CUS NTF NO. 187/2009 (NT) DATE 31/12/2009
Customs Tariff (Determination of Origin of Goods under the Preferential Trade Agreement between the Governments of the Republic of India and the Republic of Korea) Rules, 2009
Annexure-III
(See rule 15)
Procedure regarding claim of preferential tariff treatment and Certificate of Origin of Goods under the agreement1. Issuing Authorities.- (1) The Certificate of Origin shall be issued by an authority or authorities designated by the Government of the exporting State party (hereinafter referred to as ˇ°Issuing Authoritiesˇ±) as provided in Annexure-IV to the rules.
(2) Each State party shall inform the other State party of the names and addresses of the authorised officials of its respective Issuing Authorities and also provide the original sets of their specimen signatures and specimen of official seals and any subsequent change in their names, addresses, specimen signatures or official seals shall be promptly informed to the other State party.
(3) For the purposes of verifying the requirements for preferential tariff treatment, the Issuing Authorities shall have the right to request for any supporting documentary evidence or to carry out any verification considered appropriate and consistent with its laws or practices.
2. Application for Certificate of Origin.- (1) The exporter or the producer of the goods satisfying the criteria of preferential tariff treatment under these rules shall apply in writing or electronically, as the case may be, to the relevant Issuing Authorities requesting for pre-export verification of the origin of the goods who shall, on receiving such request, conduct pre-export verification and the result of such verification, shall be accepted, subject to review periodically or whenever appropriate, as the supporting evidence in verifying the origin of the said goods to be exported thereafter:
Provided that, the pre-export verification may not apply to the goods, the origin of which, by their nature, can be easily verified.
(2) At the time of carrying out the formalities for exporting the goods under preferential tariff treatment, the exporter or his authorised representative shall submit a written application for issuance of a Certificate of Origin together with appropriate supporting documents proving that the goods to be exported qualify for issuance of the Certificate of Origin:
Provided that, where an exporter is not the producer of the good, an application for issuance of the Certificate of Origin may be made on the basis of the declaration of the producer of the goods that the goods qualify as originating goods and such an application may include the result of pre-export verification pursuant to sub-paragraph (1).
(3) The Issuing Authorities shall, to the best of their competence and ability, carry out proper examination upon each application for issuance of the Certificate of Origin to ensure that,-
(a) the application for the Certificate of Origin is duly completed and signed by the exporter or its authorised signatory;
(b) the origin of the goods is in conformity with the rules;
(c) the other statements of the Certificate of Origin correspond to supporting documentary evidence submitted; and,
(d) export of multiple items declared on a single Certificate of Origin shall be allowed, provided that each item qualifies as an originating good separately in its own right in accordance with these rules.
3. Issuance of Certificate of Origin.¨C (1) A Certificate of Origin shall comprise of one original and three copies and shall be,-
(a) in a printed format or on any other medium, including electronic format; and,
(b) completed in English in conformity with the specimen and the instructions contained therein as set out in the Annexure-V to the rules.
(2) The Issuing Authorities shall retain duplicate copy and shall provide the original and the remaining two copies to the exporter who shall forward the original along with the triplicate copy to the importer for submission to the customs authority at the port or place of importation:
Provided that, such triplicate copy shall be retained by the importer and the quadruplicate copy shall be retained by the exporter.
(3) There shall be no erasures or superimpositions on the Certificate of Origin and any unused spaces shall be crossed out to prevent any subsequent addition and any alteration thereto, shall be made by striking out the errors and making any addition required:
Provided that, such alterations shall be approved and certified by an official authorised to sign the Certificates of Origin issued by the relevant Issuing Authorities:
(4) The Certificate of Origin shall be issued by the relevant Issuing Authorities at the time of exportation, or within seven working days from the date of shipment whenever the goods to be exported can be considered originating in that State party:
Provided that, under exceptional cases, where the Certificate of Origin has not been issued at the time of exportation or within seven working days from the date of shipment due to involuntary errors or omissions or due to any other valid reasons, such Certificate of Origin may be issued retrospectively and shall bear the words ˇ°ISSUED RETROSPECTIVELYˇ± in Remarks box of the Certificate of Origin:
Provided further that such issuance shall not be later than one year from the date of shipment of the goods.
