Participation of Michael Lux as customs tariff expert at a symposium in Guiyang, China
The "People's Republic of China Legislation Law" stipulates that "the establishment of taxes, tax rates and tax collection and management which are to determine the basic tax System should be stipulated only by law which is enacted by the National People’s Congress (NPC) and its Standing Committee". Thus, the Tariff Regulation formulated by the State Council in 1985 and amended in 2003 according to the World Trade Organization requirements must be enacted as Tariff Law by the NPC. On 15 and 16 November a symposium with customs tariff experts took place in Guiyang in order to provide support to the Budget Affairs Commission (BAC) of the National People's Congress which is responsible for preparing the new tariff legislation. The German Development Agency (Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit – GIZ) has supported this symposium.
Michael Lux, member of the Institute of Customs and International Trade Law's Pool of Experts, gave presentations – and participated in discussions – on the following topics:
1. Structure and trends in tariff legislation, functions of a customs tariff
2. Adjustments of tariff items and rates
3. Special tariff measures
4. The administration of the customs tariff
The symposium has helped the participants responsible for drafting the new legislation to focus on the relevant issues and to benefit from the experiences of other countries.