numerous payments to the ITA accounts and payment data are used by subsystem General Ledger, ASYCUDA subsystem, VAT subsystem and other subsystems. In order to accelerate the business processes and reduce the costs, the ITA experts developed a system for electronic files management. These files contain information on payments to the ITA accounts. The information subsystem of the Single Account processes some 800,000 payments per year, which is approximately 3200 payments daily. Most of the received payments can be reconciled on the same day. There are small amounts of payments, only 2%, which cannot be reconciled because of incorrect taxpayers’ data about transaction. This subsystem is also used for VAT refunds. A part of this subsystem is a module for automatic reconciliations of debs related to ASYCUDA subsystem (customs duties). This complex subsystem is integrated with ASYCUDA through implementation at data level and enables automatic reconciliations of approximately 90% of payments. The banks, which are members of the ITA Single Account System, are directly linked with the ITA. The Single Account Subsystem enables fast and secured electronic data exchange, verification of document validity before processing at the ITA and distribution of documents to other subsystems.

ITA Internet Presentation

The Internet presentation of ITA, atwww.uino.gov.ba is our "web office" for taxpayers and all other instances that need information from the ITA scope of work. At the end of year 2005, we improved our presentation by adding active systems enabling the search of the database on VAT registered companies, or approved tax credits. The VAT registered companies can check their VAT returns online, prior their submitting. It is an excellent tool which reduces the number of errors in submitted VAT declarations. In the second quarter of 2006 we started major redesign of the www.uino.gov.ba presentation. This presentation was hosted at the ITA, not at external ISP as before. We switched to modern ASP.NET platform in order to provide more interactivity. The process of redesign was carried out entirely by the IT Sector and our experts created a new "web office" for the ITA.

Integrated System of Indirect Taxation (ISIP)

The IT Sector has completed the design and implementation of the Indirect Taxation Integrated System (ISIP 2006). This system integrates information from: the customs subsystem Asycuda, the VAT subsystem Alice VAT, other revenues subsystem, the CABase subsystem and the Central bank information system to provide a single access point for this information. While being an engineering milestone, the complexity of the system is hidden from end-users. A modern web application, implemented using .NET Framework 2.0 and Ms SQL 2005 Database Server platforms, provides a complete overview of duties and financial reconciliations in all the mentioned subsystems. Being centrally managed the ISIP 2006 is accessible from all parts of the ITA network. We are very proud of ISIP 2006 because we consider it as the first step towards the fully integrated ITA information system. This modern application was completely designed and developed in the IT Sector following the most modern standards. The efficient design and full automation of data flows make ISIP 2006 an excellent tool, reliable, scalable and easy to maintain. The real value of ISIP was demonstrated even during the test period with many ITA employees from all ITA sectors applying for ISIP 2006 testers. Many of them are already using ISIP as their primary tool for tracking information from all subsystems. The versatility of this platform will be utilized for new reports and automatization of business process in ITA.

Network Services and Security

The IT sector has designed, with the assistance of CAFAO, and implemented Microsoft Active Directory infrastructure in the ITA network. This modern infrastructure enables:

• Increased productivity of users
• IT costs reduction
• Increased robustness of complete system and
• Increased level of network security.

The IT sector has also designed, with the assistance of CAFAO, and implemented an e-mail system for the ITA. This subsystem is based on Microsoft Exchange servers and it completely eliminates the need for external ISP e-mail services. We are reducing operational costs and increasing control and security in our e-mail system. A special issue for us was the development of a secure network environment. In order to reach this goal we use modern hardware and software security technologies. Two-level hardware protection and traffic monitoring with an installed intrusion-detection system, antivirus servers and communication device configurations provide industry standard level of security and data protection. Most of the mentioned systems are completely managed by IT experts. More than 40000 viruses have been detected and cleaned. Also the fact that we didn’t have any major virus outbreak is an excellent indicator that we are doing good work.

Communications

Messages and data transfers between customs and VAT organizational units (border crossing points, inland customs offices, VAT administrations, and regional centers) and ITA Headquarters is enabled through WAN and e-mail system. The communication network of the ITA information system consists of leased digital channels with bandwidth of 64 kB/s – 1 MB/s, and few dialed ISDN lines. We use these lines for transfers of data created in transit procedures (transit data) and customs procedures (transactions data). The data transfers start from border crossing points or inland customs offices towards their competent regional centers, then from regional centers to ITA Headquarters. The reference data such as tariff, exchange rates, accounting rules etc. are transferred in opposite direction e.g. from ITA Headquarters to regional centers, and from regional centers to subordinated inland customs offices and border crossing points.
The data exchange within the VAT subsystem is done by replication method through communication network of ITA from servers of regional centers to headquarters and opposite direction every hour. For the purpose of data verification, there is communication between regional VAT servers and CIPS Database in Banja Luka.

Communications Topology

Networking is done for complete territory of BiH using services of leased lines from three BiH telecommunications providers.
The structure of WAN matches the organizational structure of the ITA, meaning that all inland customs offices and border crossing points are linked with their competent regional centers, and all regional centers are linked with the ITA Headquarters. Our future plans foresee networking of all locations in BiH, but it will also depend on readiness of state telecommunications providers.

Hardware and Software Support for Communications Infrastructure

The communications infrastructure of the IS ITA, apart from the network with leased channels, also includes 66 routers and 9 modems which enable specified routes for data transfer within information system. The routers have different technical performances per WAN interface modules, number of ports, IOS software etc. depending on requests and needs of nodes within topology of the ITA IS network. The most common factors of routers features, which have influence on their selection, are: type of information transfer technology at leased lines, traffic size and LAN in actual part of information system. According to this, 66 routers are segregated into 36 of small size, 14 of medium size and 16 of large size. Also it is specific that within 66 routers there are 5 of them which are GPRS type for data transfer through mobile telephony.
UThese routers are installed at border crossing points without fix telephone line. Beside routers the communications infrastructure includes the hardware support in 32 firewalls and over 200 switch devices.

Significance and Prosperity of IT

The efficient tax system depends on adequate implementation of modern information technologies. The amount of revenues collected by ITA depends on well-organized administration supported by information technologies. The implementation of modern technical solutions in hardware and software, as well as more intensive involvement of the ITA in improving and modernizing the existing informatics solutions puts functionality and services at high level. The information system of the ITA is a leading one in all state institutions given its complexity which points at quantity and quality of its software and hardware. The ITA has the large databases that, with appropriate transactions, make functioning of this institution being recognized as the most modern in BiH. The new development plans for information technologies envisage the acceptance of modern model of functioning that supports modularity, flexibility and compatibility with the EU countries. The first successful step towards integration with EU was implementation of the SAA in the field of customs policy in which the information technologies were of extreme importance. The future steps towards integration such as Integrated Border Management, e-Government, EU Transit System and many others prove the fact that we can join the Europe with our information technologies prepared by European standards.
The Strategy of information technology is based on safety, improvements and implementation of new standards. Given that, the benefits for state, entities, taxpayers and economic operators are significant and that makes the ITA a modern institution which was ready for all reform processes and will continue to present a successful model of good functioning in BiH and whole region.