(5) In the event of theft, loss or destruction of the Certificate of Origin, the exporter may apply in writing to the Issuing Authorities that issued the Certificate of Origin for a certified true copy of the original and the triplicate copy and such an application shall be made on the basis of the export documents in the possession of the exporter and on the condition that the exporter provides to the relevant Issuing Authorities the quadruplicate copy of the original Certificate of Origin:
Provided that, any copy of the Certificate of Origin issued on the basis of such application shall bear the endorsement of the words ˇ°CERTIFIED TRUE COPYˇ± in the Remarks box of the Certificate of Origin:
Provided further that such copy of the Certificate of Origin shall bear the date of the original Certificate of Origin and shall be issued not later than one year from the date of issuance of the original Certificate of Origin.
4. Validity of Certificate of Origin.- (1) The Certificate of Origin shall be valid for twelve months from the date of its issuance by the relevant Issuing Authorities in the exporting State party and any claim for preferential tariff treatment on the basis of such Certificate of Origin shall be made within the said period to the customs authority of the importing State party.
(2) The Certificate of Origin submitted to the customs authority of the importing State party after the expiration of the period specified in paragraph (1), may be accepted for the purpose of claiming preferential tariff treatment, in accordance with the procedures applicable in that State party:
Provided that, the failure to submit the documents within the period specified in paragraph (1) is due to exceptional circumstances.
Provided further that, in all cases where the goods have been imported before the expiration of the period of validity of the Certificate of Origin, the customs authority in the importing State party may accept such Certificate of Origin in accordance with the procedures applicable in that State party.
(3) A single Certificate of Origin may be used for the purposes of,-
(a) a single shipment of goods that results in the filing of one or more entries on the importation of the goods into the territory of a State party; or,
(b) more than one shipment of goods that results in the filing of one entry on the importation of the goods into the territory of a State party.
5. Invoicing by a State Non-party operator.- (1) The customs authority in the importing State party may accept a Certificate of Origin in cases where the sales invoice is issued by an operator located in a third country or by an exporter for the account of the said operator, provided that, the good meets the requirements of these rules.
(2) The exporter of the goods shall indicate ˇ°third country invoicingˇ± and information such as name, address and country of the operator issuing the invoice, shall be stated in the Certificate of Origin.
6. Discrepancies in the Certificate of Origin.- The discovery of minor discrepancies between the statements made in the Certificate of Origin and those made in the documents submitted to the customs authority of the importing State party for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the goods shall not ipso facto invalidate the Certificate of Origin:
Provided that, such Certificate of Origin corresponds to the goods under importation.
7. Claims for preferential tariff treatment.- (1) Except as otherwise provided for in this Annexure, each State party shall require an importer in its territory who claims preferential tariff treatment for a good imported into its territory from the territory of the other State party to,-
(a) request for preferential tariff treatment at the time of importation of an originating good, if required by the customs authority of the importing State party;
(b) make a written declaration that the good qualifies as an originating good, if it deemed necessary to do so by the importing State party;
(c) submit the original Certificate of Origin to the customs authority of the importing State party at the time of importation, if required by the customs authority of the importing State party;
(d) provide, on the basis of request of the customs authority of the importing State party, any other documentation relating to the importation of the good; and,
(e) promptly make a corrected declaration in a manner required by the customs authority of the importing State party, subject to the laws of the importing State party and pay any duties along with interest and other charges owing, where the importer has reason to believe that the Certificate of Origin, on the basis of which such preferential tariff treatment is requested, contains information that is not correct.
(2) Each importing State party may, in accordance with its laws and regulations, provide that where a good that would have qualified as an originating good when it was imported into its territory, the importer of the good may apply for a refund of any excess duties paid as the result of the good not having been accorded preferential tariff treatment.
