(a) the accessories, spare parts, or tools are not invoiced separately from the good, regardless of whether they appear specified or separately identified in the invoice itself; and
(b) the quantities and value of the accessories, spare parts, or tools are customary for the good.
Article 3.11. PACKAGING MATERIALS AND CONTAINERS FOR RETAIL SALE
1. Where packaging materials and containers are classified with a good, the origin of the packaging materials and containers in which the good is packaged for retail sale, shall be disregarded in determining the origin of the good, provided that:
(a) the good is wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of a Party as set out in Article 3.1(a);
(b) the good is produced exclusively from originating materials, as set out in Article 3.1(b); or
(c) the good is subject to a change in tariff classification requirement set out in Annex 3-A.
2. Where a good is subject to a regional value content requirement, the value of the packaging materials and containers used for retail sale shall be taken into account when determining the origin of the good.
Article 3.12. PACKING MATERIALS AND CONTAINERS FOR SHIPMENT
Packing materials and containers used to protect a good during its transportation shall not be taken into account when determining the origin of the good.
Article 3.13. INDIRECT MATERIALS
1. For the purposes of determining whether a good is originating, the origin of the indirect materials defined in paragraph 2 shall not be taken into account.
2. Indirect materials means articles used in the production of a good which are neither physically incorporated into it, nor form part of it, including:
(a) fuel, energy, catalysts, and solvents;
(b) equipment, devices, and supplies used for testing or inspecting the goods;
(c) gloves, glasses, footwear, clothing, safety equipment, and supplies;
(d) tools, dies, and molds;
(e) spare parts and materials used in the maintenance of equipment and buildings;
(f) lubricants, greases, compounding materials, and other materials used in production or used to operate equipment and buildings; and
(g) any other goods that are not incorporated into the good but whose use in the production of the good can reasonably be demonstrated to be a part of that production.
Article 3.14. DIRECT TRANSPORT
1. A good shall be transported directly from the exporting Party to the importing Party to maintain its originating status.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, the good shall be considered to be transported directly from the exporting Party to the importing Party if the good whose transport involves transit through one or more Parties or non-Parties, with or without transshipment or temporary storage there, provided that:
(a) the good is under control of the customs authority; and
(b) the good does not undergo any operation there other than unloading and reloading, repacking, or any operation required to keep them in good condition.
3. Evidence that the conditions set out in paragraph 2 have been fulfilled shall be supplied to the customs authorities of the importing Party by the production of:
(a) a single transport document covering the passage from the exporting Party through the country of transit;
(b) a transport document covering the passage from the country of transit to the importing Party and certification issued by the customs authorities of the country of transit containing the following:
(i) an exact description of the products;
(ii) the dates of unloading and reloading of the products and, where applicable, the names of the ships, or the other means of transport used; and
(iii) the conditions under which the products remained in the transit country; or
(c) failing these, any substantiating documents to the satisfaction of the customs authority of the importing Party, to be agreed by the Parties at the Committee on Rules of Origin and Origin Procedures, and Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation, established in Chapter 4 (Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation).
Article 3.15. OUTWARD PROCESSING
Notwithstanding Article 3.1, certain goods shall be considered to be originating even if they have undergone working or processing outside Korea, on materials exported from Korea and subsequently re-imported there, provided that the working or processing is done in the areas designated by the Parties pursuant to Annex 3-B.
Article 3.16. RE-EXPORTATION OF GOODS (4)
1. Korea and the Republics of Central America recognize a certificate of reexportation of goods issued by a Party certifying the control and supervision of goods that came from a non-Party to this Agreement and were subsequently re-exported to the other Party from a free zone (5) located in the territory of the re-exporting Party. The originating status of such goods shall be decided by the trade agreement in force between the non-Party and the other Party.
2. For the purposes of the application of paragraph 1, it is required that:
(a) in the free zone of a Party, the goods have not been subject to transformation processes that have changed their originating status, and the goods have remained under the control and supervision of the customs authorities; and
(b) the operations (6) carried out on the goods shall be specified in the certificate of re-exportation issued by the customs authority of the free zone in the territory of a Party.
Section B. Origin Procedures
Article 3.17. CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN
1. Each Party shall grant preferential tariff treatment in accordance with this Agreement to an originating good imported from the territory of the other Party on the basis of a Certificate of Origin.
