Promulgation Authorities:  General Administration of Customs

Promulgation Date:  2021.04.12

Effective Date:  2022.01.01

Validity Status:  valid

Document Number:  Decree No.249 from the General Administration of Customs

Administrative Measures of the People's Republic of China for the Safety of Food for import or export

Administrative Measures of the People's Republic of China for the Safety of Food for import or export

Decree No.249 from the General Administration of Customs

The Administrative Measures of the People's Republic of China for the Safety of Food for import or export, adopted upon deliberation at the executive meeting of the General Administration of Customs on 12 March 2021, are hereby promulgated, effective on 1 January 2022, repealing simultaneously the Administrative Measures for the Safety of Food for import or export promulgated by the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 13 September 2011 under Decree No. 144 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 184 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 18 October 2016 and Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Inspection and Quarantine of Honey for Export promulgated under Decree No. 20 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 22 February 2000 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 238 from the General Administration of Customs on 28 April 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Products for Import or Export promulgated under Decree No. 135 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 4 January 2011 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Meat Products for Import or Export promulgated under Decree No. 136 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 4 January 2011 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Dairy Products for Import or Export  promulgated under Decree No. 152 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 24 January 2013 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, and the Administrative Provisions on the Filing of Manufacturer of food for export s promulgated via Decree No. 192 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 14 November 2017 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018.

Ni Yuefeng

Minister

12 April 2021

Administrative Measures of the People's Republic of China for the Safety of Food for import or export

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1    In order to ensure the safety of food for import or export and protect the life and health of human beings and animals and plants, these Measures are enacted in accordance with the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Food Safety Law) and its implementing regulations, the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China, the Law of the People's Republic of China on Import and Export Commodity Inspection and its implementing regulations, the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Quarantine of Inbound and Outbound Animals and Plants and its implementing regulations, the Frontier Health and Quarantine Law of the People's Republic of China and its implementing rules, the Law of the People's Republic of China on Agricultural Product Quality Safety, the Special Provisions of the State Council on Strengthening the Supervision and Administration of the Safety of Food and Other Products and other laws and administrative regulations.

Article 2    Whoever engages in the following activities shall abide by these Measures:

(I) Manufacturing and trading activities in respect of food for import or export; and

(II) Supervision and administration conducted by Customs authorities over the manufacturers and traders of food for import or export and the safety of food for import or export.

The manufacturing and trading activities in respect of food for import or export additives and food-related products shall be subject to the relevant provisions of the General Administration of Customs of China ("GACC").

Article 3    The safety of food for import or export shall be subject to the principles of safety first, prevention first, risk management, whole-process control and international co-governance.

Article 4    The manufacturers and traders of food for import or export shall be responsible for the safety of the food for import or export produced or traded by them.

The manufacturers and traders of food for import or export shall, in accordance with the international treaties and agreements concluded or acceded to by China and Chinese laws, regulations and national standards for food safety, accept the supervision and administration in accordance with the law, ensure the safety of food for import or export, be responsible to the society and the public, and assume social responsibilities.

Article 5    The GACC shall be in charge of the supervision and administration of the safety of food for import or export nationwide.

Customs authorities at all levels shall be responsible for the supervision and administration of the safety of food for import or export within their respective jurisdictions.

Article 6    Customs authorities shall use information technology to improve the level of supervision and administration of the safety of food for import or export.

Article 7    Customs authorities shall strengthen the publicity and education of the safety of food for import or export and carry out the popularization of food safety laws, administrative regulations and national standards and knowledge.

Customs authorities shall strengthen the communication and cooperation with international organizations on food safety, foreign governmental agencies, foreign food industry associations and foreign consumer associations, etc. to create a pattern of international co-governance of the safety of food for import or export.

Article 8    Customs officers engaged in the supervision and administration of the safety of food for import or export shall possess relevant professional knowledge.

Chapter II Import of Food

Article 9    The food for import shall conform to Chinese laws, regulations and national standards for food safety. Where there are special requirements in the international treaties and agreements concluded or acceded to by China, the requirements of such international treaties and agreements shall also be complied with.

