Laws of the People's Republic of China

PROCEDURES OF SUPERVISION AND CONTROL BY THE
COSTOMS OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
OVER ENTRY AND EXIT TRAINS AND THE CARGO,
LUGGAGE AND PARCELS ON BOARD

(Promulgated by the Notice of the Ministry of
Foreign Trade and the Ministry of Railways on
November 5, 1958)

SUBJECT: CUSTOMS

ISSUING-DEPT: MINISTRY OF FOREIGN ECONOMIC RELATIONS & TRADE

ISSUE-DATE: 11/05/1958

IMPLEMENT-DATE: 12/01/1958

LENGTH: 1872 words

TEXT:

CHAPTER I GENERAL PRINCIPLES

[Article 1] These Procedures are formulated in order to ensure the effective implementation of the foreign trade control system and facilitate the business of transportation.

[Article 2] Trains passing our borders shall stop at border stations and subject themselves to inspection by Customs.  The length of time for freight trains to stop shall be prescribed by border stations in conjunction with Customs.  The length of time for passenger trains to stop shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Railways in conjunction with the Ministry of Foreign Trade.

The trains referred to in these Procedures include locomotives, passenger trains, freight trains, postal trains, luggage trains, caboose, etc.

[Article 3] An incoming train or an outgoing one shall not be moved, dismembered or despatched elsewhere without the approval of Customs during the period in the case of an incoming train between its stopping on arrival at a border station and completion of its inspection by Customs and in the case of an outgoing train between the commencement of its inspection by Customs and the start of its journey.

During inspection of a train by Customs, the railway station (or the head of the train crew) shall appoint working personnel to be present who shall be responsible for opening car doors or rooms on the train or opening up the removable parts of the train which can be used to conceal smuggled articles.

[Article 4] In the course of inspecting trains coming in and out of our borders, if it discovers goods or articles not listed in the documents or suspects law-breaking and sabotage, the Customs can, if necessary, notify stations to send the trains to a designated place to conduct enquiries.

[Article 5] The railway station that processes customs formalities shall submit to the Customs a copy of the commercial or ordinary record compiled by the Railways in respect of incoming or outgoing goods, luggage and parcels which have not yet completed customs formalities.

[Article 6] Articles carried by the service personnel of trains coming in or out of our borders shall be restricted to those articles required for private or common use by the individuals concerned during the journey.

Service personnel of a train, in the case of an incoming train, before completion of inspection by Customs and in the case of an outgoing train, after commencement of inspection by Customs, cannot leave the train without Customs' approval.

[Article 7] Where an incoming or outgoing passenger train stops at the border station, the station shall be responsible for closing all the entrances and exits on the platform other than the necessary ones left open for passengers and railway personnel on duty during the period between the arrival of the incoming train and completion of its inspection by Customs or in the case of an outgoing train between the commencement of its inspection and the start of its journey.

[Article 8] Customs shall be entitled to carry out inspection of all trains staying at a border station and the border station shall render assistance.

CHAPTER II CUSTOMS DECLARATION, INSPECTION AND CLEARANCE OF TRAINS PASSING OVER THE BORDERS

[Article 9] A border station shall inform Customs in advance of the time, train number and stopping and starting place or an incoming train arriving at the border station or for an outgoing one leaving it.

[Article 10] The head of the crew of an incoming or outgoing train at the border station shall submit a train composition notice (or a list of freight delivered and received) to Customs when an incoming one arrives at the station or when an outgoing one leaves it.

[Article 11] Customs shall duly inform the station after it completes its inspection and clearance of a train.  When Customs fails to complete its inspection of the passengers' luggage and articles on an incoming passenger train during its stay, it shall be entitled to send officers on board the train to continue its inspection and the station manager of the border station shall provide them with free return passes.  The station and the head of the train crew concerned shall facilitate such two-way travel on board trains by Customs personnel.

CHAPTER III DECLARATION, INSPECTION AND CLEARANCE OF THE GOODS, LUGGAGE AND PARCELS PASSING OUR BORDERS

[Article 12] With regard to goods, luggage and parcels transported into or out of our territory in a coordinated way, the border station shall submit the following relevant documents to Customs so as to make a customs declaration:

(1) Freight waybill or luggage or parcel transport declaration and annexes;

(2) Import or export permit (detailed freight list);

(3) List of freight delivered and received or list of luggage or parcels delivered and received;

(4) Freight train loading list; and

(5) Other documents or certificates required by Customs.

