flash info
New HS rules from 1 January 2012
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January 2012 marks an important
date on the international Customs
and trade calendar: from then onwards
the HS Nomenclature 2012 edition will
be in effect.
The Recommendation of the Customs
Cooperation Council of 26 June 2009
concerning the HS 2012 amendments
is the fifth to amend the Harmonized
System Nomenclature since the WCO
Council approved its adoption in 1983,
though it is only the fourth to make major
amendments.
HS 2012 includes 220 sets of accepted
amendments, divided as follows:
• 98 relate to the agricultural sector;
• 27 to the chemical sector;
• 9 to the paper sector;
• 14 to the textile sector;
• 5 to the base metal sector;
• 30 to the machinery sector; and
• an additional 37 that apply
to a variety of other sectors.
Environmental and social issues of global
concern are the major feature of these
amendments, particularly the use of the
HS as the standard for classifying and
coding goods of specific importance to
food security and the early warning data
system of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The volume of amendments within, for
instance, Chapter 3, for the separate
identification of certain species of fish and
crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic
invertebrates, is substantial. In the same
vein, new subheadings have been created
for the separate identification of certain
edible vegetables, roots and tubers, fruit
and nuts, as well as cereals.
HS 2012 amendments also feature
new subheadings for specific chemicals
controlled under the Rotterdam Convention and ozone-depleting substances
controlled under the Montreal Protocol.
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Changing trade patterns also played a
role in the current amendments resulting in 43 subheadings being deleted on
account of low trade while the structured
nomenclature (the subheadings) of certain HS headings had to be modified. On
the other hand, new subheadings were
created for products which are now being
increasingly traded around the world,
such as lilies (Lillium spp.), sweetened
dried cranberries and cranberry juice,
water pipe tobacco and wood pellets, to
name a few.
With a view to simplifying the HS, the
amendments include for instance a new
provision grouping sanitary towels (pads)
and tampons, napkins and napkin liners
for babies and similar articles, of any
material, in one single heading (heading
96.19).
Given that the HS is used extensively for
statistical purposes too, both nationally
and internationally, the HS 2012 edition
will impact on this area of activity as
certain code numbers have been added,
deleted or renumbered as a result of the
amendments.
With the date of entry into force only
months away, the WCO is expending an
enormous amount of energy to encourage full and speedy implementation of
the new version of the HS around the
world.
The 2012 edition was approved in June
2009 and since November 2010, the
tables correlating the 2007 and 2012
versions have been available on the
WCO website. Additionally, in January
2011 the brochure “Amendments to
the Harmonized System Nomenclature
effective from 1 January 2012” was published. This brochure presents all the
new amendments that have been accepted as a result of the Recommendation
of 26 June 2009. It also includes the socalled corrigendum amendments which
were adopted later.
What else will be done before 1 January
2012?
The WCO Secretariat is working as fast
as possible to update existing HS publications. Publication of the Explanatory
Notes and the amendments to the Compendium of Classification Opinions will
take place in mid 2011, after their adoption by the HS Committee (47th Session
scheduled for March 2011) and their subsequent approval by the WCO Council
(June 2011 Sessions). The amendments
to the Alphabetical Index will follow.
To round off the smooth implementation
of the 2012 edition of the HS Nomenclature, the WCO Secretariat, in the first half
of 2011, will organize seminars on HS 2012
implementation in all WCO regions.
All these efforts and tools are geared
by the WCO Secretariat at ensuring the
speedy and timely implementation of HS
2012 by WCO Members and the trade
community because...
HS 2017 is coming up next!
More information
[email protected]
WCO News – N o 64 – February 2011
11/03/11 13:09