New foreign trade regulations to be implemented in 2022 (Part 2)

7. China will implement paperless transit declarations

The General Administration of Customs issued an announcement that from January 1, 2022, paperless transit declarations will be implemented.

8. Implementation of the "Administrative Measures of the People's Republic of China on Imported and Exported Food Safety"

The Measures for the Administration of Import and Export Food Safety of the People's Republic of China (Order No. 249 of the General Administration of Customs) will be implemented from January 1, 2022.  

9.Implementation of "Administrative Measures for Exporting Food Production Enterprises Applying for Overseas Registration"

On October 29, 2021, the General Administration of Customs issued Announcement No. 87 of 2021 (announcement on the issuance of the "Administrative Measures for the Application of Overseas Registration by Export Food Production Enterprises"), and the "Administrative Measures for the Application of Overseas Registration of Export Food Production Enterprises" from January 2022. It will come into effect on the 1st of the month.

10.China-Cambodia Free Trade Agreement entered into force

The Free Trade Agreement between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Royal Government of Cambodia (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") will come into effect on January 1, 2022. After the "Agreement" comes into effect, the mutual tariff exemption ratio between the two sides will exceed 90%.  

11.China and Brazil officially implement mutual recognition of AEO

From January 1, 2022, the Customs of China and Brazil will provide each other's certified business operators (AEOs) with convenience for Customs clearance when importing and exporting goods.  

When Customs clearance of imported and exported goods, the Customs of China and Brazil will provide each other's AEO enterprises with the following facilitation measures for Customs clearance:

Applicable to lower document review rate; reducing the inspection rate of import and export goods; giving priority to inspection of goods that need physical inspection; Designating a Customs liaison officer, responsible for communicating and solving the problems encountered by AEO enterprises in Customs clearance; Due to the increased security alert level, border closures, natural disasters, dangerous emergencies or other major accidents causing interruption of international trade, priority will be given to Customs clearance after trade resumes.

Chinese Customs senior certified enterprises that have import and export trade with Brazil need to inform the Brazilian importer or exporter of the AEO code (AEOCN + 10-digit enterprise code registered in the Chinese Customs, such as AEOCN0123456789), who will fill in the declaration according to the Brazilian Customs regulations. After the Customs confirming the identity of the Chinese Customs AEO enterprise, relevant facilitation measures will be provided.

When an enterprise exports goods to Brazilian AEO enterprises, it needs to separately enter the "Overseas Consignee Code" column in the "Overseas Consignee" column of the export declaration form and the "Consignee AEO Code" column in the water and air freight manifests. Fill in the AEO code of the Brazilian consignee in the column. The filling form is: "country code (BR) + AEO enterprise code (14 digits)", such as "BR01234567890123".

12.Implementation of new EU battery regulations

On December 10, 2020, the European Commission issued a new battery regulation proposal 2020/353 (COD), which was scheduled to be implemented from January 1, 2022, gradually replaced the current battery directive (2006/66/EC), except for some provisions , the current battery directive will expire on July 1, 2023.  

The legal level would also be changed from "directive" to "regulation", which was ensure to a greater extent that all batteries placed on the EU market are sustainable, high-performance and high-safety throughout their life cycle, which was also reflected in the collection of used batteries , disposal and recycling.  

The new regulations divide batteries into four categories: (1) portable batteries; (2) automotive batteries; (3) industrial batteries; (4) power batteries for electric vehicles.  

A prominent feature of the new regulations is the requirement to cover all stages of the battery life cycle: from the production and processing of battery raw materials, to the use of battery products, to the recycling of decommissioned and end-of-life batteries.