(3) For the purposes of clause (d) of sub-paragraph (1), the customs authority of the importing State party may require an importer to demonstrate that the good was shipped in accordance with rule 14 by submitting the following documents, namely:-(a) bills of lading or waybills indicating the shipping route and all points of shipment and transhipment prior to the importation of the good; and,
(b) where the good is shipped through or transhipped in a State non-party, copy of the documents indicating that the good remained under control of the customs authority of that State non-party.
(4) Where the customs authority of the importing State party determines that a Certificate of Origin is illegible, defective on its face or has not been completed pursuant to paragraph 3, or discovers that discrepancies exist between the Certificate of Origin and the written declaration, the importer shall be granted a period of not less than five working days, but not exceeding thirty working days from the date of request by the customs authority to provide a copy of the corrected Certificate of Origin.
(5) An importer making a corrected declaration of origin pursuant to clause (e) of sub-paragraph (1) and paying any duties owing, shall not be subjected to penalties under paragraph 13, in accordance with the laws and regulations of any of the State parties.
8. Waiver of Certificate of Origin.- The goods sent as small packages from one private person to another or forming part of the personal luggage of a traveller may be admitted as originating goods without requiring the submission of a Certificate of Origin in accordance with the laws and regulations of any the importing State party.
9. Record keeping requirement.- (1) The application, including any documents, submitted for the purpose of issuance of the Certificate of Origin shall be retained by the Issuing Authorities, the exporter and the producer for not less than five years from the date of issuance of the Certificate of Origin.
(2) A copy of the Certificate of Origin and all relevant import documents shall be retained by the importer for not less than five years from the date of importation.
(3) An importer, exporter or producer may choose to maintain records specified in sub-paragraphs (1) and (2), in any medium that allows for prompt retrieval, including, but not limited to, digital, electronic, optical, magnetic or hard copy.
(4) An importer, exporter or producer required to maintain documents related to origin pursuant to sub-paragraphs (1) and (2) shall make the documents available for inspection by an officer of the customs authority or Issuing Authorities of a State party conducting a verification visit and shall provide facilities for inspection thereof.
10. Origin verification.- (1) The importing State party may, at random or when it has reasonable doubt as to the authenticity of the document or as to the accuracy of the information regarding the true origin of the goods in question or of certain parts thereof, request the Issuing Authorities of the exporting State party for a retroactive check and the Issuing Authorities shall conduct such check in accordance with the following procedure, namely:-
(a) the request for such retroactive check shall be accompanied with the Certificate of Origin concerned and the reasons shall be specified including any additional information suggesting that the particulars given on that Certificate of Origin may be inaccurate:
Provided that, no reasons or additional information need to be specified when the retroactive check is requested on a random basis by the importing State party;
(b) the Issuing Authorities receiving a request for a retroactive check shall respond to the request promptly and reply within three months from the date of receipt of such request;
(c) the customs authority of the importing State party may suspend the provision of preferential tariff treatment while awaiting the result of such verification:
Provided that, the goods pending release due to the said verification may be released by the customs authority of the importing State party to the importer subject to any administrative measures deemed necessary:
Provided that, the goods shall not be released, when they are subject to import prohibition or restriction or when there is suspicion of fraud;
(d) the Issuing Authorities shall promptly transmit the results of the verification process to the customs authority of the importing State party which shall then determine whether or not the subject good is originating; and,
(e) the State parties shall ensure that the retroactive check process, including the process of notifying the Issuing Authorities of the exporting State party by the customs authority of the importing State party of the results of determination on whether the subject good is originating or not, should be completed within six months:
Provided that, while the process of retroactive check is being undertaken, clause (c) shall be applied with respect to the release of the subject goods.
(2) The customs authority of the importing State party may request an importer for information or documents relating to the origin of imported goods in accordance with its laws and regulations before requesting the retroactive check pursuant to sub-paragraph (1).
(3) When the customs authority of the importing State party is not satisfied with the results of the retroactive check pursuant to sub-paragraphs (1) and (2), it may, under exceptional circumstances, conduct verification in the exporting State party by means of the following, namely:-
(a) written requests for information and documentation from the exporter or producer including written questionnaires to the exporter or producer; or,
(b) verification visits to the premises of an exporter or producer in the exporting State party.
