Promulgation Authorities:  General Administration of Customs

Promulgation Date:  2010.11.26

Effective Date:  2010.11.26

Validity Status:  valid

Administrative Measures of the Customs of the People's Republic of China on Place of Origin of Imports and Exports under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (Revision 2010)

Administrative Measures of the Customs of the People's Republic of China on Place of Origin of Imports and Exports under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

Article 1    These Measures are formulated pursuant to the provisions of the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the "Customs Law"), the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Place of Origin of Imports and Exports, and the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement for the purposes of properly determining the place of origin of imports and exports under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement and promoting economic and trade exchanges between China and other member countries of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement.

Article 2    These Measures shall apply to imports and exports under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement between China and other member countries of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (see list of member countries in Appendix 1).

Where there is any change in the member countries of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, the General Administration of Customs shall make an announcement separately.

Article 3    For imports directly transported from a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement which satisfy either of the following criteria, their place of origin shall be the member country, and the conventional rates or special preferential rates of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement in the Import and Export Tariff Regulations of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the "Tariff Regulations") shall apply:

(1) Entirely obtained from or manufactured in the member country; or

(2) Not entirely obtained from or manufactured in the member country, but comply with the provisions of Article 5, Article 6 or Article 7 of these Measures.

Article 4    Goods "entirely obtained from or manufactured in a member country" referred to in Item (1) of Article 3 of these Measures shall mean:

(1) Raw materials or mineral products extracted or derived from the territory, territorial water or seabed of the member country;

(2) Agricultural products harvested in the member country;

(3) Animals born and bred in the member country;

(4) Products obtained from animals in the member country stipulated in the above Item (3);

(5) Products obtained from hunting or fishing in the member country;

(6) Fishery products and other seafood products obtained from a vessel of the country fishing in the high seas;

(7) Products obtained from processing and manufacturing of products stipulated in the above Item (6) only on a processing vessel of the country;

(8) Parts or raw materials recycled in the member country from used items which cannot be recycled and such parts or raw materials cannot be used for their original purposes;

(9) Used items collected in the member country which cannot be used for their original purposes or reinstated to original conditions or repaired, and can only be disposed of or in which their parts or raw materials have been recycled;

(10) Scrap generated from manufacturing and processing activities carried out in the member country; and

(11) Products obtained from processing of products stipulated in the above Items (1) through (10) only in the member country.

Article 5    For goods in which the percentage of non-originating materials of a particular member country does not exceed 55% and the final manufacturing process is completed in the member country, their place of origin shall be the member country. Non-originating materials shall include imported non-originating materials and materials with unidentified place of origin used in the manufacturing process.

The formula for computation of the percentage of non-originating materials stipulated in the first paragraph of this Article shall be:

Value of imported non-originating materials + value of materials with unidentified place of origin

———————————————————

× 100%≤ 55%

Free On Board price (FOB)

Whereas the value of imported non-originating materials shall mean the costs, freight charges and insurance premiums (CIF price) at the time of importation of raw materials, parts or products which can be verified; the value of materials with unidentified place of origin shall mean the price paid for raw materials, parts or products with unidentified place of origin which is the earliest determinable in the member country manufacturing or processing the goods.

Where the member country is the least developed country, the percentage of non-originating materials shall not exceed 65%.

The computation of the percentage of non-originating materials stipulated in the provisions of this Article shall comply with the recognized accounting standards and the Customs Valuation Agreement.

Article 6    Goods which are processed or manufactured by a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement and are in compliance with the specific standards of place of origin for products under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement shall be deemed as goods originated from the member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement. The standards shall be an integral part of these Measures and separately announced by the General Administration of Customs.

Article 7    Where the originating goods comply with the requirements stipulated in Article 3, the raw materials are used for manufacturing of final products in a particular member country that enjoy preferential tariff concessions, and the cumulative percentage of materials from various member countries is not less than 60% of the FOB price of the final products, the goods can be deemed as the goods originating from the member country in which the final products are manufactured or processed.

Where the originating goods comply with the requirements stipulated in Article 3, the member country in which the final products are manufactured or processed is the least developed member country, and the cumulative percentage of materials from various member countries is not less than 50% of the FOB price of the final products, the goods can be deemed as the goods originating from the least developed member country.

