Customs officer issues Beijing's first RCEP certificate of origin at Zhongguancun Customs, a subordinate customs district of Beijing Customs District　Photo by Wei Jia

On January 4, 2022, Beijing Dayuan Nonwoven Fabric Co., Ltd. printed out a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) Certificate of Origin for export to Japan, which is the first RCEP Certificate of Origin issued by Beijing Customs. Since the RCEP Agreement came into effect, the cost of customs clearance for export products of RCEP member countries has been further reduced, which makes the products more competitive.

According to Tian Jinli, the foreign trade manager of Beijing Dayuan Nonwoven Fabric Co., Ltd., before the agreement entered into force, Japan's tariff on imports of the company's non-woven fabrics was 4.3%, which was reduced to 3.9% in the first year after the agreement came into effect. With the tariff lowered, the products become more competitive as reflected in the rising orders from clients in Japan.

Gao Jing, deputy commissioner of Zhongguancun Customs, indicated that after the RCEP Agreement came into effect, the cost of customs clearance for export products of RCEP member countries has been further reduced, which improves the competitive edges of their products. In the case of non-woven fabrics exported to Japan, the tariff will be lowered year by year and will be reduced to zero by the 11th year. The effective RCEP Agreement is not only conducive to world economic recovery and growth amid the pandemic, but also helps China's enterprises expand exports.

Customs officers examines Beijing's first RCEP Certificate of Origin at Zhongguancun Customs　Photo by Wei Jia

On January 1, 2022, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) officially came into effect, which signifies that the world's largest and most promising trading bloc covering the largest population opens for business. Over 90% of trade tariffs within the bloc will eventually be eliminated.

It is learned that Beijing Customs has taken multiple measures to faciliate the implementation of RCEP agreement and help enterprises benefit from the bonus of tariff concession. A RCEP research group was assembled to study relevant measures that enterprises can leverage for further development. Online and offline training sessions were held to help more than 1,400 enterprises better understand the trade deal, for instance, policies regarding tariff concession and certificate of origin. Services such as "smart examination and approval", "self-service printing", "mailing service for visa", and "RCEP fast-track service window" were provided so that enterprises could handle businesses regarding the certificate of origin and reap benefits from the deal.

(Reporter: Xu Jing)