Provisional Translation
| OTO No. | 546 | Classification | MOF-100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Acceptance | September 2, 1996 | Ministry/Agency Receiving Complaint | Economic Planning Agency |
| Responsible Ministries | Ministry of Finance | Related Laws | Customs Tariff Law |
| Complainant | Domestic firm | Exporting Countries | USA |
| Subject | Concerning the customs tariff classification on imported beer | ||
| Details of Measures | As explained below, "mint beer" (46 percent malt), which is handled as beer in the United States, is not given customs clearance as beer, which is taxed at 6.4 yen per liter, but as "other fermented alcohol, " which is taxed at 43.1 yen per liter. The International Convention on Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (known as the HS Treaty), an international standard for classifying tariffs of which Japan is a signatory, regulates beer as "beer made from malt." Japan conforms to the Treaty in this regard, and the attached Customs Tariff Law table (hereafter referred to as the "Customs Tariff Schedules"), No. 22.03 stipulates that beer is regulated. Regarding the classification of beer, the classifications in these Schedules are based on interpretations of the Tariff Schedules based on specific data for ingredients, fermentation methods, etc. and each case is considered separately. However, beer is generally thought of as (1) an alcoholic beverage that uses malted barley as a raw ingredient, and (2) something which has the characteristic taste, smell and color of beer. In this complaint regarding "mint beer, " it has been decided that this product cannot be classified as "beer" under Japan's Customs Tariff Law. It was explained to the complainant through customs that the usage rate for malt as an ingredient in beer "shall be 50 percent or more by weight of the ingredients, excluding water." (May 1, 1997) |
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| Classification of Processing | D | Directions | I-b IV |
| Remarks | |||