Frozen potato chips safeguard On 25 July 2014 the South African Revenue Service (Sars) imposed a final safeguard on frozen potato chips (or French fries), classifiable under tariff subheading 2004.10.20, through two Government Gazette notices. The safeguard is applicable to all countries with the exclusion of those listed in the Government Gazette notices (The list of country names is in this week’s Customs Buzz.) The safeguard of 40.92% is imposed from 25 July 2014 to 4 July 2015, then from 05 July 2015 to 04 July 2016 a safeguard of 20.45%. Customs and Excise Acts On 23 July 2014, the Customs Control Act No. 31 of 2014, and the Customs and Excise Amendment Act No. 32 of 2014, were published in two separate Government Gazettes. Both these Acts will come into operation on a later date as indicated in Section 944 of the Customs Control Act, and Section 88 of the Customs and Excise Amendment Act. Customs and Excise Bills History On 25 July 2014 Sars published a webpage on the history of the rewrite process of the Customs and Excise Act No.91 of 1964 which started as a result of a Ministerial decision. Iron/Steel Tariff Application On 18 July 2014, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (Itac) published an application for the proposed increase in “General” rate of customs duty on (i) wire of iron or non-alloy steel: plated or coated with zinc; (ii) barbed wire of iron or steel; (iii) other grill, netting and fencing, welded at the intersection; and (iv) other cloth, grill, netting and fencing. Comment is due by 15 August 2014. Lead Acid Tariff Application The proposed increase in the “General” rate of customs duty on leadacid of a kind used for starting piston engines, classifiable under tariff subheading 8507.10, from 5% to 30% ad valorem. Comment is due by 15 August 2014. Mussel Tariff Application Itac has published its intention to amend its recommendation in its Report No.413 to include mussels in the scope of the customs duty. The tariff amendment will include the creation of additional 8-digit tariff subheadings with the same rate of customs duty as on mussels classifiable under Chapter 3. Comment is due by 01August 2014. Customs and Excise Course On 01 October 2014, Continuing Education at the University of Pretoria is presenting a course on customs and excise taxes which offers an opportunity for individuals with prior formal education or experience in taxation to acquire a basic knowledge of customs and excise taxes in a South African context.
