DUTY CALLS

16 Oct 2015 - by Riaan de Lange

TDCA Export Permits

The Department of

Agriculture, Forestry and

Fisheries (DAFF) on 09

October 2015 published a

notice for the ‘Procedures

for the Application,

Administration and

Allocation of Export

Permits under the

Trade, Development and

Co-Operation Agreement

(TDCA) between the

European Union (EU)

and the Republic of South

Africa for the Year 2016’.

The TDCA, which

came into effect on 01

January 2000, established

a Bilateral Free Trade

Agreement between the

EU and South Africa in

accordance with the World

Trade Organisation (WTO)

rules and the strengthening

of EU development

assistance to South Africa.

As part of the concessions

provided for under the

TDCA, the EU has agreed

to grant tariff preferences

on specified products in the

form of tariff quotas.

Applications for the

quota permits are due by

06 November 2015 and

will be valid for 01 January

2016 to 31 December 2016.

WTO Agricultural

Permits

On 09 October 2015

DAFF published a notice

for the ‘Application of

Market Access Permits

for Agricultural Products

in terms of the WTO

Agreement For 2016’.

The notice was published

in order to fulfil South

Africa’s commitment

under the WTO’s

Marrakesh Agreement

regarding market access

for agricultural products.

The import permits

to be applied for will

only be issued to South

African importers that

are registered with the

Department of Trade and

Industry (the dti) and the

South African Revenue

Service (Sars).

Application for (i) the

first quarter of the quota

valid for importation for

the period 01 January 2016

to 30 April 2016 is due by

06 November 2015; (ii) For

the second quarter of the

quota valid for importation

for the period 01 April 2016

to 31 July 2016: From 01

to 28 February 2016; (iii)

For the third quarter of the

quota valid for importation

for the period 01 July 2016

to 31 October 2016: From

01 to 31 May 2016; and

(iv) For the last quarter

of the quota valid for

importation for the period

01 October 2016 to 31

January 2017: From 01 to

31 August 2016.

Iceland 103rd RKC

Contracting Party

The World Customs

Organisation (WCO) on 08

October 2015 announced

that the Republic of

Iceland had acceded to the

International Convention

on the Simplification and

Harmonisation of Customs

Procedures (Revised Kyoto

Convention or RKC), which

will enter into force for

Iceland on 08 January

2016. The RKC is the

international standard

for making Customs

regulatory procedures as

efficient and effective as

possible.

Duty Calls Watch List

Comment is due by

16 October 2015 on

(i) the proposed tariff

amendments planned for

January 2016 (Tariff 2016);

(ii) the proposed reduction

in the ‘general’ rate of

customs duty on other

canned mussels; (iii) the

proposed increase in the

‘general’ rate of customs

aluminium extrusions;

and (iv) Itac’s guidelines

regarding applications for

permits used clothing.