The food for import for which there are no national standards for food safety shall conform to the requirements of relevant temporarily applicable standards promulgated by the health administration under the State Council.

The hygiene administrative license for new food raw materials from the Health administration under the State Council shall be obtained for the food produced with new food raw materials in accordance with the provisions of Article 37 of the Food Safety Law.

Article 10    Customs authorities shall assess the conformity of the food for import in accordance with the relevant laws and administrative regulations concerning the inspection of goods for import or export.

The conformity assessment of the food for import includes: assessment and review of food safety administration system of overseas countries (regions) exporting food to China (hereinafter referred to as overseas countries (regions)), registration of overseas manufacturers, filing of importers and exporters and guarantee of conformity, approval for quarantine of entry animals and plants, inspection of conformity certificates attached, document review, on-site inspection, sampling inspection under supervision, inspection of import and sales records, as well as a combination thereof.

Article 11    The GACC may assess and review the food safety administration system and food safety situation of overseas countries (regions) and determine corresponding inspection and quarantine requirements based on the assessment and review results.

Article 12    In any of the following circumstances, the GACC may launch assessment and review of an overseas country (region):

(I) The overseas country (region) applies for the initial export of a certain type (kind) of food to China;

(II) The overseas country (region) undergoes major adjustments to the laws and regulations on food safety, animal and plant quarantine and the organizational structure;

(III) The competent authority of the overseas country (region) applies for major adjustments to the inspection and quarantine requirements for a certain type (kind) of food exported to China;

(IV) A major animal or plant epidemic or food safety event occurs in the overseas country (region);

(V) Customs authorities discovers a serious problem in the food exported to China and believes that there is an animal or plant epidemic or food safety hazard; or

(VI) Any other circumstance that requires assessment and review.

Article 13    The assessment and review of the food safety administration system of an overseas country (region) shall mainly include the assessment and confirmation of the following contents:

(I) Laws and regulations on food safety, animal and plant quarantine;

(II) Organizations for food safety supervision and administration;

(III) Animal or plant epidemic situation and prevention and control measures;

(IV) Management and control of pathogenic microorganisms, agricultural and veterinary drugs and pollutants;

(V) Safety and hygiene control of food manufacturing, processing, transportation and storage;

(VI) Supervision and administration of the safety of food for export;

(VII) Food safety protection, traceability and recall system;

(VIII) Early warning and emergency response mechanism;

(IX) Technical support capacity; and

(X) Other circumstance involving animal or plant epidemic or food safety.

Article 14    The GACC may organize experts to carry out assessment and review in such forms as document examination, video inspection and on-site inspection and a combination of the said forms.

Article 15    The GACC may organize experts to examine the application documents, written assessment questionnaires and other documents submitted by the countries (regions) under assessment and review, and the contents to be examined shall include the authenticity, completeness and effectiveness of the documents. The GACC may, according to the results of the examination, require the competent department of the relevant country (region) to supplement the information or documents in lack.

For a country (region) that has passed the document examination, the GACC may organize experts to carry out video inspection or on-site inspection of its food safety administration system. For any problem discovered, the GACC may require the competent department of the relevant country (region) and the relevant enterprise to make rectification.

The relevant country (region) shall provide necessary assistance for the assessment and review.

Article 16    Where a country (region) under assessment and review falls under any of the following circumstances, the GACC may terminate the assessment and review, and notify the competent department of the relevant country (region):

(I) Failure to give feedback within 12 months upon receipt of the written assessment questionnaire;

(II) Failure to provide supplementary information and documents as required within 3 months upon receipt of the notice from the GACC;

(III) Major animal or plant epidemic or major food safety event occurs;

(IV) Failure to cooperate with the Chinese party in completing video inspection or on-site inspection, or failure to effectively complete rectification; or

(V) Voluntary application for termination of assessment and review.

Under the circumstances of Item (I) or (2) of the preceding paragraph, the competent department of the relevant country (region) may apply for an extension due to special reasons. Upon approval of the GACC, the relevant documents shall be submitted within the time limit re-determined by the GACC.

