| TOP |
| 6th Report of Market Access Ombudsman Council (March 16, 2000) |
1. Complainant: Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry
2. Ministry concerned: Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Finance
3. Complaint:
When toys designated by the minister for health are imported, they must be inspected. However, if the products conform to United States ASTM or CE standards, they should be exempt from inspection.
Further, even though imports are done on a continuing basis, customs carries out random inspections and customs clearance does not go smoothly. It appears that customs is requiring importers to show the actual products imported so that tariff codes may be determined, but if the tariff code declared in the exporting country is used, this should make inspection unnecessary. If goods classification standards vary depending on the country, this should be harmonized internationally and the same tariff code as that declared in the exporting country applied.
4. Corresponding Policy of the Ministries concerned:
Ministry of Health and Welfare
When toys are imported, conformity with the specification standards set out in the Food Sanitation Law is verified; however, this regulation is not especially stringent by international standards. It is not possible to exempt toys on the ground that they conform to ASTM or CE from import inspection, but taking into consideration the establishment of international standards in the future, the ministry believes that it will be necessary to exchange information.
Regarding use of foreign test data, the foreign official laboratories system was introduced from March 1982. Under this system, products are tested before export, at public testing facilities registered with the Ministry of Health and Welfare by the exporting country; the test results are shown when the products are imported, and if the results conform with the Food Sanitation Law, products are exempted from testing at the time of import. As of September 14, 1999, 2,513 facilities in 52 countries had been registered. Beginning from December 1994, apparatus, packaging wrapping and toys made from materials using the same coloring agents and manufactured by the same method are exempted from testing at the time of import for an unlimited period, by attaching a copy of the initial test results.
Ministry of Finance
Article 67 of the Customs Law (permit for export or import) states that importers of goods must make a declaration to the head of customs, undergo the necessary testing and receive permission; customs may inspect the goods if necessary. However, it is not possible to inspect all goods, and depending on the goods, examination of documents is done.
Even in the case of goods imported on a continuing basis, inspection is sometimes necessary, to confirm whether the content of the declaration (goods, amount) is appropriate, and to check for drugs, guns or other socially undesirable items, and it is therefore not possible to omit inspections across the board.
Regarding application of the tariff code declared in the exporting country, if the exports originate from a country participating in the HS Treaty, the first six digits of the code are the same as those in the nine-digit code used by Japan and can be used as is in Japan. However, the last three digits are a code used only in Japan and accordingly in some cases it is not possible to use the exporting country's code as is.
5. Remarks
The complainant accepted this policy.