2. For the purposes of this Chapter, the Parties established a single format of Certificate of Origin as set out in Annex 3-C, which shall enter into force with this Agreement and may thereafter be modified by the Joint Committee.
3. In order to obtain preferential tariff treatment, an importer shall, in accordance with the procedures applicable in the importing Party, request preferential tariff treatment at the time of importation of an originating good.
4. A Certificate of Origin which certifies that a good being exported from the territory of a Party into the territory of the other Party qualifies as originating shall:
(a) be in a printed format or such other medium, including electronic format, to be agreed by the Parties; and
(b) be completed in English.
5. Each Party shall:
(a) require an exporter or producer in its territory to complete and sign a Certificate of Origin for any exportation of a good for which an importer may claim preferential tariff treatment upon importation of the good into the territory of the other Party; and
(b) provide that where an exporter in its territory is not the producer of the good, the exporter may complete and sign a Certificate of Origin on the basis of:
(i) its knowledge that the good qualifies as originating;
(ii) its reasonable reliance on the producer’s written representation that the good qualifies as an originating; or
(iii) a completed and signed Certificate of Origin for the good voluntarily provided to the exporter by the producer.
6. A Certificate of Origin, duly completed and signed by an exporter or producer in a Party, may apply to:
(a) a single shipment of one or more goods into the territory of the other Party; or
(b) multiple shipments of identical goods to the same importer within any period specified in the Certificate of Origin, not exceeding one year from its date of issuance.
Article 3.18. WAIVER OF CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN
A Certificate of Origin shall not be required where:
(a) the customs value of the importation does not exceed 1,000 US dollars or the equivalent amount in the currency of the importing Party, or such higher amount as may be established by the importing Party, unless the importing Party considers the importation to be carried out or planned for the purposes of evading compliance with the Party’s laws governing claims for preferential tariff treatment under this Agreement; or
(b) it is a good for which the importing Party does not require the importer to present a Certificate of Origin demonstrating origin.
Article 3.19. VALIDITY OF CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN
1. A Certificate of Origin shall be valid for one year from its date of signature in the exporting Party.
2. Certificates of Origin which are submitted to the customs authorities of the importing Party after the final date for presentation specified in paragraph 1 may be accepted for the purposes of applying preferential tariff treatment, where the failure to submit these documents by the final date set is due to natural disasters.
Article 3.20. CLAIMS FOR PREFERENTIAL TARIFF TREATMENT
1. Except as otherwise provided for in this Chapter, each Party shall require an importer in its territory that claims preferential tariff treatment to:
(a) make a written statement in the customs declaration, based on a valid Certificate of Origin, indicating that the good qualifies as originating;
(b) have in its possession the Certificate of Origin at the time the statement referred to in subparagraph (a) is made;
(c) have in its possession the documents which certify that the requirements established in Article 3.14 have been met, where applicable; and
(d) submit the valid Certificate of Origin, as well as documents referred to in subparagraph (c) to the customs authority, where it is required.
2. Where an importer has a reason to believe that a Certificate of Origin on which a statement was based contained incorrect information, the importer shall make a corrected statement and pay any customs duty owed, in accordance with the legislation of each Party.
3. Where an importer does not comply with any requirements under this Chapter, preferential tariff treatment shall be denied to the goods imported from the territory of the exporting Party.
4. Where the customs authority of the importing Party has reason to believe that a good imported into its territory is not originating or does not comply with the requirements established in this Chapter, the customs authority of the importing Party shall not impede the release of the good, and shall proceed in accordance with its relevant legislation.
Article 3.21. POST-IMPORTATION CLAIMS FOR PREFERENTIAL TARIFF TREATMENT
Where a good was originating when it was imported into the territory of the importing Party, but the importer of the good did not claim preferential tariff treatment at the time of importation, that importer may, within one year following the date of importation, claim preferential tariff treatment and apply for a refund of any excess duties paid as a result of the good not having been accorded preferential tariff treatment, upon presentation to the importing Party of:
(a) a written or electronic declaration or statement, in accordance with the legislation of the importing Party, that the good was originating at the time of importation;
(b) an original Certificate of Origin demonstrating that the good was originating; and
(c) such other documents related to the importation of the good as the importing Party may require.