Article 17    After completion of the assessment and review, the GACC shall circulate a notice of the assessment and review results to the competent department of the country (region) under the assessment and review.

Article 18    The GACC implements registration administration for the overseas manufacturers that export food to China and publicizes the list of the registered enterprises.

Article 19    Overseas exporters or agents that export food to China (hereinafter referred to as "overseas exporters or agents") shall go through filing formalities with the GACC.

Food importers shall go through filing formalities with the local customs authorities.

When going through the filing formalities, overseas exporters or agents or food importers shall be responsible for the authenticity and validity of the documents they provide.

The list of overseas exporters or agents and food importers that have been filed will be publicized by the GACC.

Article 20    Where there is any change in the filing contents of an overseas exporter or its agent or a food importer, the overseas exporter or its agent or the food importer shall go through the formalities for change with the filing organ within 60 days upon occurrence of such change.

Where Customs authorities find that the filing information of an overseas exporter or its agent or a food importer is wrong or the filing contents fail to be timely changed, they may order the overseas exporter or its agent or the food importer to make corrections within a prescribed time limit.

Article 21    A food importer shall establish a recording system for import and sale of food to faithfully record the name, net content/specifications and quantity of the food, date of manufacturing, manufacturing or import batch number, best before date, name, address and contact information of the overseas exporter or purchaser, date of delivery and other contents, and keep the relevant vouchers. The records and vouchers shall be kept for at least six months upon the expiration of the best before date of the food; where the best before date is not specified, such records and vouchers shall be kept for at least two years upon sale.

Article 22    A food importer shall establish an examination system for overseas exporters and overseas manufacturers, with emphasis on the following contents:

(I) The formulation and implementation of food safety risk control measures; and

(II) The situation of ensuring that the food complies with Chinese laws and regulations and national standards for food safety.

Article 23    Customs authorities shall supervise and inspect the examination conducted by food importers in accordance with the law. Food importers shall actively cooperate and faithfully provide relevant information and documents.

Article 24    Customs authorities may, as required for risk management, conduct the inspection of the food for import at the designated ports and the designated supervision and control sites. The list of designated ports and designated supervision and control sites will be announced by the GACC.

Article 25    A food importer or its agent shall truthfully declare to Customs authorities in accordance with the law when importing food.

Article 26    Customs authorities shall, in accordance with the law, conduct quarantine over the food for import that is subject to entry quarantine.

Article 27    Customs authorities shall, in accordance with the law, conduct quarantine examination and approval administration on the food for import that is subject to quarantine examination and approval of animals and plants entering China. A food importer shall, prior to signing a trade contract or agreement, obtain a quarantine permit for entry animals and plants.

Article 28    Customs authorities shall, as required for supervision and administration, conduct on-site inspection of the food for import. The on-site inspection shall include but not be limited to the following contents:

(I) Whether the means of transport and the place of storage meet the requirements for safety and hygiene;

(II) Whether the container number, sealing number, the contents of marks on the internal and external packages and the actual conditions of goods are consistent with the declared information and the attached documents;

(III) Whether the food derived from animals or plants, packing materials and bedding/padding materials have any of the circumstances as prescribed in Article 22 of the Implementing Regulations for the Law on the Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine;

(IV) Whether the internal and external packages meet the national standards for food safety, and whether there is any contamination, damage, wet soaking or penetration of the packages;

(V) Whether the labels and marks on the internal and external packages and the instructions meet the requirements of laws, administrative regulations, national standards for food safety and the provisions of the GACC;

(VI) Whether the sensory properties of the food conform to the properties that the food should have; and

(VII) Whether the freshness and central temperature of frozen and refrigerated food meet the requirements, whether there is any disease, and whether the temperature in the environment of frozen and refrigerated food meets the relevant standards and requirements, whether the cold chain temperature control equipment and facilities operate normally and whether the temperature records meet the requirements. If necessary, cooking test may be conducted.

Article 29    Customs authorities shall formulate the annual national plan for the sampling inspection under supervision of the safety of the food for import and the special plan for the sampling inspection under supervision of the safety of the food for import and organize the implementation thereof.