(4) The written request or questionnaire pursuant to sub-paragraph (3) shall indicate the time period within which the questionnaire or the information and documentation sought from the exporter or the producer has to be completed and returned and such time period shall not be less than thirty days from the date of its receipt or for such longer period as the State parties may agree.
(5) When the customs authority of the importing State party, on receipt of the completed questionnaire or the information and documentation sought pursuant to sub-paragraph (3), is of the view that more information is needed to determine the origin of the said goods, it may request additional information from the exporter or producer.
(6) Where an exporter or the producer fails to return the questionnaire duly completed or fails to provide the information and documentation required, within the period referred to in sub-paragraph (4), the importing State party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the said goods:
Provided that, such treatment may be denied by the importing State party after a written notice has been served to the exporter or producer, to provide written comments or additional information that will be taken into account prior to completing the verification, within a period of not less than thirty days.
(7) Prior to conducting a verification visit pursuant to clause (b) of sub-paragraph (3),-
(a) an importing State party shall deliver a written notification of its intention to conduct the verification visit simultaneously to:
(i) the producer or exporter whose premises are to be visited;
(ii) the Issuing Authorities of the State party in the territory of which the verification visit is to occur;
(iii) the customs authority of the State party in the territory of which the verification visit is to occur; and
(iv) the importer of the good subject to the verification visit;
(b) the written notification mentioned in clause (a) shall be as comprehensive as possible and shall include the following, namely:-
(i) the name of the customs authority issuing the notification;
(ii) the name of the producer or exporter whose premises are to be visited;
(iii) the proposed date of the verification visit;
(iv) the coverage of the proposed verification visit, including reference to the good subject to the verification; and
(v) the names and designation of the officials performing the verification visit.
(c) an importing State party shall obtain the written consent of the producer or exporter whose premises are to be visited;
(d) when a written consent from the producer or exporter is not obtained within thirty days from the date of receipt of the notification pursuant to clause (a), the notifying State party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the good referred to in the Certificate of Origin that would have been subject to the verification visit; and,
(e) the Issuing Authorities receiving the notification may postpone the proposed verification visit and notify in writing the customs authority of the importing State party of such intention within fifteen days from the date of receipt of such notification:
Provided that, notwithstanding any such postponement, any verification visit shall be carried out within sixty days from the date of such receipt, or within such longer period as the State parties may agree.
(8) For the purposes of clause (b) of sub-paragraph (3), an exporter or producer of a good shall identify any observers to be present during such verification visit by the customs authority of the importing State party.
(9) The importing State party conducting the verification visit shall provide the producer or exporter and importer whose goods are subject to the verification and the relevant Issuing Authorities with a written determination of whether or not the subject good qualifies as an originating good and any suspended preferential tariff treatment shall be reinstated upon the determination that the goods qualify as originating goods.
(10) The producer or exporter shall be allowed thirty days from the date of receipt of the written determination pursuant to sub-paragraphs (6) and (9) to provide written comments or additional information regarding the eligibility of the good for preferential tariff treatment:
Provided that, even on receipt of such written comments or additional information, if the good is found to be non-originating, the final written determination shall be communicated to the Issuing Authorities within thirty days from the date of receipt of such comments or additional information from the producer or exporter.
(11) The verification visit process, including the actual visit, the determination and its notification of whether the subject good is originating or not shall be carried out and its results shall be communicated to the Issuing Authorities within a maximum period of six months from the first day when the verification visit was conducted:
Provided that, while the process of verification is being undertaken, clause (c) of sub-paragraph (1) shall be applied with respect to the release of the subject goods.
(12) The customs authority of a State party may, prior to the verification visit, request the importer of the good to voluntarily obtain and supply written information provided by the exporter or producer of the good in the territory of the other State party:
Provided that, the failure of the importer to obtain and supply such information shall not be considered to be the failure of the exporter or producer to supply the information or a ground to deny preferential tariff treatment.
11. Verification of input materials.- (1) Where the customs authority of a State party, while conducting verification of origin of a good imported into its territory under sub-paragraph (11), conducts verification of the origin of a material that is used in the production of the good, the verification of the material may be conducted in accordance with the procedures set out in sub-paragraph (3) of paragraph 10.
