The National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") has recently issued the Announcement on Matters Concerning Applications for Quotas of Imports under the Preferential Tariff Rate in 2018 Besides Tariff Quotas for Cotton (the "Announcement").
The Announcement provides for the quantity of quotas, application criteria, principle of distribution, information publicity, penalty rules, etc. According to the Announcement, the quotas of imports under the preferential customs tariff rate, offered this time in addition to the tariff quotas for cotton (the "sliding duty quotas for imported cotton"), amount to 800,000 tons, and are all non-state-run trade quotas. With respect to the application for and the distribution of quotas offered this time, there is no difference between general trade and processing trade, and the application period, beginning from June 15, 2018, will last until June 29, 2018. Moreover, it is made clear in the Announcement that goods imported by an applicant with the sliding duty quota for imported cotton must be used by this enterprise itself for processing purposes and cannot be resold. For any party that provides false information in the application form, fabricates relevant materials to obtain a sliding duty quota for imported cotton in a deceptive way, or fails to carry out import business in accordance with given requirements, its quota certificate will be revoked, and it will be prohibited by law from applying for the tariff quota and the sliding duty quota for imported cotton in the future.