The Ministry of Industry and Trade has issued Circular No. 12/2019/TT-BCT regulating rules of origin of goods in the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Co-operation between the ASEAN and the People's Republic of China (ACFTA) with many new points.

Specifically, for Rules of Origin: Goods are considered originating if produced only from origin materials; besides the criterion "Regional value content" (RVC), the general rule also applies to origin criteria for converting commodity codes at level of 4 digits (CTH); regulations on De Minimis (the proportion of raw materials does not meet the criteria for change in tariff classification-reporter); identical and interchangeable.

For certification and inspection of origin of goods: Regarding the time limit for answering and verifying the origin of goods, in case the agencies or organisation granting C/O of the exporting country fails to response within 90 days after the date of receipt of the request for verification by the customs authorities of the importing country, the agencies or organization granting C/O of the exporting country could send a request for an extension of 90 days.

For Product Specific Rules (PSR): PSR is developed on the HS Version 2017, supplementing the criteria of origin of goods for many product lines.

The circular will be valid from September 12.

• Source: Customs News