Guide on 2009 Plan for Execution of Customs Duty

I. Adjustment of import tariff

(I) Adjustment of duty rate for the most-favored-nation

In order to substantially fulfill the commitment made by China as entering WTO, 2009 Plan for Execution of Customs Duty further lowers the most favored nation tariff for part of commodities in China. The tariff reducing for this time relates to a limited scope of commodities. Also, the decreasing amplitude of tax rate is low. Therefore, influence on the arithmetic means of customs duty is not obvious. Thus, the customs duty in 2009 is the same as that in 2008, namely, 9.8%. As compared with 15.3 % in 2001 when China entered WTO, the tariff diminution has reached 35.95%. After the tariff is lowered for this time, China's average tax rate for agricultural products is still 15.2%, while the average tax rate for manufactured goods is 8.9%. Except that 1-year executive period is available for tariff lowering of certain products, China has substantially fulfilled the commitment on tariff lowering for entering WTO. This year, the major implementation of duty rate for the most-favored-import shall include four aspects as follows:

1. Adjustment of ad valorem tariff: lowering the most favored nation tariff for five taxable items such as fresh strawberry, specified in the Regulations for Import and Export Duties of the P.R.C. (hereafter referred to as the Regulations for Duties, while the most favored nation tariff for the other tariff items shall be kept unchanged. Five items for tariff lowering shall include fresh strawberry, other temporary preserved fruits & nuts, yellow rice wine, other fermented beverage and bleaching & non-bleaching pure polyester fabric. The tariff diminution shall be from 0.9% to 2.2% for the commodities as per stated above.

2. Applicable tax rate for IT products (ITA): the customs check shall be continuously implemented for nine IT products among the non-completely taxable items. As compared with those in 2008, the tariff items and tax rate shall remain constant.

3. Tariff quota control-related commodity adjustment: the tariff quota control is adopted for 45 tariff items in 8 types of products including wheat. Also, the tax rate, namely, provisional quota of 1% shall be used for carbamide, compound fertilizer and diammonium phosphate. Meanwhile, the sliding duty shall be implemented for the imported cotton, which is outside the tariff quota.

4. Specific duties and compound duties: specific duties and compound duties shall be adopted for 55 types of commodities such as gelatin chicken. Except the tax rate adjustment of specific duties for 11 film-related taxable items, the tax rate for other items shall be in conformity with that in 2008.