Under the Import and Export Ordinance (Cap. 60), import and export of strategic commodities require licences issued by the Director-General of Trade and Industry. Licence applications submitted to Trade and Industry Department are required to be supported by technical specifications/data sheets of the product concerned to enable the Department to confirm whether or not the goods are strategic commodities and to assess their sensitivity level.
At present, applicants need to attach a copy of the technical specifications/data sheets on every application covering the same product. In order to simplify the licence application procedure for traders and to avoid delay in the processing of licence applications due to queries made regarding the product specification for each application, Trade and Industry Department has introduced a pre-classification service.
Pre-classification is a service through which traders are advised on whether a particular product is a strategic commodity and, if so, the declarations regarding technical aspect of the product that are required to be made on future licence applications. Pre-classification will be made on the basis of information and technical specifications/data sheets provided by the trader. Such information will be retained by Trade and Industry Department for future reference. After pre-classification on a product is done, subsequent licence applications involving the same product with the same technical details will not be required to attach the product specification. Instead, the applicant only needs to quote on the licence application form the reference number of the pre-classification advice, make the relevant declaration as advised and attach a copy of the classification advice. Please refer to the Guidance Notes attached for details.
The advantages of the pre-classification service are mainly the following:
applicants do not need to attach bulky specifications for the same product time and again;
traders can obtain a formal advice from Trade and Industry Department on the classification of a product even if there is no specific order in hand which requires a licence application;
delay in getting licence applications which are sometimes the result of insufficient technical information submitted by the applicant or unclear declaration made on licence applications could be avoided;
Trade and Industry Department will keep a systematic record of technical specifications/data sheets submitted by traders. The Department can therefore trace the details of each product more easily instead of going back to the manufacturer every time when there is doubt. This should help reduce delay in the processing time; and
for products classified as non-strategic goods, the pre-classification advice will also serve as proof to the carriers that the product concerned is not a strategic commodity.
Traders who wish to make use of the pre-classification service should complete the Pre-classification Form (pdf format) and read the Guidance Notes attached to this circular. The completed Pre-classification Form should be submitted to the customer service counter at Rm 516B, 5/F of Trade and Industry Department in the same way as submitting a licence application. The applicant will be given a receipt number. In general, pre-classification advice will be available for collection in 2 clear working days at the same counter on 5/F upon presentation of the receipt. While there is no limit on the number of products or pre-classification requests a trader may submit at a time, bulk requests covering a large number of products will need longer time to process. In such cases, the applicants will be informed separately of the time required for the pre-classification.
Traders are reminded that the pre-classification advice only advises whether or not a product is a strategic commodity and informs traders of the declarations regarding the technical aspects of the product that are required on licence applications. The reply is in no way a substitute of an import or export licence. If the product is classified as a strategic commodity and if no licence exemption applies, separate licence applications must be made.
It should be emphasized that despite Trade and Industry Department's advice given on the Pre-classification Form, where there is any doubt on the technical aspect of individual licence applications, Trade and Industry Department may continue to require the licence applicants to provide additional information on the product to enable our technical assessment.
Finally, the pre-classification service only deals with the technical side of the product in question. Other licence requirements, such as requirement for foreign export licence as supporting document and additional declarations to be made on licence applications will continue be considered on the merits of each licence application submitted.
If you have any questions on the procedures and requirements on the pre-classification service, please contact our officers at tel. no 2398 5587.
Trade and Industry Department
November 2000