24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

e-mail address : enquiry@tid.gov.hk

Ref. : CR EIC 230/2/1/1/1

17 September 2005

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 378/2005
Notice to Exporters: Series 2 (EU) No. 20/2005

European Union (EU)¹ : European Commission (EC) Regulation to Implement the EU/Mainland Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

Further to the Commercial Information Circular No. 372/2005 cum Notice to Exporters: Series 2 (EU) No. 19/2005 all dated 13 September 2005, the EC has enacted the Regulation (at Appendix) (pdf format) for implementing the measures agreed with the Mainland on 5 September 2005 to unblock the stranded textiles imports from the Mainland as from 14 September 2005. 

Details

2. Following the adoption of the EC Regulation, EU Member States has started issuing import licences to release the blocked goods with effect from 14 September 2005. The provisions in the EC Regulation are generally the same as those set out in Commercial Information Circular No. 372/2005 cum Notice to Exporters: Series 2 (EU) No. 19/2005. The finalized quota levels for Chinese textiles imports applicable from 2005 to 2007 are formally announced in Annex I of the Regulation. 
   
   
3. In addition, the EC Regulation has set out the quantitative limits for six types of textiles articles² re-imported into the EU under the Outward Processing Trade (OPT) arrangement up to 2007. Under the OPT, relevant textiles products manufactured from EU fabrics or parts can be sent from the EU to the Mainland for processing and re-imported back to the EU under separate quota limits. The specific agreed levels from 2005 to 2007 for the product categories concerned are set out in Annex II of the EC Regulation. Traders are requested to note that the OPT quota limits are applicable to transactions taking place from 11 June 2005, though relevant textiles products sent from the EU to the Mainland for processing at a prior date and re-imported into the EU after 11 June 2005 may also benefit from these provisions, subject to the production of adequate proof such as export declaration.
   
   
4. The Regulation is also accessible from the EU website at: 
   http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_236/
   l_23620050913en00030011.pdf
   

Enquiries

5. For enquiries concerning the content of this circular, please contact the undersigned at 2398 5427.

Yours faithfully,



 (Miss Jenny TSANG)

for Director-General of Trade and Industry

1. The EU includes Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

2. Categories that can be benefited from the OPT arrangement are Cat. 4 (T-shirts), Cat. 5 (pullovers), Cat. 6 (men's trousers), 7 (blouses), 26 (dresses), and 31 (brassieres).

Note : While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.