Article 30    The packaging, labels and marks of the food for import shall conform to Chinese laws, regulations and national standards for food safety. Where there shall be instructions as required by law, there shall also be instructions in Chinese.

For the fresh and frozen meat products for import, there shall be firm, clear and identifiable written marks in Chinese and English or in Chinese and the language of the exporting country (region) on the internal and external packages, indicating the following contents: the country (region) of origin, name of product, registration number of the manufacturer, and batch number. The specification, place of origin (the state/province/city), destination, date of manufacturing, sell-by date, and storage temperature shall be indicated in Chinese on the external packages. The destination shall be the People's Republic of China, and the official inspection and quarantine mark of the exporting country (region) shall be affixed.

For the aquatic products for import, there shall be firm, clear and identifiable written marks in Chinese and English or in Chinese and the language of the exporting country (region) on the internal and external packages, indicating the following contents: commodity name and scientific name, specifications, date of manufacturing, batch number, sell-by date and storage conditions, mode of manufacturing (sea fishing, freshwater fishing and aquaculture), manufacturing area (sea fishing areas, freshwater fishing countries or regions, and the country or region where aquaculture products are located), name, registration number and address (the specific state/province/city) of all the manufacturing and processing enterprises involved (including fishing vessels, processing vessels, transport vessels, and independent cold storages), and the destination must be the People's Republic of China.

The Chinese labels of the health-care food and food for special dietary use for import must be printed on the smallest sales package and shall not be affixed.

Where there are provisions on special marks on the internal and external packages of the food for import, such provisions shall prevail.

Article 31    The food for import, upon its arrival at the port, shall be stored in the places designated or recognized by customs authorities; where it is necessary to move the food, permission from Customs authorities shall be obtained and necessary safety protection measures shall be taken as required by Customs authorities.

The designated or recognized places shall meet the requirements specified in the laws, administrative regulations and national standards for food safety.

Article 32    The inspection of the bulk food for import shall be conducted at the port of discharge as required by Customs authorities.

Article 33    The food for import that passes Customs authorities' conformity assessment is allowed to be imported.

Where the food for import fails to pass Customs authorities' conformity assessment, Customs authorities shall issue a certificate of non-conformity to the food importer; where the food for import fails to pass Customs authorities' conformity assessment in terms of safety, health and environmental protection, Customs authorities shall notify the food importer in writing and order it to destroy or return the food; where The food for import  fails to pass Customs authorities' conformity assessment in other terms and meets the requirements of conformity assessment after technical treatment, the food may be imported. Where the technical treatment of the relevant food for import fails to be completed within the prescribed time limit or fails to pass Customs authorities' conformity assessment upon the technical treatment, Customs authorities shall order the food importer to destroy or return the food.

Article 34    Where any food safety event that occurs abroad may cause any potential food safety hazard within the territory of China, or any non-conformity of the food for import is found in the process of Customs authorities' supervision and administration of the food for import, or any other food safety issue is found, the GACC and the authorized customs directly under the GACC may take control measures such as increasing the proportion of sampling inspection under supervision on the relevant food for import based on the risk assessment results.

Where Customs authorities finds non-conformity of the food for import again after taking control measures such as increasing the proportion of sampling inspection under supervision on the food for import in accordance with the preceding paragraph, or there is evidence showing that the food for import has serious potential safety hazard, the GACC and the authorized customs directly under the GACC may require the food importer to submit to Customs authorities the inspection reports issued by qualified inspection agencies batch by batch. Customs authorities shall verify the inspection reports provided by the food importer.

Article 35    Under any of the following circumstances, the GACC may take control measures such as suspending or prohibiting the import of relevant food based on the risk assessment results:

(I) The exporting country (region) suffers from a serious animal or plant epidemic, or the food safety system undergoes a major change, resulting in the failure to effectively ensure the safety of the food exported to China;

(II) The food for import is contaminated with the pathogen of a quarantinable infectious disease or there is evidence showing that the food for import may become a vehicle of a quarantinable infectious disease and effective sanitary treatment cannot be conducted;

(III) The food for import for which Customs authorities takes the control measures prescribed in Paragraph 2, Article 34 of these Measures, and the relevant items of safety, health and environmental protection are found to be non-conformity again;

(IV) The overseas manufacturer seriously violates relevant laws and regulations of China; or

(V) Other information shows that the relevant food has serious potential safety hazard.

