The National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") and the Ministry of Commerce ("MOFCOM") have recently issued the Announcement on the Redistribution of 2018 Import Tariff Quotas for Agricultural Products (the "Announcement").
The Announcement states that, if an ultimate user holding the 2018 import tariff quota for wheat, corn, rice, cotton and sugar fails to enter into sufficient import contracts covering the full amount of such quota in the current year, or has signed such import contracts but the goods are expected not to be shipped from the port of departure before the end of the current year, such user shall return the part of the quota which is not covered or cannot be covered to the provincial development and reform commission and the competent authority of commerce at its locality by September 15. The NDRC and the MOFCOM will redistribute such returned quotas. According to the Announcement, ultimate users who have obtained and used up the 2018 import tariff quotas for wheat, corn, rice, cotton and sugar, and new users who satisfy the application requirements set out in the policy document (Announcement of the NDRC [2017] No.14) and in the policy document (Announcement of the MOFCOM [2017] No.59) but did not apply for 2018 import tariff quotas when these quotas were allocated at the beginning of the year, may apply for the redistribution of import tariff quotas.