(2) The customs authority of a State party may consider the material to be non-originating in determining whether the good is an originating good where the producer or supplier of that material does not allow the customs authority access to information required to make a determination of whether the material is an originating material by any, including the following means, namely:-
(a) denial of access to its records;
(b) failure to respond to a verification questionnaire; or
(c) refusal to consent to a verification visit within thirty days of receipt of notification under clause (d) of sub-paragraph (7) of paragraph 10 as made applicable by sub-paragraph (3) of paragraph 10.
(3) A State party shall not consider a material that is used in the production of a good to be a non-originating material solely on the basis of postponement of a verification visit under clause (e) of sub-paragraph (7) of paragraph 10 as made applicable by sub-paragraph (1).
(4) Any communication made under paragraphs 10 to 11 between the State parties shall be in the English language.
12. Denial of Preferential Tariff Treatment.- Except as otherwise provided for in these rules, the importing State party may deny claim for preferential tariff treatment or recover unpaid duties in accordance with its laws and regulations, when,-
(a) the good does not meet the requirements of the rules;
(b) the exporter, producer or importer of the good required to maintain records or documentation under paragraph 9 fails to maintain records or documentation relevant to determining the origin of the good or denies access to the records or documentation;
(c) the importer, exporter or producer fails to provide information that the State party requested pursuant to clause (a) of sub-paragraph (3) of paragraph 10 to demonstrate that the good is an originating good;
(d) after receipt of a written notification for a verification visit pursuant to sub-paragraph (7) of paragraph 10, the exporter or producer in the territory of the other State party prevents such verification visit; or
(e) the State party finds a pattern of conduct indicating that an importer, exporter or producer has provided false or unsupported information or declarations that a good imported into its territory is an originating good.
Explanation:- For the purposes of clause (e), ˇ°pattern of conductˇ± means at least two instances of false or unsupported representations by an exporter or producer of a good resulting in at least two written determinations being sent to that exporter or producer pursuant to sub-paragraphs (6) and (9) of paragraph 10, that conclude, as a finding of fact, that Certificates of Origin applied by that exporter or producer with respect to identical goods contain false or unsupported representations.
13. Penalties.- (1) Each State party shall maintain measures imposing criminal, civil or administrative sanctions for violations of its laws and regulations relating to the rules.
(2) When it is suspected that fraudulent acts in connection with the Certificate of Origin have been committed, the Issuing Authorities of both the State parties shall cooperate in the action to be taken in the territory of the respective State party against the persons involved.
Annexure-IV
(See rule 15)
Issuing Authorities of the Certificate of Origin1. The following bodies and their successors are authorised to issue a Certificate of Origin for the purposes of these rules, namely:-
(a) for India, Export Inspection Council of India or any other agency authorised by the Government of India, in accordance with its laws and regulations; and,
(b) for Korea, Korea Customs Service, Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry or any other agency authorised by the Government of Korea, in accordance with its laws and regulations.
2. When the authorised body repeatedly or intentionally violates the requirements of these rules by wrongly issuing the Certificate of Origin, the exporting State party shall revoke the authorisation of such body to issue the Certificate of Origin under the agreement:
Provided that, for the purpose of deciding the revocation of such authorisation, the exporting State party shall also consider views of the customs authority of the importing State party.
3. The exporting State party shall promptly inform the importing State party of any such revocation, replacement or addition of a body that is authorised to issue the Certificate of Origin under these rules.
