Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 63 Part 2.djvu/21

 63 STAT.] CHINA-FRIENDSHIP, COMMERCE, NAVIGATION-NOV. 4, 1946 in respect of limitations upon the quantity or value of any article per- mitted to be imported free of duty or tax, or at a specified rate of duty or tax. ARTICLE XVII 1. Laws, regulations of administrative authorities and decisions of relbUsation l"aws administrative or judicial authorities of each High Contracting Party pertaining to the classification of articles for customs purposes or to rates of duty shall be published promptly in such a manner as to enable traders to become acquainted with them. Such laws, regula- tions and decisions shall be applied uniformly at all ports of the re- spective High Contracting Parties except as is or may hereafter be otherwise specifically provided for in statutes of either High Con- tracting Party with respect to the importation of articles into its insular territories and possessions. 2. No administrative ruling by the Government of either High Contracting Party effecting advances in rates of duties or charges applicable under an established and uniform practice to imports originating in the territories of the other High Contracting Party, or imposing any new requirement with respect to such importations, shall as a general rule be applied to articles the growth, produce or manufacture of the other High Contracting Party already en route at the time of publication thereof in accordance with paragraph 1; provided that, if either High Contracting Party customarily exempts from such new or increased obligations articles entered for consump- tion or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption during a period of thirty days after the date of such publication, such practice shall be considered full compliance with this paragraph. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to administrative orders imposing antidumping duties, or relating to regulations for the protection of human, animal or plant life or health, or relating to public safety, or giving effect to judicial decisions. 3. Each High Contracting Party shall provide some procedure, Fines andpenalties. administrative, judicial or otherwise, under which the nationals, cor- porations and associations of the other High Contracting Party, and importers of articles the growth, produce or manufacture of such other High Contracting Party, shall be permitted to appeal against fines and penalties imposed upon them by the customs authorities, confiscations by such authorities and rulings of such authorities on questions of customs classification and of valuation of articles for customs purposes. Greater than nominal penalties shall not be im- posed by either High Contracting Party in connection with any im- portation by the nationals, corporations or associations of the other High Contracting Party, or in connection with the importation of articles the growth, produce or manufacture of such other High Con- tracting Party, because of errors in documentation which are obviously clerical in origin or with regard to which good faith can be established. 4. The Government of each High Contracting Party will accord sympathetic consideration to such representations as the Government 1313

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