In an effort to increase the effectiveness of the current import regulations (tata niaga impor), specifically examinations which are conducted in relation to goods that have already passed through excise areas (“Post Border”), the Minister of Trade (“Minister”) has issued Regulation No. 51 of 2020 on Post-Border Import Examinations and Supervisions of Import Regulations (“Regulation 51/2020”) in order to create a more comprehensive examination mechanism.
Prior to the issuance of Regulation 51/2020, post-border import examinations were addressed under Regulation of the Minister No. 28 of 2018 on the Implementation of Post-Border Import Examinations, as amended by Regulation of the Minister No. 74 of 2018 (“Regulation 28/2018”). Once Regulation 51/2020 comes into force, the following legal frameworks will be repealed and replaced:
- All provisions which specifically address the issue of self-declarations, as previously set out under 18 different regulations; and
- Regulation 28/2018.3
This article offers a summary of Regulation 51/2020 by addressing the following specific matters: 1) Mandatory post-border Examinations; and 2) Administrative sanctions.
Mandatory Post-Border Examinations
As general information, import regulations that address specific products (i.e. food and beverages, traditional medicines and food supplements, cosmetics, household equipment, etc.) are set out under Regulation of the Minister No. 87/M-DAG/PER/10/2015 on Import Provisions for Specific Products, as amended several times, most recently through the issuance of Regulation of the Minister No. 12 of 2018 (“Fourth Amendment”).
Importers of specific products are required to undergo post-border examinations and are also required to disclose any valid data within the relevant Import Notifications (Pemberitahuan Impor Barang – “PIB”). Said valid data comprise the following:
- Import approval (persetujuan impor – “PI”);
- Surveyor’s report (laporan surveyor – “LS”); and
- Amount or volume of imported goods, as set out under the relevant PI.
The Minister is authorized to carry out examinations and supervisions of certain specific products, as detailed in the following:
PIB Conformity Assessment:
- Comparison of PIB data, as obtained via the Indonesia National Single Window through the e-reporting platform of the Ministry of Trade, with relevant information provided through INATRADE;
- PIB data comprises the following elements:8 a. PI number and date; b. LS number and date; and/or c. Amounts and volumes of imported goods.
Special Examination of Import Documents:
- This type of examination is to be conducted based on conformity assessments of PIB (if it is alleged that importers are not in possession of the required PI or LS and/or if it is alleged that goods are being imported in amounts which exceed the amounts or volumes set out under the relevant PI). Said special examinations should be conducted when information is provided by relevant government institutions and/or members of the general public, or if importers fall into certain risk categories;
- Reviews may be conducted of original copies of required import documents and may require clarifications to be provided by the relevant importers. If a given violation allegation is proven, then the relevant case will proceed to the supervision and/or law-enforcement stage.
Supervision of Import Regulations:
This type of examination involves assessments of compliance with prevailing laws and regulations, as specifically addressed under Regulation of the Minister No. 36 of 2018 on the Implementation of the Supervision of Trading Activities.
By way of comparison, the most significant difference between Regulation 51/2020 and the previous framework of Regulation 28/2018 is that mandatory self-declarations by importers are no longer required. Said self-declarations were previously required to be made by importers in order to affirm the validity of the relevant import requirements and supporting import documents.
Under Regulation 28/2018, the Minister was required to validate the conformity of all data contained within these self-declarations.
Administrative Sanctions
Any violations of the various provisions which are set out under Regulation 51/2020 will lead to the imposition of the following administrative sanctions:
No declaration or invalid declaration of import requirements in the PIB and/or invalid declaration of the number or amounts of imported goods in the PIB, the sanctions will be:
- Written warnings (up to a maximum of two); and 2.
- Recommendation that the Online Single Submission (“OSS”) Agency suspends the relevant Import Identification Number (Angka Pengenal Impor – “API”) under the Business Identification Number (nomor induk berusaha – “NIB”).
If imported goods are not covered by valid import data under the relevant PIB, the sanction imposed will be that the Director-General of Customs and Excise (“Director-General”) will recommend the revocation of the API under the relevant NIB to the OSS Agency (However, any importer whose API has been revoked may resubmit a new API application after three years have elapsed since the initial revocation).
If the imported goods are not accompanied by the relevant required import documents, the sanction will be that importers must recall any distributed goods and/or destroy the goods in question. Otherwise, the Director-General will recommend the revocation of the relevant NIB (However, if an NIB is revoked, then the relevant importer may submit a new NIB application after five years have elapsed since the initial revocation).
Regulation 51/2020 comes into force on 28th August 2020.