Albert Einstein said that the only reason for time is so that everything does not happen at once. What I am about to tell you will only enter into force on January 1, 2017. Yes, January 1, 2017. Talk of advanced notice.

While January 1, 2017, may seem quite far off, the World Customs Organisation (WCO) secretariat is working on the development of the requisite correlation tables between the old (2012) and new (2017) editions of the Harmonised System (HS) and on updating the HS publications, such as the Explanatory Notes, the Classification Opinions, the Alphabetical Index and HS online database.

If past experience is anything to go by and we assume that the world will still be around (it is the prerogative of an economist to always make assumptions), on January 1, 2017, you will no doubt still find people asking: “Why was I not told of these amendments earlier?” It reminds me of a T-shirt slogan ‘Procrastinators unite . . . Tomorrow!!!’ Well, you have about 23 months.

Customs administrations now have the task of ensuring the timely implementation of the HS 2017 edition, as required by the HS Convention. The WCO is encouraging customs administrations to begin the process of implementing the HS 2017 in their national customs tariffs (in South Africa, the schedules to the Customs and Excise Act) and the statistical nomenclatures.

On January 21, the WCO published 233 sets of HS 2017 amendments that enter into force on January 1, 2017. These fall under the following sectors: agriculture (85); chemicals (45); machinery (25); transport (18); textiles (15); wood (13); base metals (6); and ‘other’ (26). The environmental and social issues of global concern are the major feature of the amendments. The majority of the changes to the HS were requested by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (UN).

Owing to the importance of the HS in the collection of trade statistics, the HS 2017 amendments for fish and fishery products are to further enhance the coverage of species and product forms which need to be monitored for food security purposes and for better management of resources. The split by more detailed product forms for crustaceans, molluscs and other invertebrates is motivated by the importance of the trade and consumption of these species in the various product forms. The subdivisions enable a better correspondence between the HS and the UN Central Product Classification. The amendment for cuttlefish and squids is to extend the coverage of the present codes in order to have all those species grouped. At present, a significant share of cuttlefish and squid trade is recorded under residual codes for molluscs.

The amendment for forestry products is aimed at one main area: the enhancement of the coverage of wood species in order to get a better picture of trade patterns, including trade in endangered species. Separating the data on tropical wood trade will serve to focus attention on the important issue of tropical wood use and clarify data on nontropical hardwoods. The amendments also include the creation of new subheadings for the monitoring and control of certain products of bamboo and rattan, requested by the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan.

Nearly one-half of the world’s population run the risk of contracting malaria. The amendment aims at detailed information for several categories of products that are used as anti- malarial commodities.

The amendments also introduce new tariff subheadings (six-digit codes) for specific chemicals controlled under the Chemical Weapons Convention, for certain hazardous chemicals controlled under the Rotterdam Convention and for certain persistent organic pollutants controlled under the Stockholm Convention. Further, at the request of the International Narcotics Control Board, new tariff subheadings have been introduced for the monitoring and control of pharmaceutical preparations containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or norephedrine, and for alpha-phenylacetoacetonitrile, a pre-precursor for drugs.

Other amendments resulted from changes in international trade patterns. Tariff headings (four-digit codes) 69.07 (unglazed ceramic products) and 69.08 (glazed ceramic products) were merged to take account of the fact that the main tariff subheadings within these tariff headings involve products that are essentially no longer manufactured, and the industry and trade no longer make a distinction between unglazed and glazed ceramic products, while new products with a very high trade volume are classified under subheadings 6907.90 and 6908.90 or under ‘other’.

Further, for purposes of adapting the HS to current trade practices, certain important products will be separately identified in either existing or new tariff subheadings.

Advances in technology are also reflected in the amendments, inter alia, the size criteria for newsprint, light-emitting- diode lamps, multi- component integrated circuits and hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric vehicles.

Finally, the amendments include clarification of texts to ensure uniform application of the nomenclature – for example, the regrouping of monopods, bipods, tripods and similar articles in a new tariff heading, namely 96.20.

According to the WCO, the recommendation to amend the name ‘Imbuia’ in the text of tariff subheading 4407.22 will not take effect on January 1, 2017, owing to an objection having been lodged by one of the contracting parties to the HS Convention.

Rebate Guidelines
On January 23, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (Itac) released guidelines pertaining to the application of the rebate of the customs duty in terms of the rebate items in schedules 3, 4 and 5 of the Customs and Excise Act (No 91 of 1964). According to the release, applications submitted for permits in terms of the rebate items (provisions) will be dealt with in accordance with the specification pertaining to the applicable guideline and must be on the correct application form.

Irac reiterated that the permits should be applied for and received by Itac before the goods are shipped.

The guidelines are: (i) guidelines, rules and conditions pertaining to rebate items 460.06/2903/02.00 or 460.06/3817/01.00 for tetrachloroethylene and mixed alkyl benzenes; (ii) guidelines, rules and conditions pertaining to rebate item 306.15/2815.11/01.06 for solid sodium hydroxide for use in the extraction of uranium oxide; (iii) guidelines, rules and conditions pertaining to rebate item 460.07/3920.49/01.06 or 460.07/3920.49/02.06 for the antidumping duty on plates, sheets, film, foil and strip of polymers of vinyl chloride; (iv) guidelines, rules and conditions pertaining to permits issued under rebate item 306.01/2815.11/02.06 for solid sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) classifiable under tariff subheading 2815.11, for use in the manufacture of sodium metasilicates, classifiable under tariff subheading 2839.11.