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The General Administration of Customs China (GACC) has implemented changes to its registration requirements for foreign enterprises exporting select edible plant-based commodities to China.
These new registration requirements are applicable to the following commodities that Canada exports to China:
- pulses (for example dried peas, kidney beans, navy beans)
- certain oilseeds (mustard, flaxseed, borage seeds)
- certain grains (canary seed, wild rice)
- fresh vegetables (for example fresh or chilled cucumber, fresh or chilled peas)
- plant-based seasonings/spices
- unroasted coffee beans and cocoa beans
Establishments involved in the production, processing, and storage of the above edible plant-based commodities exported to China were formerly required by GACC to be registered in the China Import Food Enterprise Registration (CIFER) system. The registration of establishments involved in the production, processing, storage, and export of these commodities will now be managed by GACC's Department of Animal and Plant Quarantine (GACC-DAPQ). Company information will be published on new eligibility lists on the GACC-DAPQ website in order to be eligible to export to China. Establishments handling these commodities no longer have to be registered in the CIFER system.
In late 2022, GACC-DAPQ published lists of all Canadian establishments involved in the manufacturing, processing and/or storage of the commodities listed above that had previously been registered in GACC's CIFER system on its public website. GACC-DAPQ's new lists now comprise the official lists of establishments that are eligible to export to China for these commodities. Companies may review their related corporate information on the currently approved versions of the lists through the following links on the GACC-DAPQ public website:
- list of overseas registered enterprises allowed to export grain, pulses and oilseeds
- list of registered enterprises that are allowed to export unroasted coffee beans and unroasted cocoa beans from abroad
- list of registered enterprises that are allowed to export overseas seasonings
- list of registered enterprises that are allowed to import fresh vegetables from abroad
At GACC's request, in December 2022, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) made its first submission to GACC-DAPQ of new establishments to be added to these lists, which included establishments that had new registration applications pending GACC approval in CIFER. To continue to meet these new requirements, the Market Access Secretariat (MAS) will work with Canadian industry to regularly submit to GACC-DAPQ updated lists of Canadian establishments that export, manufacture, process and store these commodities for export to China. The lists will be sent, via the Canadian Embassy in Beijing, to GACC-DAPQ on an as needed basis for its approval and subsequent publication on the GACC-DAPQ website.
All enterprises that are not already included on the published lists and that are seeking to become registered will need to provide the following information to MAS at aafc.mas-sam.aac@agr.gc.ca:
- Enterprise name:
- Address:
- Names of exported commodities:
Please also note that GACC will require the assignment of registration numbers for each listed establishment. For establishments that are already registered on the lists published on the GACC website, they may keep referring to the number that was provided as part of their registration in CIFER and which is currently included as part of their entries on the currently-published lists. For new establishments seeking to be registered, MAS will be assigning numbers and share them with establishments once their information is added to the lists.
For all commodities currently registered under Decree 177 (i.e. barley, canola seed, soybeans, wheat) or under other lists of plant-based commodities submitted by the Government of Canada to GACC (i.e., cherries, blueberries, alfalfa and timothy hay) it is our understanding that establishments exporting these commodities to China will continue to be registered under the existing process and will thus not need to be registered under these new requirements.
In light of these developments, we would also like to take this opportunity to reiterate some of the key information and requirements regarding GACC's eligibility lists and the overall process of exporting to China.
To avoid unnecessary trade disruptions that might occur to your shipments upon their arrival at Chinese ports of entry, companies are strongly advised to ensure that when preparing for export to China, the corporate information (e.g., company name, address) that appear on the corresponding export certificates and other documents related to your shipments to China are identical to the corporate information currently registered on the GACC-DAPQ-approved version of these lists which are currently published on their public website.
Furthermore, it is important to note that Government of Canada has no control or advance knowledge as to when GACC-DAPQ will publish future versions of the updated lists on its website going forward. Unfortunately, delays by GACC in approving new market access requests and updating its lists of approved foreign facilities are common.
Before shipping to China, it is also important for exporting companies to contact their local office of the CFIA for more information on export conditions and certification. For more information contact your local CFIA office.
Lastly, as China may have specific import requirements for any given food product, we also recommend that companies obtain from their potential Chinese importer(s), the official and detailed import requirements that apply to their product(s) with necessary steps, registration, or documentation. We would note that it is critical for companies to work closely with their Chinese importer(s) to ensure import requirements are met and the necessary documentation is provided.
Please send any questions or comments on this matter to the Market Access Secretariat via the single window at: aafc.mas-sam.aac@agr.gc.ca.