Article 36    When the safety risk of the food for import has been reduced to a controllable level, the GACC and the authorized customs directly under the GACC may lift the corresponding control measures in the following ways:

(I) If the food for which the control measures prescribed in Paragraph 1, Article 34 of these Measures are taken are not found to be non-conformity within the prescribed time and batch, such control measures may be lifted on the basis of the risk assessment;

(II) If the export country (region) of the food for which the control measures prescribed in Paragraph 2, Article 34 of these Measures are taken has taken preventive measures, and the risk assessment conducted by the GACC can guarantee food safety and control animal and plant epidemic risks, or no non-conformity food is found within the prescribed time and batch since the implementation of such control measures, Customs authorities may lift such control measures on the basis of the risk assessment; and

(III) If the competent department of the exporting country (region) has taken risk control measures against the import of food for which the import suspension or prohibition measures are taken and the requirements are met upon the assessment conducted by the GACC, such measures may be lifted. With regard to the food for which the import is resumed, the GACC may take the control measures prescribed in Article 34 of these Measures depending on the assessment result.

Article 37    Where a food importer finds that the food for import  does not conform to the laws, administrative regulations and national standards for food safety, or there is evidence proving that the food for import may harm human health, it shall, in accordance with the provisions of Article 63 and Paragraph 3, Article 94 of the Food Safety Law, immediately cease the import, sale and use of such food, recall such food, notify the relevant manufacturers, traders and consumers of the recall, record the recall and notification situation, and report the food recall, notification and handling situation to the local Customs authorities.

Chapter III Export of Food

Article 38    A food manufacturer shall ensure that its food for export meets the standards of the importing country (region) or the requirements of the contract; if any international treaty or agreement concluded or acceded to by China has special requirements, the food manufacturer shall also meet the requirements of such international treaty or agreement.

If the importing country (region) has no standard for the time being, the contract does not have any requirement, and the international treaty or agreement concluded or acceded to by China has no relevant requirement, the manufacturer of food for export shall ensure that its food for export conforms to the national standards for food safety of China.

Article 39    Customs authorities shall conduct supervision and administration on food for export in accordance with the law. The supervision and administration measures for food for export  include: record-filing of the plantation or breeding farms of the raw materials of food for export, record-filing of the manufacturers of the food for export, enterprise verification, document review, on-site inspection, sampling inspection under supervision, port random inspection, overseas circulation and inspection as well as a combination of all items.

Article 40    The planting and breeding farms of the raw materials of food for export shall file a record with the local customs authorities.

The GACC shall publish the list of the plantation or breeding farms of raw materials in a unified manner, and the record-filing procedures and requirements shall be formulated by the GACC.

Article 41    Customs authorities shall, by such means as document examination, on-site inspection and enterprise verification, supervise plantation or breeding farms of raw materials that have been filed.

Article 42    A manufacturer of food for export shall file for record with the local Customs authorities, and the record-filing procedures and requirements shall be formulated by the GACC.

Article 43    Where an overseas country (region) implements registration administration on the manufacturer of food for export s exporting from China to that country (region) and requires the GACC to make a recommendation, the manufacturer of food for export s shall file an application with the local Customs authorities, which shall report the case to the GACC after preliminary review.

The GACC shall, in light of the enterprise credit, supervision and administration and preliminary review by local Customs authorities, organize and carry out the work of recommendation for registration, and the relevant procedures and requirements shall be formulated by the GACC.

Article 44    A manufacturer of food for export shall establish a sound traceable food safety and hygiene control system, ensure effective operation of such system, and ensure that its manufacturing, processing and storage processes of the food for export are continuously compliant with the relevant laws and regulations of China and the safety and hygiene requirements for manufacturer of food for export s; where there are special requirements in the relevant laws and regulations of the importing country (region) and the relevant international treaties and agreements, such requirements shall also be complied with.

