5th Report of Market Access Ombudsman Council (March 17, 1998)

7-(9) Simplify clearance procedures for imported houses

1. Complainant: Tokyo Chamber of Commerce

2. Ministry concerned: Ministry of Finance

3. Complaint:

The import volume for one high-grade 250m² (75 tsubo) American house (when materials have been imported as much as possible) accounts for four 40-foot containers. Because the first two containers pertain to the main item itself, there are few articles of different types, and thus little time is required for clearance. However, because the third and fourth containers involve many different kinds of items, clearance takes too much time. For the containers for constructing one house, methods should be divided in terms of the method for establishing a special tariff rate and the method for calculating each single item, and it should be determined in advance which method will be adopted.

4. Corresponding Policy of the Ministries concerned:

For prefabricated houses contracted in terms of number of houses (heading 9406 on Custom Tariff Schedules), even when an import declaration is made dividing by the number of times of transport and other conditions, when it is possible to confirm, via contracts, blueprints, etc., that the declared cargo is part of the relevant per fabricated house, the customs office will approve utilization of the Before Permit, and while the final cargo declaration is awaited, both import procedures for collective import as a prefabricated house and those for declaration of single items for each arrival are possible.

5. Remarks
The complainant's opinion is as follows.
"I understand that this is the policy as it now stands."