The Commissioner of Customs and Excise, Mr Roy Tang, and the Director General of Customs and Tariff Bureau of Ministry of Finance of Japan, Mr Mikio Kajikawa, signed the Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) in Hong Kong today (August 23) to mutually recognise the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Programmes of both sides.
Under the MRA signed, both administrations reached a new milestone in facilitating and securing trade flows between the two economies, whereby recognised AEOs of both sides can enjoy reciprocal trade facilitation benefits, such as reduced examination or expedited clearance for goods imported from or exported to each other. Following the signing ceremony, the Customs administrations of both sides will execute the relevant arrangements and work out a monitoring plan to ensure the full implementation of the MRA.
This is the seventh MRA that the Customs and Excise Department (C&ED) has concluded with other Customs administrations after the MRAs with the Mainland, India, Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. The arrangement not only enables accredited traders to benefit from developing overseas markets, but also demonstrates the two Customs administrations’ effort in enhancing cargo security on an international front while providing continuous support to the economic prosperity of both economies.
Ensuring the security of the global supply chain while facilitating trade is definitely a challenge for today’s Customs authorities. Looking ahead, the C&ED will continue developing MRAs with other Customs administrations proactively and will spare no effort in establishing AEOs that adhere to the security and compliance criteria. At present, MRA developments with Australia and the European Union have commenced and relevant discussions are in good progress.
Ends/Tuesday, August 23, 2016
