The General Administration of Customs ("GAC") has recently issued the Announcement on Adjusting Matters Concerning the Administration of Inbound and Outbound Conveyances and Freight Manifests for Water and Air Transportation (the "Announcement"), immediately effective from the issue date.
The Announcement clearly specifies that a vessel transport enterprise without the legal personality within the territory of China shall commission a domestic vessel agency, which has been filed under the record at the customs house, to transmit the manifest to the customs house. Where the party transmitting the manifest has a branch within the territory, the branch shall file its address, contact person and phone number under the record at the customs house directly under the GAC at its business place or at the subordinated customs house authorized thereby. According to the Announcement, if exported goods are immediately put on board a ship once they arrive, such goods shall be deemed as arriving after the customs have completed actual examination alongside the ship, and the arrival report shall be then transmitted to the customs house. After the transmission of such arrival report, freights and articles shall be all loaded within three days. Meanwhile, the Announcement has distributed the Provisions of the General Administration of Customs on Time Limits for the Declaration and Transmission of Inbound and Outbound Conveyances and Manifests of Freights and Articles Loaded Thereon for Water and Air Transportation.