Article 3.22. RECORD KEEPING REQUIREMENTS
1. The records that may be used to prove that a good covered by a Certificate of Origin is originating and has fulfilled other requirements under this Chapter include, but are not limited to:
(a) documents related to the purchase of, cost of, value of, and payment for, the exported good;
(b) documents related to the purchase of, cost of, value of, and payment for, all materials including indirect materials, used in the production of the exported good;
(c) documents related to the production of the good in the form in which it was exported; and
(d) such other documents as the Parties may agree.
2. An exporter or producer in the territory of the exporting Party that completes and signs a Certificate of Origin shall keep for five years from the date of issuance of the Certificate of Origin, the records referred to in paragraph 1.
3. An importer claiming preferential tariff treatment for a good imported into the territory of a Party shall keep for a period specified in legislation of the importing Party from the date of importation of the good, the records related to the importation, including a copy of the Certificate of Origin.
4. An importer, exporter, or producer may choose to keep the records referred to in paragraph 1 in any medium that allows for prompt retrieval, including, but not limited to, a digital, electronic, optical, magnetic, or written form.
Article 3.23. DISCREPANCIES AND FORMAL ERRORS
1. Where the competent authority of the importing Party determines that a Certificate of Origin is illegible, has errors, omissions, deletions, erasures, amendments, has writing between the lines, or has not been filled in accordance with Article 3.17, it shall grant the importer, a one-time opportunity to present a new certificate within the next 45 days of the notification of the rejection of said certificate. The new Certificate of Origin shall be valid for the remainder of the period established in the original Certificate of Origin.
2. Orthographic and typing errors in a Certificate of Origin shall not cause this document to be rejected if these errors are not such as to create doubts concerning the correctness of the statements made in this document.
Article 3.24. VERIFICATION
1. For the purposes of determining whether a good imported into the territory of a Party from the territory of the other Party qualifies as originating, the competent authority of the importing Party may conduct a verification by means of:
(a) written requests for additional information from the importer;
(b) written requests for additional information from the exporter or producer;
(c) requests that the competent authority of the exporting Party assists in verifying the origin of the good;
(d) verification visits to the premises of an exporter or producer in the territory of the other Party, along with officials of the competent authority of the other Party to review the facilities, the production processes of the good and the records referred to in Article 3.22, including accounting files; or
(e) any other means agreed by the Parties.
2. Requests made under paragraph 1 by the competent authority of the importing Party shall be in English. All the information provided in response to said requests shall be in English or in the official language of the importing Party, based on the choice of the exporter or producer.
3. For the purposes of paragraphs 1(a) and 1(b),
(a) the written request for additional information made by the importing Party will indicate that the time period the importer, exporter, or producer has to provide the information and documentation required will be 30 days from the date of the receipt of the written request or for such a longer period as the Parties may agree; and
(b) where an exporter or producer fails to provide the information and documentation required within the period referred to in subparagraph (a), the importing Party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the good in question after providing at least a 30-day written notice to the importer, exporter or producer to provide written comments or additional information that will be taken into account prior to completing the verification.
4. Where the competent authority of the importing Party requests assistance under paragraph 1(c):
(a) it shall provide the competent authority of the exporting Party with:
(i) the reasons why such assistance for verification is requested;
(ii) the Certificate of Origin of the good or a copy thereof; and
(iii) any information and documents as may be necessary for the purposes of such request;
(b) the competent authority of the exporting Party shall provide the competent authority of the importing Party with a written statement in English, including facts and findings, and any supporting documents made available by the exporter or producer. This statement shall indicate clearly whether the documents are authentic and whether the good concerned is originating and has fulfilled other requirements under this Chapter. If the good can be considered to be originating, the statement shall include a detailed explanation of how the good obtained the originating status; and
(c) in case where the competent authority of the exporting Party fails to provide the written statement within 150 days following the date of the receipt of the request or where the written statement provided does not contain sufficient information, the importing Party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the relevant good.
5. Where the competent authority of the importing Party intends to conduct verification under paragraph 1(d):
(a) it shall notify in writing, 30 days prior to the verification visit, the exporter or producer of such a request, and provide a copy of the said notification to the competent authority of the exporting Party. In case where the exporter or producer does not give its written consent to such a request within 30 days following the date of the receipt of the notification, the importing Party may deny preferential tariff treatment to the relevant good; and
(b) when the exporter or producer agrees to the request of verification visit but needs to postpone the proposed verification visit, the competent authority of the importing Party shall be notified together with the approval of the verification visit. Such postponement shall not exceed 60 days from the proposed date of the verification visit.