Article 8    The following minor processing or treatment shall not affect determination of the place of origin of the goods:

(1) Treatment carried out to keep the goods in good conditions during transportation or storage, including ventilation, spreading out, drying, freezing, salting, vulcanization or any other solution treatment, removal of damaged parts, etc.;

(2) Simple treatment such as dust removal, sifting, classification, grading and matching (including assembly of parts), rinsing, painting and mincing;

(3) Change of packaging, dismantling and swathing;

(4) Simple slicing, shearing and repackaging, or bottling, bagging, boxing, fixing to cardboards or planks, etc.;

(5) Pasting signs, labels or other similar distinguishing marks on goods or their packaging;

(6) Simple mixing;

(7) Simple assembling of various parts of an article into a complete product;

(8) Slaughtering of animals;

(9) Peeling, leather grain processing and deboning; and

(10) A combination of two or more items pertaining to processing or treatment stipulated in above Items (1) through (9).

Article 9    When determining the place of origin of goods, the packaging and the goods contained therein shall be deemed as a whole. Where the packaging declared together with goods for importation should be separately classified pursuant to the Tariff Regulations, its place of origin shall be separately determined.

Article 10    Goods originated from a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement and imports which are shipped from one member country to another member country for exhibition and sold during or after the exhibition, which satisfy the following criteria concurrently, may be entitled to conventional rates or special preferential rates of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement in the Tariffs Regulations:

(1) The goods have been shipped from the member country to the other member country in which the exhibition is held for exhibition;

(2) The goods are sold in their exhibition conditions to the consignee of the imports during or immediately after the exhibition; or

(3) During the exhibition period, the goods are subject to control of the Customs of the member country in which the exhibition is held.

At the time of importation of the aforesaid exhibition goods, the consignee of the imports shall submit the Certificate of Place of Origin to the Customs.

"Exhibitions" referred to in this Article shall include exhibitions, trade fairs or similar exhibitions or shows.

Article 11    "Direct transportation" referred to in Article 3 of these Measures shall mean that:

(1) The goods have not passed through any non-member country during transportation;

(2) The goods have passed through one or more non-member countries during transportation but satisfy the following criteria concurrently, regardless of whether they have undergone a change of transportation vehicle in such countries or regions or they were temporarily stored in such countries or regions:

(i) Due to geographical reasons or merely due to transportation requirements;

(ii) The goods in such countries or regions have not entered into trading or consumption territory; and

(iii) The goods have not been subject to any treatment other than loading and unloading or any other requisite treatment to keep the goods in good conditions when the goods have passed through such countries or regions.

Article 12    At the time of declaration of imports, the consignee of the imports shall, pursuant to the provisions on declaration of the Customs, fill in a "Customs Declaration Form for Imports of the Customs of the People's Republic of China" to declare the applicable conventional rates or special preferential rates of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, and submit the following documents simultaneously:

(1) The original copy of the Certificate of Place of Origin issued by an agency designated by the government of a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement at the time of exportation of the goods or issued within three working days after shipment of the goods (see Appendix 2 for format).

Where the Certificate of Place of Origin is not submitted within one year from the date of issuance of the Certificate of Place of Origin due to a force majeure event, the consignee of the imports shall also submit the proof materials.

(2) The original copy of commercial invoice of the goods, packing list and other related transport documents.

Where the goods are shipped to China after passing through other countries or regions, the consignee of the imports shall submit the combined bill of lading issued within the member country, the original copy of commercial invoice of the goods, and the relevant documents to prove that the goods comply with the provisions of Item (2) of Article 11 of these Measures.

Where the consignee of the imports failed to declare the applicable conventional rates or special preferential rates of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement at the time of declaration of imports and concurrently failed to submit the original copy of the Certificate of Place of Origin issued by an agency designated by the government of a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, the conventional rates or special preferential rates of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement shall not apply to the goods under the declaration of imports, and the Customs shall choose the most-favored-nation rates, normal tax rates or other tax rates applicable to the goods pursuant to the law to compute the Customs duties and import-linked taxes levied by the Customs on behalf of the tax authorities.

