Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, Administration of Processing Trade in Export Processing Zones Tentative Measures

Issued: March 21 2001
Effective: April 1 2001
Interpreting authority: Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation in consultation with General Administration of Customs
Applicability: For the purposes of the Measures, "processing trade" means the importation or domestic purchase of materials, parts, components and packaging materials and the re-exportation of the same in form of finished products, by an enterprise in an export processing zone (Article 2).

Main contents: According to the Measures, downstream processing trade enterprises (such as those that engage in final processing of purchases from other processing trade enterprises) should be preferred when investors are invited to set up an enterprise in an export processing zone (Article 4). Once established, the export processing enterprise shall provide to the management committee of the zone details of the processing equipment to be imported, the materials and parts to be imported and the finished products to be exported, in three separate lists (the forms of which are attached to the Measures) (Article 6). If the management committee is satisfied that the proposed processing trade complies with relevant State regulations, it will issue an Export Processing Zone Processing Trade Business Permit to the enterprise and endorse the above lists, and the customs shall register the enterprise on the basis of such permit and endorsement (Article 7). Trade between any enterprise inside the export processing zone and any enterprise outside the zone shall be deemed import or export trade and subject to customs control accordingly (Article 13).
Related legislation: State Council General Office, Implementation of the Establishment of Pilot Export Processing Zones Reply, Apr 27 2000, CLP 2000 No.7 p11 and State Council, Reply Concerning the «General Administration of Customs, Oversight of Export Processing Zones Tentative Procedures»