On December 31, 2021, the Chinese Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs (MoARA) and the General Administration of Customs (GAC) jointly issued Announcement 416 to implement the electronic customs clearance of imported and exported pesticides. The announcement explains the qualification of pesticides and business entities data requirement, and procedures, as well as releases the latest version of “List of Pesticides Subject to Import and Export Management”.
All applicants of custom clearance notice shall submit the applicant and materials through an online system called Single Window. MoARA will send GAC an electronic notice if the application materials were examined satisfied.
The customs clearance notices shall be applied on a “one shipment, one clearance notice”and valid for only three months. Only pesticides registered with MoARA can be imported into China, and only homemade pesticides produced by licensed domestic producers can be exported to other countries. The importers or exporters shall be responsible for the quality of the pesticides.
For pesticides imported into China, the clearance notice shall be applied by the Chinese branches of the overseas producers or domestic entrusted agents. If the pesticide was produced from different manufacturing sites, the applicant shall provide detailed information on these sites. If a pesticide was imported for only research or experimental purposes, the applicant shall provide supporting materials.
Domestic producers may directly apply for the clearance notice, but if pesticides were exported through a trading company, the producer and trading company shall sign a consignment agreement. If a pesticide was produced on an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) basis, the production license of the trustee producer and consignment agreement shall be provided.