[Article 13] With regard to the imported goods and parcels which are intended to go through customs formalities at Customs at the station of arrival and the exported ones which are intended to go through customs formalities at the station of departure, the collecting or despatching department or their respective agents shall submit the following documents to Customs to make a customs declaration:

(1) Freight waybill or parcel transport declaration and annexes;

(2) Import or export permit (detailed freight list); and

(3) Other documents or certificates required by Customs.

Incoming luggage or outgoing consigned luggage shall respectively go through import or export formalities at the Customs at the station of arrival with Customs or at the station of departure with Customs.

The railway shall not deliver or carry the above-mentioned goods, parcels and luggage which have not been inspected and cleared by Customs.

[Article 14] The border station and the station of arrival or of departure of imported or exported goods shall duly inform Customs of the places where goods which have not gone through customs formalities are kept or the time and place for their handing-over, handling or transshipment, and when Customs is examining the goods, they shall be responsible for such jobs required by the Customs as removing car sealing marks, opening car doors or tarpaulins, moving or unloading goods, removing their packages, weighing or measuring, repacking, etc.

[Article 15] Customs shall be entitled to hold in custody goods, luggage and parcels without any waybill or luggage or parcels transport declaration and which do not conform to the above-mentioned documents.  Customs shall clear them when the above-mentioned documents are resubmitted or any certificates are submitted confirming that they are the goods, luggage and parcels listed in the original documents; Customs shall also permit them to be returned abroad or to the original station of departure as required by the station.

[Article 16] After the goods, luggage and parcels are inspected and proved to conform to the documents, a "Cleared Goods Seal" shall be affixed to the freight waybill or luggage or parcels transport declaration which shall be returned to the station as a proof of the Customs' clearance of the goods.

CHAPTER IV FORMALITIES TO GO THROUGH FOR CARRYING GOODS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF CUSTOMS

[Article 17] Goods under the supervision of Customs mean incoming goods, luggage and parcels which have not gone through customs formalities, and outgoing ones which have gone through customs formalities but have not gone out of our territory and the ones in transit.

[Article 18] Before the dispatch of goods under the supervision of Customs, the station shall submit to Customs the waybill of the goods concerned or luggage or parcels transport declaration together with the freight car loading list prepared for the handling and handing-over certificate of luggage or parcels (the handing-over certificates shall be prepared for incoming luggage or parcels respectively according to the different stations of arrival).  After Customs has inspected and verified them to be correct, it shall affix a seal bearing "Goods under the Supervision of the Customs" to the waybill or transport declaration and return them together with the Customs cover to the station for the purpose of dispatching them.  The Customs cover shall be handed to the station which shall pass it on to the head of the train crew who shall carry it together with the waybill or luggage or parcels transport declaration to Customs at the inland station of arrival or at the station of departure.

[Article 19] When goods under the supervision of Customs arrive at the station of departure or at the inland station, the station shall directly submit the freight waybill or luggage or parcels transport declaration together with the Customs cover to Customs.

[Article 20] Before the dispatch of goods under the supervision of Customs, the station shall inform Customs in advance of any change in the inland station of arrival or the station of departure.  If the inland station of arrival or the station of departure is changed in transit, the relevant station shall send the documents together with the original Customs cover to Customs at the station of arrival or the station of departure after the change and the station subject to the change shall inform Customs at the station of dispatch of the change.  An inland station of arrival subject to the change shall be one provided with Customs.

[Article 21] For goods under the supervision of the Customs which are lost in transit, the railway shall be responsible for paying the payable duties directly to Customs on behalf of the owner of the goods or the passenger when it pays the owner of the goods or the passenger the compensation.

[Article 22] Customs shall seal articles personally carried by passengers which are permitted by Customs to go through customs formalities at an inland station of arrival, seal the passenger's declaration of luggage and articles and hand it to the station which shall then pass it to the head of the train crew for submission to Customs at the station of arrival.

CHAPTER V SUPPLEMENTARY RULES

[Article 23] A station shall declare to the Customs of the road maintenance equipment passing the border, the materials, parts, tools, wheel pairs, platform trucks, and so on for repair of cars and the cereals, vegetables and daily necessities carried by railway personnel over the borders for personal use.  The procedure for their supervision shall be formulated by Customs at a border station jointly with the station.

[Article 24] In the case of tarpaulins, empty containers, etc. which are to be returned, the collecting or despatching party or its agent shall fill in a "Dutyfree Return Certificate for Tarpaulins or Empty Containers of Collecting or Despatching Party" and submit it to Customs at the border station for signature and transmission to the station to enable the same to be returned on a duty free basis.

[Article 25] This Procedure shall come into force on December 1, 1958.