The term Single Window is being used to describe a multitude of different platforms, systems and environments, and the use is not limited to the trade context.
The most commonly accepted definition of a SW is the one provided by UNECE Recommendations No. 33. It describes the SW as a ‘facility that allows parties involved in trade and transport to lodge standardized information and documents with a single entry point to fulfill all import, export, and transit-related regulatory requirements.’ ‘If information is electronic, then individual data elements should only be submitted once’.