Annexure-V
(See rule 15)
Format for Certificate of Origin
India-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
Original (Duplicate/Triplicate/Quadruplicate)| 1. Exporter (name, address, country, e-mail address, telephone number, fax number) | Reference No. :
INDIA-KOREA COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT
PREFERENTIAL CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN
(Combined Declaration and Certificate)Issued in _________(Country) _____ |
| 2. Producer (name, address, country) (optional) |
| 3. Importer (name, address, country) (optional) | 5. For Official Use |
4. Means of transport and route (optional)
Departure date:
Vessel's name/Aircraft etc.:
Port of Discharge: | 6. Remarks |
7. HS Code
(6 digit) | 8.Description of goods, including quantity | 9. Gross weight and value (FOB) | 10. Origin criterion | 11. Number and date of Invoices |
| | | | |
12. Declaration by the exporter
The undersigned hereby declares that the above details and statement are correct; that all goods were produced in
ˇˇˇˇˇˇˇ................. (Country) ..
and that they comply with the origin requirements specified for these goods in the INDIA-KOREA Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement for the goods exported to
ˇˇˇˇˇˇˇ.................... (Importing Country)..........
ˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇˇ
Place and date, signature of
authorised signatory | 13. Certification
It is hereby certified, on the basis of control carried out, that the declaration by the exporter is correct.
......................................
Place and date, signature and stamp of
issuing authority |
| 14.Third country invoicing (name, address, country) |
Instructions for Completing the Certificate of Origin
1. The State parties which accept this form for the purpose of preferential tariff treatment under the INDIA-KOREA - Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (INKCEPA) are Republic of India and Republic of Korea.
2. CONDITIONS: To enjoy preferential tariff treatment under the INKCEPA, goods sent to a State party listed above:
(i) must fall within a description of goods eligible for concessions in the importing State party;
(ii) must comply with the consignment conditions in accordance with Article 3.15 (Direct Consignment) of Chapter Three (Rules of Origin) of the INKCEPA; and,
(iii) must comply with the origin criteria in the Rules of Origin of the INKCEPA.
3. ORIGIN CRITERION: For goods that meet the origin criteria, the exporter must indicate in box 10 of this Certificate of Origin, the origin criteria met, in the manner shown in the following table:
| Origin Criterion | Insert in box 10 |
| (a) Goods wholly obtained or produced in the territory of the exporting State party | ˇ°WOˇ± |
| (b) Goods satisfying Article 3.4.1(b) of Chapter Three (Rules of Origin) of the INKCEPA | ˇ°CTSH + RVC 35%ˇ± |
(c) Goods satisfying the Product Specific Rules
- Change in Tariff Classification
- Regional Value Content
- Change in Tariff Classification or Regional Value Content
- Change in Tariff Classification + Regional Value Content
- Specific Processes
- Others | ˇ°CC / CTH / CTSHˇ±
ˇ°RVC X %ˇ± that needs to be met for the good to qualify as originating; e.g. ˇ°RVC 35%ˇ±
ˇ°CC / CTH / CTSHˇ± or ˇ°RVC X %ˇ±
ˇ°CC / CTH / CTSH + RVC X %ˇ±
ˇ°SPˇ±
ˇ°Othersˇ± |
| (d) Goods satisfying rule 15 of the Rules of Origin | ˇ°OPˇ± |
4. EACH ARTICLE MUST QUALIFY: It should be noted that all the goods in a consignment must qualify separately in their own right. This is of particular relevance when similar articles of different sizes or spare parts are sent.
5. DESCRIPTION OF GOODS: The description of goods must be sufficiently detailed to enable the goods to be identified by the customs officers examining them.
6. HARMONISED SYSTEM NUMBER: The Harmonised System number shall be a 6 digit code of the goods.
7. FOR OFFICIAL USE: The customs authority of the importing State party shall indicate in Box 5 of this Certificate of Origin whether or not preferential tariff treatment is accorded.
8. REMARKS: In case of issuance of certificates retrospectively, Box 6 should bear the words ˇ°ISSUED RETROSPECTIVELYˇ±, and in case of a certified true copy, Box 6 should bear the words ˇ°CERTIFIED TRUE COPYˇ±.
9. THIRD COUNTRY INVOICING: In cases where invoices are issued by an operator in a third country, the ˇ°Third Country Invoicingˇ± box should be ticked (ˇĚ) and such information as the name, address and country of the company or the operator issuing the invoice shall be indicated in Box 14.
Note: The instructions hereon are only used for the purposes of reference to complete the Certificate of Origin, and thus do not have to be reproduced or printed in the overleaf page.
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