A manufacturer of food for export shall establish a supplier assessment system, incoming goods inspection and recording system, manufacturing record system, delivery inspection recording system, traceability system for the food for export and non-conformity food disposal system. The relevant records shall be true and valid and shall be kept for not less than six months upon expiry of the shelf life of the food; where the shelf life is not specified, the relevant records shall be kept for not less than two years.

Article 45    A manufacturer of food for export shall ensure that the packaging and transportation methods of its food for export comply with the food safety requirements.

Article 46    A manufacturer of food for export shall mark on the transportation package the record-filing number of the manufacturer, the name of the product, the batch number and the date of manufacturing.

Where there are special requirements in the import country (region) or the contract, the manufacturer of food for export  may adjust the labeling items stipulated in the preceding paragraph upon the approval of the customs directly under the GACC on the premise of ensuring the traceability of products.

Article 47    Customs authorities shall supervise and inspect the operation of the food safety and hygiene control system of manufacturer of food for export s within their jurisdiction. Supervision and inspection shall include routine supervision and inspection and annual supervision and inspection.

Supervision and inspection may be carried out in the form of document examination, on-site inspection, enterprise check, etc., which may be combined with overseas notification and inspection, sampling inspection under supervision, on-site inspection and other work in respect of the food for export.

Article 48    The food for export shall be inspected and quarantined by Customs authorities at the place of origin in accordance with the law.

The GACC may, as required for facilitation of foreign trade and inspection and quarantine of the food for export, designate other places to carry out inspection and quarantine.

Article 49    Manufacturers and exporters of The food for export shall , in accordance with the laws, administrative regulations and the provisions of the GACC, file an application to the Customs authorities at the place of origin or the place of assembly for supervision and control prior to export declaration.

The Customs authorities at the place of origin or the place of assembly shall, after accepting the application for supervision and control prior to export declaration of food, conduct on-site inspection and sampling inspection under supervision of food for export that are subject to inspection and quarantine in accordance with the law.

Article 50    Customs authorities shall formulate annual plans for national sampling inspection under supervision of the safety of the food for export and organize the implementation thereof.

Article 51    Customs authorities shall issue a certificate approving the export of food that meets the requirements upon Customs authorities' on-site inspection and sampling inspection under supervision. Where the import country (region) requires any change in the form and content of the certificate, the form and content of the certificate may be changed upon approval of the GACC.

Where the food for export fails to meet the requirements upon Customs authorities' on-site inspection and sampling inspection under supervision, Customs authorities shall notify the exporter or its agent in writing of non-conformity. Where the relevant food for export can undergo technical treatment, it may be exported only after it undergoes the technical treatment; where the relevant food for export cannot undergo technical treatment or still does not conform to the requirement upon the technical treatment, it may not be exported.

Article 52    Food exporters or their agents shall truthfully declare to Customs authorities in accordance with the law when they export food.

Article 53    Customs authorities shall conduct inspection of the food for export at the port, and those failing to pass the inspection shall not be exported.

Article 54    Where the food for export is circulated by international organizations or overseas governmental agencies due to safety issues, the GACC shall organize and carry out inspection and, as necessary, take control measures such as adjusting the proportion of sampling inspection under supervision, requiring the food exporter to submit to Customs authorities the inspection report issued by a qualified inspection agency batch by batch, and withdrawing the registration recommendation to the overseas official authorities.

Article 55    Where the food for export has any safety issue that has damaged or is likely to damage human health and life safety, the manufacturer of food for export  or trader shall immediately take corresponding measures to avoid and reduce the occurrence of damage and report the case to the local Customs authorities.

Article 56    Where Customs authorities finds any safety issue in the process of conducting supervision and administration of export food, it shall report the case to the government at the same level and the food safety authority of the government at the next higher level.