Article 13    A Certificate of Place of Origin of a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement submitted by a consignee of imports to the Customs shall satisfy the following criteria:

(1) The Certificate is issued manually or electronically by an agency designated by the government of the member country;

(2) The Certificate complies with the format stipulated in the appendix of these Measures, printed on international standard A4 paper, and written in English; and

(3) The seal affixed on the Certificate shall be identical to the seal specimen notified by the member country to the Chinese Customs.

A Certificate of Place of Origin shall not be altered and superimposed. All blank columns shall be struck off to avoid subsequent tampering.

Article 14    A Certificate of Place of Origin shall be valid within one year from the date of issuance.

Article 15    Where a Certificate of Place of Origin is stolen, lost or destroyed, the consignee of imports may request the consignor of exports to submit a written application to the original issuing agency for issuance of a certified true copy of the Certificate of Place of Origin within the validity period of the original copy of the original Certificate. The copy shall indicate the wordings "certified true copy" and indicate the date of issuance of the original copy of the original Certificate.

Article 16    Where the Customs doubts the veracity of a Certificate of Place of Origin under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement or whether the relevant goods are originated from a member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, the Customs may request the relevant authorities of the member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement to verify the place of origin.

While awaiting the outcome of verification, the Customs may choose the most-favored-nation rates, normal tax rates or other tax rates applicable to the goods pursuant to the law to collect a security deposit of an amount equivalent to the tax payable before granting clearance of the goods, and process import formalities and carry out Customs statistical collection pursuant to the provisions. Upon completion of verification, the Customs shall forthwith process formalities of refund of security deposit or formalities of conversion of security deposit to import tax according to the outcome of verification.

Where the Customs has not received the outcome of verification from the relevant agency of the member country of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement within four months from the date of request for verification or the outcome of verification is inadequate for determination of the veracity of the Certificate of Place of Origin or the information of the true place of origin of the goods, the relevant goods shall not enjoy conventional rates or special preferential rates, and the Customs shall forthwith process formalities of conversion of the security deposit to import tax. The Customs statistical data shall be revised accordingly.

Where the imports fall under imports restricted by the State or an illegal act is suspected, the goods shall not be granted clearance by the Customs before completion of verification of the Certificate of Place of Origin.

Article 17    At the time of declaration of exports, the consignor of the exports shall submit an electronic copy of the Certificate of Place of Origin under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement to the Customs; where an electronic copy is not available, the consignor of the exports shall submit a photocopy of the original copy of the Certificate of Place of Origin to the Customs.

Article 18    The Customs shall is obliged to keep confidential commercial secrets obtained pursuant to the provisions of these Measures and the law. The Customs shall not divulge or use the confidential information for other purposes without the consent of the consignee of the imports, unless otherwise stipulated by laws, administrative regulations and relevant judicial interpretations.

Article 19    Violations of these Measures which constitute smuggling, violations of Customs regulatory provisions or other violations of the Customs Law shall be punished by the Customs pursuant to the relevant provisions of the Customs Law and the Implementation Regulations of the Customs of the People's Republic of China on Administrative Penalties; where the case constitutes a criminal offence, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law.

Article 20    The following terms used in these Measures shall be defined as follows:

"Mineral products" shall include fossil fuels, lubricants and the relevant materials, ores and metal ores;

"Agricultural products" shall include forestry products;

"A vessel" referred to in item (6) of Article 4 of these Measures shall mean a fishing vessel engaging in commercial fishing activities, registered in a member country and operated by one or more civil government departments of various member countries of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, or operated by a partnership, enterprise or social organization registered in the member country. The civil government departments of various member countries shall own at least 60% of the net asset value of the vessel; or the civil government departments of various member countries of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement shall own at least 75% of the net asset value of the vessel. Where the member countries only share the fishing products pursuant to bilateral agreement on vessel chartering, the products obtained on the commercial fishing vessel shall enjoy preferential tariff concessions;

"A processing vessel" referred to in item (7) of Article 4 of these Measures shall mean a vessel which processes and manufactures products stipulated in item (6) of Article 4 of these Measures only. A vessel or processing vessel operated by a government agency shall not be subject to the requirement of hoisting the national flag of the member country;

"Customs Valuation Agreement" shall mean the Agreement on Implementation of Article 7 of the General Agreement of Tariffs and Trade 1994 being part of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization.

