THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) wants to sit down with the Federation of Free Farmers (FFF) and Department of Agriculture (DA) to clarify the issue raised by the farmers’ group that a “significant” volume of imports did not indicate any rice grade.
Without the rice grade on a “significant “ volume of imports, FFF explained that it would be impossible to determine the proper tariff classification and corresponding customs’ reference price.
Customs Assistant Commissioner and spokesman Vincent Philip Maronilla said they are hoping to have the meeting next week.
“We are looking into this and we plan to invite FFF for a dialogue to clarify this matter, present the measures we have been implementing to guard against this practice and get their views on how to move forward,” Maronilla told the BusinessMirror.
Pressed on the BOC’s stand on FFF’s claim that there are imports lacking rice grade, Maronilla said: “As far as our ports are reporting it and based on the documents coming from partner agencies such as the DA, there seems to be a little disparity with the report of FFF.”
Asked to elaborate further on the disparity, he said: “That’s what we want to find out also with our meeting with FFF we want to know their specific information and place them against the reports coming from our ports. If BOC needs to rectify some of its procedures based on our discussion with FFF, then that’s something [we] will positively consider.”
The FFF also earlier urged BOC to review its rice import assessment system to prevent importers from misclassifying the tariff lines of their shipments to avoid higher reference prices.
According to the FFF, the BOC uses over 10 different classification codes for the same type of rice imports, which, it pointed out, could be utilized by unscrupulous importers to evade higher customs’ reference prices.
The customs’ reference price serves as a basis for the prevailing price of an imported good so it could determine if there are undervaluation or other trade-related issues.
FFF also urged DA to tighten further its screening of rice imports and blacklist unscrupulous players that have undervalued their shipments since the rice industry was deregulated in March 2019.
The farmers’ group has also
recommended that the BOC sit down with the DA and National Food Authority (NFA) and private-sector representatives to come up with an “accurate and realistic” classification and valuation system for rice imports.
The FFF has also repeatedly raised the issue of undervaluation before the BOC and the DA following the enactment of the rice trade liberalization law in 2019, paving the way for the easier importation of rice.
It recently claimed that undervaluation of rice imports continues, with at least P890 million in lost tariff revenues from over 766,000 metric tons of the staple imported from January to April.
While BOC admitted that certain rice importers presented a transaction value below their reference prices, Maronilla recently said they have yet to determine whether there is an undervaluation or not.
Responding to FFF’s earlier allegation, BOC said importers of rice falling below the global published reference prices have availed themselves of the Dispute Settlement Mechanism and the remedy of release under Tentative Assessment.
BOC has already collected a total of P7.955 billion in rice tariffs from January to May this year. The figure was up by 0.48 percent from P7.917 billion in the same period last year.
The BOC has a yearly target of P10 billion in rice tariff collection for remittance to the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF). The RCEF was created to help palay growers and rice farmers’ cooperatives transition to a new rice regime.
Image credits: Klodien | Dreamstime.com
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