Chapter IV Supervision and Administration

Article 57    The GACC shall, in accordance with the provisions of Article 100 of the Food Safety Law, collect and summarize the safety information of imported or exported food and establish an information management system for the safety information of imported or exported food.

Customs authorities at all levels shall be responsible for the collection and sorting of the safety information of imported or exported food within their respective jurisdictions and those designated by Customs authorities at the next higher level, and circulate a notice to the local governments, relevant departments, institutions and enterprises within their respective jurisdictions in accordance with relevant provisions. Where the information to be reported involves other regions, Customs authorities of the relevant regions shall be informed at the same time.

The safety information of imported or exported food collected and summarized by Customs authorities shall include the information of technical trading measures for overseas food, in addition to the information stipulated in Article 100 of the Food Safety Law.

Article 58    Customs authorities shall conduct risk judgment on the safety information of imported or exported food collected and determine corresponding control measures based on the results of risk judgment.

Article 59    Where a food safety event or epidemic or disease occurs at home and abroad that may affect the safety of import and export food or serious food safety problems are found in import and export food, Customs authorities directly under the GACC shall timely report to the GACC; the GACC shall, in light of the circumstances, give risk warning circulars within the Customs system, notify the food safety supervision and administration department, health administrative department and agricultural administrative department under the State Council, and issue risk warning circulars to consumers when necessary.

Where the GACC issues a risk warning circular, it shall, as required by the risk warning circular, take control measures stipulated in Article 34, Article 35, Article 36 and Article 54 of these Measures against import and export food.

Article 60    Customs authorities shall formulate annual national risk monitoring plans for the safety of import and export food and systematically and continuously collect the monitoring data and relevant information of food-borne diseases, food contamination and harmful factors in import and export food.

Article 61    Where any overseas food safety event may affect China or any uncontrollable risk is identified upon assessment, the GACC may, by referring to international practices, directly issue a risk warning circular within The customs system or issue a risk warning circular to consumers, and take control measures stipulated in Article 34, Article 35 and Article 36 of these Measures.

Article 62    Customs authorities shall formulate and organize the implementation of emergency response plans for the safety of import and export food.

Article 63    Customs authorities shall have the right to take the following measures when performing their functions and duties of supervision and administration of the safety of import and export food in accordance with the law:

(I) Entering the manufacturing and operation premises to carry out on-site inspection;

(II) Conducting sampling inspection of food manufactured or traded in;

(III) Consulting and copying relevant contracts, notes, account books and other relevant documents; and

(IV) Seizing and detaining the food that is proved not to meet the national standards for food safety or having potential safety hazards, as well as the food that is manufactured or traded in illegally.

Article 64    Customs authorities shall implement credit administration of import and export enterprises in accordance with the law.

Article 65    Customs authorities shall inspect and verify the manufacturers and traders of import and export food as well as the plantation and breeding farms of raw materials filed in accordance with the law.

Article 66    The transit food shall comply with the regulatory requirements of the GACC on transit goods. During the transit period, without the approval of Customs authorities, the transit food shall not be unpacked or unloaded from the means of transport and shall be transported out of the territory within the prescribed time limit.

Article 67    Where a manufacturer or trader of import and export food objects to the results of inspection conducted by Customs authorities, it may apply for re-inspection in accordance with the relevant provisions on re-inspection of import and export commodities.

Customs authorities do not accept a re-inspection application in any of the following circumstances:

(I) The inspection results indicate that the microbiological indicators exceed the standards;

(II) The back-up samples for re-inspection have expired; or

(III) Other reasons that lead to the failure of the back-up samples for the purpose of re-inspection.

Chapter V Legal Liability

Article 68    Where the contents of a food importer's record are changed and the importer fails to go through the formalities for the alteration as required, Customs authorities will impose a warning on the importer if the circumstances are serious.

Where a food importer provides false information in the course of filing for the record, Customs authorities will impose a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan on it.

Article 69    Where a manufacturer or trader of import and export food within the territory of China refuses to cooperate with Customs authorities' inspection for the safety of import and export food, refuses to accept inquiries or provide documents, or the contents replied and documents provided are inconsistent with the actual situation, Customs authorities will give a warning or impose a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan on it.

