Changes in China's Import Tariffs on Printing Equipment

[Editor's Note] Approved by the State Council, a new Tariff Schedule will be implemented starting from 2010, namely adjusting provisional tax rates and lowering import tariffs. It cancels the provisional tax rates for the two tariff lines of thermal print heads and contact image sensors and restores the most-favored-nation rates, among other features.

From the new 2010 Import and Export Tariff Schedule we can see that, compared with the 2009 Import and Export Tariff Schedule, the new tariff schedule for printing equipment imports and exports shows no change from 2009 in the import tariff headings for printing equipment (58 in total), the most-favored-nation rates or the export tax rates. The Import and Export Tariff Schedule of the People's Republic of China, revised and published once a year, conveys the country's import and export trade policy and guides the healthy and orderly development of China's import and export trade with countries around the world.

As the new year arrives, in accordance with China's commitments upon joining the World Trade Organization and the needs of foreign trade development, and with the approval of the State Council, a new Import and Export Tariff Schedule of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the new Tariff Schedule) will be implemented from January 1, 2010. At the end of this year China will mark the tenth anniversary of its accession to the World Trade Organization, so people are very concerned about what changes this year's newly revised Tariff Schedule contains. What preferential policies will the state adopt? The printing industry in particular is concerned about what preferential policies apply to imports of printing equipment. Looking at the new 2010 Tariff Schedule as a whole, its main contents and changes are as follows:

One, the WTO tariff reduction commitments have been fulfilled. The new Tariff Schedule declares to the world that, in accordance with China's commitment in 2001 when it joined the WTO to lower tariffs, after nine years of effort China has now fully fulfilled, ahead of schedule, its commitments on tariff concessions for joining the World Trade Organization; the overall tariff level has dropped from 15.3% when it joined the WTO to the current 9.8%. Among them, the average tariff rate on agricultural products has been adjusted from 18.8% to 15.2%, and the average tariff rate on industrial goods from 14.7% to 8.9%; total tax reductions and concessions reached 123 billion yuan. In 2010 China will also apply preferential tariff rates to 41 countries. This shows that we are a responsible country and that we keep our word.

Two, WTO accession has promoted economic development. According to a Ministry of Finance official, after joining the WTO, China's total merchandise trade imports reached US$243.6 billion in 2001 and surged to US$1,133.1 billion by 2008, a 3.65-fold increase, with average annual growth of 24.6%. China's total imports as a share of world imports rose from 3.8% in 2001 to 6.9% in 2008, ranking third in the world. This fully proves that reform and opening up and WTO accession are important paths for promoting China's economic development.

Three, adjusting tariffs and implementing new provisional tax rates. In response to the impact of the current financial and printing crisis, and in order to support agricultural and rural economic development, encourage independent innovation by enterprises, promote the development of high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing and drive the upgrading of the industrial structure; to promote energy and resource conservation and ecological environmental protection; and to adapt to domestic and international supply and demand conditions and changes in market prices, next year lower provisional tax rates will be applied to more than 600 categories of goods. Among them, 17 kinds of printing equipment and parts will be subject to lower provisional tax rates.

Four, changes in import tariffs on printing equipment.

The above covered the macro-level situation of the new Tariff Schedule. What concerns us is what changes there are between the tariff headings and import tariffs for printing equipment imports in 2010 and the 2009 tariff schedule. Have the import tariff rates been lowered? In particular, what preferential policies has the state adopted for imports of which printing equipment?

From the new 2010 Import and Export Tariff Schedule we can see that the new tariff schedule for printing equipment imports and exports has the following main features compared with the 2009 Import and Export Tariff Schedule:

1. The import tariff headings for printing equipment (58 in total), the most-favored-nation rates and the export tax rates show no change compared with 2009.
2. Adjusting provisional tax rates and lowering import tariffs. There are 17 tariff lines with provisional tax rates relevant to our printing industry. Compared with 2009, two tariff lines were cancelled and 3 were added. But in terms of actual content, there are relatively many items whose provisional tax rates were adjusted this year, seven in total:

(1) A provisional tax rate was added for tariff line 84419010, curved tubes for paper cutting machines, with the import printing tariff rate reduced from 8% to 4%.

(2) What is relatively notable is that under tariff line 84431313, in addition to last year's provisional tax rate for four-color sheet-fed offset presses with a half-sheet single-sided printing speed of ≥16,000 sheets/hour, this year a provisional tax rate was added for half-sheet double-sided printing speeds of ≥13,000 sheets/hour; at the same time, provisional tax rates were added for two specifications of offset presses with full-sheet or larger-than-full-sheet single-sided printing speeds of ≥13,000 sheets/hour.

(3) Under tariff line 84431319, in addition to the provisional tax rate for five-color and above sheet-fed offset presses (printing speed greater than or equal to 16,000 half-sheets/hour), a provisional tax rate was added for half-sheet double-sided printing speeds of ≥13,000 sheets/hour; at the same time, provisional tax rates were added for two specifications of offset presses with full-sheet or larger-than-full-sheet single-sided printing speeds of ≥13,000 sheets/hour. The import tariff was reduced from 10% to 7%.

(4), under tariff line 84431600, in addition to the unchanged provisional tax rate of 3% set in 2009 for aniline printing machines (flexographic printing machines) with a linear speed of ≥300 m/min and a web width of ≥800 mm, a provisional tax rate is now added for "stack-type flexographic printing machines with hot stamping or holographic or screen printing functional units, linear speed ≥160 m/min, 250 mm ≤ web width (5) A printing provisional tax rate was added for tariff line 84439111, automatic web feeders (feeding linear speed ≥12 m/s). The most-favored-nation rate is 12% and the provisional tax rate is 4%.

1. The provisional tax rates for the two tariff lines of thermal print heads and contact image sensors were cancelled, restoring the most-favored-nation rates. In the 2009 tariff schedule, the provisional tax rate for the products under these two printing tariff lines was 0, while in 2010, after the provisional tax rate was cancelled and the most-favored-nation rate restored, imports of these two products will be subject to a most-favored-nation tariff rate of 6%.

——This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn), original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-362184.html