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Saturday 6 July 2013

Inside the World Customs Organisation (WCO) (5) The WCO view of the GIRs – did I learn anything


Well, to answer the title of this blog – yes, I did learn lots of things.  It’s always interesting to hear about tariff classification examples and learning about them from the WCO Harmonisation System Committee who makes the Legal Decisions and writes the HS Code was brilliant.  I’ve got lots of new examples to add to our own tariff classification training. 

I’ve never spent a whole day concentrating on one GIR before – that’s General Interpretative Rule of the HS Codes which you use to get the most appropriate number.  (Sorry if you’re none technical or not really interested in Customs Procedures … and if you’re not – why not!!!)  A full day looking at how to use GIR3 in classifying mixtures, sets and composite goods – I must be sad but I found it fascinating and the time just flew.  One of the guys was struggling a bit – he’s new to customs issues and doesn’t have good basic knowledge.  I found myself turning on trainer mode and before I knew what was happening at the breaks I had a little group listening to me explaining about how to read the tariff schedule and how the 6 GIRs fit together.  I’m also booked for some more sessions this weekend.

Before we knew it the 30 of us from all over the world were saying goodbye and taking pictures … but most of us are back next week for valuation and origin (20 hours training on each topic). Great!

Some of the delegates are going home though – that was sad – but we’ll have new people joining us next week.  I now have contacts in Customs in Nigeria, Singapore, Brazil, Zambia, the Congo, Sri Lanka, India, Jamaica and an invite to talk at a conference in Sao Paulo Brazil in November and at a Customs Conference in Trinidad next March.  Others are taking advantage of their EU VISA and going to Prague, Paris, Amsterdam, etc this weekend.  The WCO have a trip planned tomorrow – chocolate houses, museum and the European Parliament tour before a meal together in a Turkish restaurant.  I’m looking forward to it; though I can’t believe how tired I am.  It is hard being a delegate/ student … I must remember that for next time I’m the tutor.

1 comment:

  1. I've come across some of these, and found them fascinating. They made me try to think up a range of difficult scenarios, before my mind turned to spaghetti. I wish I had the time and finances to have attended. I'm spending far too much time undertaking non-international trade activity at present.

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