Customs moves from tariff version 2002 to 2007 |11 February 2013

Previously the Customs tariff schedule was based on version 2002 of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HS). It is a prerequisite for Customs administrations of WCO member countries to base its tariff classification on the HS at 6 digit level. WCO updates the Harmonised System every five years and it encourages its members to adopt the latest version as far as is practically possible. 

Following much consultation within the Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment and other experts in this area, a decision was reached for Seychelles to migrate its Customs tariff from version 2002 to 2007 despite the availability of the latest version (2012). The decision was taken because all negotiating parties agreed to use the 2007 version.

What are the benefits of using Customs tariff version 2007?
The revised tariff is expected to facilitate both national and international trade and improve collection of statistics that can be shared between trading countries.  The amendments to the HS have taken into consideration the needs of the various users of the HS worldwide. The text has been simplified to make it easier to understand. The 2007 version of the HS will bring important benefits to the migrated national tariff by:

• providing for changes in technology which will help to resolve classification problems that traders where encountering when classifying new products such as electronic equipment capable of performing several function (e.g. mobile phone with build-in camera or multifunction office equipment);

• taking into consideration environmental and social concerns through the creation of new subheadings or HS codes for the identification of certain specific species of fish or of ozone-depleting substances covered under the Montreal Protocol;
• eliminating tariff lines with low level of trade as recorded by WCO up to the release of 2007 version of HS;

• merging of different headings or HS code where it has been deemed appropriate for the classification of goods (e.g. headings 95.01, 95.02 & 95.03 has been merged to form a new heading 95.03 and new HS code 9503.0000 to simplify the classification for all kinds of toys).

• improving the texts within the tariff to provide for legal certainty with regards to classification decisions that Customs administration has to entertain from time to time;

• making texts within the tariff more consistent with scientific or Customs terminology or with trade practices.
It is to be noted that the migration of the tariff is a normal process that Customs administrations worldwide are required  to undertake, at the very least every five years to keep it in line with international best practices. It is, therefore, no exception that Seychelles has had to follow the trend to be on par with other countries because we trade in a global world.

For more information
You can contact Seychelles Revenue Commission on 4293737 or e-mail us at commissioner@src.gov.sc  for more information. You can also visit our website (www.src.gov.sc).