Applications and Amendments There are at present no tariff applications or trade remedy applications that require any comments. Customs Samples Policy In an earlier column we advised that the South African Revenue Service (Sars) had released its “External Policy Customs Samples” dated 13 July 2012, which consists of five parts. The following only details the first two, namely Scope and Policy. The remaining parts are References; Definitions and Acronyms; and Document Management. Part (a) of the Scope of the Document indicates that this policy applies to clients who forwarded samples to Customs in the pre- or post- clearance verification for Tariff, Valuation or Refund Purposes, and must be read in conjunction with the Refunds and Drawbacks policy. The Policy details are as follows (a) The provisions pertaining to the taking (accepting) of samples are contained in Section 106 of the Customs and Excise Act (Act). Samples may be taken without payment by Customs from any person in possession of the imported or exported goods. (b) The purposes for which samples may be taken (accepted) are: (i) Examination or verification of goods under a refund procedure; (ii) Ascertaining the value or duties payable thereon; or (iii) Any other purpose that the Commissioner for Sars may prescribe by Rule. (c) Samples are to be taken under Customs supervision and must be truly representative of the total shipment under review. Liquids must therefore be stirred or shaken and powders or other dry substances taken from the centre of the package as far as possible. (d) Customs may require in terms of Section 107(2)(b) of the Act that the sample be analysed by a reputable third party and in accordance with a method determined by the Commissioner for Sars. The cost of the analysis of any goods must be borne by the importer, exporter or owner of the goods. (e) Appeals against decisions (i) In cases where clients are not satisfied with any decision taken in terms of the Act they have a right of appeal to the relevant appeal committee. (ii) Should clients be unhappy with a decision of any appeal committee their recourse will be to lodge an application for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) with the relevant appeal committee. The committee will add its comments to it and forward the application to the ADR Unit for attention. (f) Penalties (i) Failure to adhere to the provisions of the Act, as set out in this document, is considered an offence (ii) Offences may render the recipient or importer liable to, as provided for in the Act: (A) Monetary penalties; (B) Criminal prosecution; and/or (C) Suspension, cancellation of registration, licence or accreditation. (g) Record keeping (i) The recipient or importer of the goods imported or exported must keep for record purposes for a period of five years: (A) Books, accounts and documents in respect of all transactions relating to the Rules for the purpose of any acquittal procedure; and (B) Any data related to such documents created by means of a computer. (ii) The five-year period is calculated from the end of the calendar year in which the document was created, lodged or required. (iii) Every client must produce such books, accounts and documents on demand.