Article 70    Where Customs authorities finds during its supervision over import pre-packaged food that no labels in Chinese are affixed on such food or the labels in Chinese fail to comply with the laws, regulations and the national standards for food safety, or the food importer refuses to destroy, return or conduct technical treatment as required by Customs authorities , Customs authorities will give a warning or impose a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan on the food importer.

Article 71    Where any food for import is taken away from the places designated or recognized by Customs authorities without the approval thereof, Customs authorities will order to make corrections and impose a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan.

Article 72    Where any of the following illegal acts falls into the scope of "exporting food in violation of this Law" as specified in Item 3, Paragraph 1, Article 129 of the Food Safety Law, Customs authorities will impose penalties in accordance with Article 124 of the Food Safety Law:

(I) Where the export food that has been subject to the sampling inspection under supervision by Customs authorities and for which the certificates have been is replaced without authorization;

(II) Where the exporter exports the food that is adulterated, fake or sub-standard, or passes off non-conformity export food as export food up to standard;

(III) Where the exporter exports food manufactured by a manufacturer of the food for export that has not been filed for record;

(IV) Where the exporter exports food manufactured by an un-registered manufacturer of food for export to any country (or region) with registration requirements, or exports food beyond the scope of registration that has been manufactured by a registered manufacturer of food for export;

(V) Where the export food manufactured by the manufacturer of food for export fails to use the raw materials of the filed planting or breeding farm as required; or

(VI) Where the manufacturer or trader of food for export is under any of the circumstances prescribed in Article 123, Article 124, Article 125 or Article 126 of the Food Safety Law, and the export food fails to meet the requirements of the importing country (region).

Article 73    Where the violations of these Measures constitute a crime, criminal liability shall be investigated in accordance with the law.

Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions

Article 74    The supervision and administration of the safety of the food for import or export  in the areas under special customs supervision, bonded places under supervision, market procurement, border petty trade and border trade between border residents shall be subject to the relevant provisions of the GACC.

Article 75    The supervision and administration of the safety of the food for import or export by post, courier, cross-border e-commerce retail and carrying by passengers shall be subject to the relevant provisions of the GACC.

Article 76    The supervision and administration of the non-trade food such as samples, gifts, complimentary gifts, exhibits and aid, food operated free of tax, food imported or exported by foreign embassies and consulates stationed in China and their staff for official or personal use, food imported or exported by Chinese embassies and consulates stationed in abroad and their staff for official or personal use, and food imported or exported by Chinese enterprises stationed abroad shall be subject to the relevant provisions of the GACC.

Article 77    The manufacturers and traders of food for import or export as mentioned herein include: overseas manufacturers and overseas exporters or their agents that export food to China, food importers, manufacturer of food for export s, exporters and other relevant personnel.

The overseas manufacturers of the food for import as mentioned herein include the overseas manufacturing, processing and storage enterprises that export food to China.

The importers and exporters of the food for import as mentioned herein include the overseas exporters or their agents and food importers that export food to China.

Article 78    The power to interpret these Measures shall remain with the GACC.

Article 79    These Measures shall come into force as of January 1, 2022, repealing simultaneously the Administrative Measures for the Safety of Food for import or export promulgated by the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 13 September 2011 under Decree No. 144 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 184 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 18 October 2016 and Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Inspection and Quarantine of Honey for Export  promulgated under Decree No. 20 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 22 February 2000 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 238 from the General Administration of Customs on 28 April 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Products for Import or Export promulgated under Decree No. 135 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 4 January 2011 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Meat Products for Import or Export promulgated under Decree No. 136 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 4 January 2011 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, the Administrative Measures for the Supervision of Inspection and Quarantine of Dairy Products for Import or Export promulgated under Decree No. 152 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 24 January 2013 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018, and the Administrative Provisions on the Filing of Manufacturer of food for export s promulgated via Decree No. 192 from the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on 14 November 2017 and revised pursuant to Decree No. 243 from the General Administration of Customs on 23 November 2018.