6. The importing Party shall, within one year following the initiation of the verification, notify the importer and the exporter or producer, in writing, of the determination whether the good is originating, as well as factual findings and the legal basis for the determination. In necessary cases and for one time only, the period referred to above may be extended by up to 90 days. This extension shall be notified to the importer, exporter or producer, and the competent authority of the exporting Party.
7. A Party may suspend preferential tariff treatment to an importer on any subsequent import of a good when the competent authority of the Party had already determined that Anil identical good was not eligible for such treatment, until it is demonstrated that the good complies with the requirements under this Chapter.
8. A Party may provide electronically to the other Party all the information requested under this Article, including supporting documents and all other related information.
Article 3.25. DENIAL OF PREFERENTIAL TARIFF TREATMENT
Except otherwise provided in Article 3.23 or any other of this Chapter, the importing Party may deny a claim for preferential tariff treatment or recover unpaid duties, in accordance with its laws and regulations, where:
(a) the good does not meet the requirements of this Chapter; or
(b) the exporter, producer, or importer of the good fails or has failed to comply with any of the applicable requirements for obtaining preferential tariff treatment.
Article 3.26. UNIFORM REGULATIONS
The Parties shall establish Uniform Regulations regarding the interpretation, application and administration of this Chapter and other matters agreed by the Parties.
Article 3.27. THIRD COUNTRY INVOICING
The customs authority in the importing Party shall not reject a Certificate of Origin only for the reason that the invoice is issued by a person located outside the territory of the exporting Party.
Article 3.28. DEFINITIONS
For the purposes of this Chapter:
aquaculture means the farming of aquatic organisms, including fish, mollusks, crustaceans, other aquatic invertebrates, and aquatic plants, from seed stock such as eggs, fry, fingerlings, and larvae, by intervention in the rearing or growth processes to enhance production, such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, among others;
CIF means the value of the good in the country of origin inclusive of the cost of insurance and freight up to the port or place of entry in the country of importation;
competent authority means:
(a) for Korea, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance;
(b) for Costa Rica:
(i) for administration purposes, the Directorate of Application of International Trade Agreements (Dirección de Aplicación de Acuerdos Comerciales Internacionales) of the Ministry of Foreign Trade (Ministerio de Comercio Exterior); and
(ii) for verification procedures, the General Directorate of Customs (Dirección General de Aduanas) of the Ministry of Finance (Ministerio de Hacienda);
(c) for El Salvador:
(i) for administration purposes, the Trade Agreement Administration Bureau (Dirección de Administración de Tratados Comerciales) of the Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía); and
(ii) for verification procedures, the General Directorate of Customs (Dirección General de Aduanas) of the Ministry of Finance (Ministerio de Hacienda);
(d) for Honduras,
(i) for administration purposes, Secretariat of State in the Office of Economic Development (Secretaría de Estado en el Despacho de Desarrollo Económico); and
(ii) for verification procedures, the General Directorate for Administration and Negotiation of Agreements in coordination with the Adjunct Directorate of Customs Revenue (Dirección General de Administración y Negociación de Tratados en coordinación con la Dirección Adjunta de Rentas Aduaneras);
(e) for Nicaragua:
(i) for administration purposes, the Directorate of Application and Negotiation of Trade Agreements (Dirección de Aplicación y Negociación de Acuerdos Comerciales) of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Commerce (Ministerio de Fomento, Industria y Comercio); and
(ii) for verification procedures, the General Directorate of Customs Services (Dirección General de Servicios Aduaneros); and
(f) for Panama:
(i) for issuance of Certificate of Origin purpose, the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias); and
(ii) for verification of proofs of origin, the National Customs Authority (Autoridad Nacional de Aduanas), or their successors;
exporter means a person located in the territory of a Party from where a good is exported by such a person;
FOB means the value of the good free on board, inclusive of the cost of transportation to the port or site of final shipment abroad, regardless of the mode of transportation;
fungible goods or materials means goods or materials that are interchangeable for commercial purposes and whose properties are essentially identical;
generally accepted accounting principles means recognized consensus or substantial authoritative support given in the territory of a Party, with respect to the recording of revenues, expenses, costs, assets, and liabilities, the disclosure of information and the preparation of financial statements. Generally accepted accounting principles may encompass broad guidelines for general application, as well as detailed standards, practices, and procedures;
good means any merchandise, product, article, or material;