Article 21    The General Administration of Customs shall be responsible for interpretation of these Measures.

Article 22    These Measures shall be effective 1 January 2009. The Interim Provisions of the Customs of the People's Republic of China on Place of Origin of Imports under the "First Agreement on Trade Negotiations among Developing Member Countries of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific" promulgated via Decree of the General Administration of Customs No. 94 on 30 December 2001 shall be repealed simultaneously.

Appendices:

1. List of Member Countries of Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

2. Format of Certificate of Place of Origin

Appendix 1: List of Member Countries of Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

China, Korea, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Laos

Bangladesh and Laos are the least developed member countries

Appendix 2: SAMPLE CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN

Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement

（Combined declaration and certificate）

Notes for completing Certificate of Origin

I. General Conditions：

To qualify for preference， products must：

a） fall within a description of products eligible for preference in the list of concessions of an Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement country of destination；

b） comply with Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement rules of origin. Each article in a consignment must qualify separately in its own right； and

c） comply with the consignment conditions specified by the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement rules of origin. In general， products must be consigned directly within the meaning of Article 11 hereof from the country of exportation to the country of destination.

II. Entries to be made in the boxes

-Box 1 Goods Consigned from

Type the name， address and country of the exporter. The name must be the same as the exporter described in the invoice.

-Box 2 Goods Consigned to

Type the name， address and country of the importer. The name must be the same as the importer described in the invoice. For third party trade， the words "To Order" may be typed.

-Box 3 For Official Use

Reserved for use by certifying authority.

-Box 4 Means of Transport and Route

State in detail the means of transport and route for the products exported. If the L/C terms etc. do not require such details， type "By Air" or "By Sea". If the products are transported through a third country this can be indicated as follows：　 e.g. "By Air"　 "Laos to India via Bangkok"

-Box 5 Tariff Item Number

Type the 4-digit HS heading of the individual items.

-Box 6 Marks and Numbers of Packages

Type the marks and numbers of the packages covered by the Certificate. This information should be identical to

the marks and numbers on the packages.

-Box 7 Number and Kind of Packages； Description of Goods

Type clearly the description of the products exported. This should be identical to the description of the products contained in the invoice. An accurate description will help the Customs Authority of the country of destination to clear the products quickly.

-Box 8 Origin Criterion

Preference products must be wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Participating State in accordance with Article 4 of　this measures， or where not wholly produced or obtained in the exporting Participating State must be eligible under Article 5， Article 6 or Article 7.

a） Products wholly produced or obtained： enter the letter "A" in Box 8.

b） Products not wholly produced or obtained： the entry in Box 8 should be as follows：

1.Enter letter "B" in Box 8， for products which meet the origin criteria according to Article 5 paragraph 1. Entry of letter "B" would be followed by the sum of the value of materials， parts or produce originating from non-Participating States， or undetermined origin used， expressed as a percentage of the f.o.b. value of the products； （example "B" 50 per cent）；

2. Enter letter "C" in Box 8 for products which meet the origin criteria according to Article 7 paragraph 1.

Entry of letter "C" would be followed by the sum of the aggregate content originating in the territory of the exporting Participating State expressed as a percentage of the f.o.b. value of the exported product； （example "C" 60 per cent）；

3. Enter letter "D" in Box 8 for products which meet the special origin criteria according to Article 5 paragraph 3 or　Article 7 paragraph 2.

-Box 9 Gross Weight or Other Quantity

Type the gross weight or other quantity （such as pieces， kg） of the products covered by the Certificate.

-Box 10 Number and Date of Invoices

State number and date of the invoice in question. The date of the invoice attached to the Application should not be later than the date of approval on the Certificate.

-Box 11 Declaration by the Exporter

The term "Exporter" refers to the shipper who can either be a trader or a manufacturer. Type the name of the producing country and the importing country and the place and date when the declaration is made. This box must be signed by the Company's authorized signatory.

-Box 12 Certification

The certifying authority will certify in this Box.