Electronic questionnaires between Customs statistics and PSIs for data checking Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit

Eurostat grant 2013 According to Grant Agreement “Electronic data exchange system will be developed and integrated to the data checking application so that data quality controllers can send and receive electronic questionnaires between Statistics office and PSIs.” Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 2

Data validation process In data validation process if error from the declaration is found and explanation from PSI is inquired by sending a statistical inquiry. Data checking application is an application (based on SAS) which is used via web browser by data controllers Inquiries are written in application, saved in inquiry database and finally printed and sent by fax or by letter from Statistics Unit of Finnish Customs (old way) Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 3

Data validation process Many PSIs have reported that they don’t use faxes anymore (also Finnish customs will quit using faxes) is already widely used to contact authorities Workload of data controllers who are doing inquiries should be reduced significantly. Circa inquiries are sent per year. Printing inquiries and then faxing or sending letter takes too much time. Reduce postages …it was necessary to develop more modern and convenient way to contact PSIs Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 4

Building new system – starting point Two new ways: inquiry and (if address is not available) iPost-inquiry. Subcontractor would do the necessary programming. New features must be compatible with existing data checking application so that no new application has to be built Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 5

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 6

Requirements There were also other requirements which the new system should fulfill. Making an inquiry should give an option to choose a language with which the inquiry is made, but by default it should choose the language which the PSI has informed as its business language Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 7

Requirements There should be a convenient way to write the inquiry text and possibility to choose if an inquiry is “significant or not”. This means that if inquiry is significant the declaration line is automatically marked as an error and will be left out of the statistical data. This is suitable for situation where declaration contains an obvious error and correction can’t be done without any clarification from PSI. Is it also possible to make an non-significant inquiry. Then the declaration line is not marked as an error, and will be included in statistical data, but there are some suspicious features in the declaration and again explanation from PSI is needed (Picture 2.) Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 8

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 9

Requirements Then there should be a possibility to preview the inquiry and change the recipient’s or sender’s contact information (Picture 3.) Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 10

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 11

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 12 has been sent to address… (Questionnaire information is saved to inquiry database) Very simple to use and fast

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 13

iPost-service It was also known that we don’t have valid addresses to all PSIs and that some PSIs prefer letter instead of . So there was still need to send letter inquiries but it was needed to do more convenient (cheaper and faster) way. Statistic Unit already uses service called iPost, provided by Finnish Post Office, Itella Oy, to send Intrastat reminders Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 14

iPost-service It was decided to choose this service also to be used with statistical inquiries. In this service Statistics Unit transfers information (PDF-inquiries) to Itella Oy in secured way and Itella Oy prints and sends the letters. Postage are cheaper (than sending by hand from Statistics Unit) Not so much manual work of data controllers is needed Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 15

iPost-service In Picture3 – option ”Itella” is chosenIn Picture3 PDF-inquiry is created Inquiries are sent automatically once a night to Itella and will be printed and posted the next day PSI will receive the letter in few days (Answering time is 10 days, not 10 working days, as before ) Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 16

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 17 iPost letter

Testing new system New sending was tested with a few selected PSIs We asked them to evaluate the content of inquiry, appearance and other issues Comments were mainly positive –Answering time (5 days) was found too short Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 18

FOLLOW-UP of the inquiries We used this opportunity to build the inquiry follow-up system It is possible to seek inquiries which are answered or un-answered. For unanswered questions a new inquiry could/should be sent. This was also added to old data checking application Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 19

FOLLOW-UP of the inquiries So far, the follow-up has only been possible by hand with quite complicated SAS-programs. The main problem here was, how to come to a conclusion that inquiry is answered. When an answer comes from a PSI, data controller makes a correction by using data checking application and corrected row is saved to correction database. If declaration line is found both from inquiry database and correction database it can deduced that inquiry has got answer. Next problem was what to do in the situations when the answer is that “given declaration is correct”. We decided to make a small change to data checking process that also in these situations the data controller has to do a “correction” to correction database. This means that correction is done with the same information than in the original declaration Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 20

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 21 In the follow-up page of inquiries a data controller can search inquiries with desired search options: -Intrastat or Extra-EU trade -Arrivals or dispatches -Questionnaire numbers -Questionnaire dates -Data controller name -VAT-number -CN-codes -Statistical values…

Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 22 List of unanswered questionnaires Observation number works as a link to declaration line information where a new inquiry can be made (Picture 1.)Picture 1.)

Introduction of the new system, experiences so far New system was taken into production at the end of August 2014 (project was delayed because of the problems with Itella Oy to get the iPost-service work), so it has been in use for about only two weeks now New system was introduced to data controllers and whole Statistics Unit. Short lecture was given how to use new inquiry sending –feature and follow-up of inquiries. Because the main functions retain pretty much the same and data controllers are well experienced users of data checking application no heavy education was needed Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 23

Introduction of the new system, experiences so far Project reached its goals. Statistics Unit of Finnish Customs has new modern ways to send statistical inquiries. New system saves time and resources. We also have handy way to follow up answers of inquiries iPost system is used not only to contact Intrastat PSIs but also to send inquiries to extra-EU customers Data controllers seem to be very pleased, new system eases their work quite dramatically Answers from PSIs come faster Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 24

Thank You! Contact: Anne Oikarinen P.O.Box 512, FI-00101, Helsinki Anne Oikarinen, Finnish Customs, Statistics Unit 25