Notice of the General Administration of quality supervision, inspection and quarantine on issuing the Measures for the administration of the issuance of entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates

Notice of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on Issuing the Measures for the Administration of the Issuance of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Promulgation date: 01-23-2009 Department: State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine Effective date: 03-01-2009 Subject: Commodity Inspection, Animal and Plant Quarantine Notice of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on Issuing the Measures for the Administration of the Issuance of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates (No.38 [2009] of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine) All inspection and quarantine bureaus directly under the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine: To meet the development needs of the inspection and quarantine business, strengthen the administration of the issuance of entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates and further regulate the issuance work, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine amended the Measures for the Administration of the Issuance of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates, which are hereby issued to you for your earnest compliance. If you encounter any problem in the process of implementation, please report it to the Department of Inspection and Quarantine Clearance of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine in a timely manner. General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine January 23, 2009 Measures for the Administration of the Issuance of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 To strengthen the administration of the issuance of entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates and guarantee the quality of the issuance work, these Measures are formulated according to the Import and Export Commodity Inspection Law of the People’s Republic of China and the regulation on the implementation thereof, the Entry-exit Animal and Plant Quarantine Law of the People’s Republic of China and the regulation on the implementation thereof, the Frontier Health and Quarantine Law of the People’s Republic of China and the detailed rules for the implementation thereof, the Food Hygiene Law of the People’s Republic of China and other relevant laws and regulations. Article 2 The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) shall administer the issuance of entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates of the whole nation. The entry-exit inspection and quarantine offices established by the AQSIQ in local regions (hereinafter referred to as inspection and quarantine offices) shall be responsible for the specific issuance of entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates. Article 3 The general workflow for issuing entry-exit inspection and quarantine certificates includes acceptance of declarations for inspection and quarantine, examination of documents, calculation of fees, collection of fees, drafting, examination and signature of certificates, making and proofreading of certificates, issuance of certificates and archiving of certificates. The workflow for issuing certificates shall be subject to the unified management of the departments in charge of the inspection affairs (hereinafter referred to as inspection affairs departments). The inspection affairs departments shall be responsible for the acceptance of the declarations for inspection and quarantine, examination of documents, calculation of fees, making and proofreading of certificates, issuance of certificates and archiving of certificates. The financial departments shall be responsible for the collection of fees. The departments making inspections (hereinafter referred to as inspection departments) shall be responsible for the drafting, examination and signature of certificates. Article 4 The electronic certificates issued through the computer business management system and the information thereof shall be as valid as paper certificates in the national inspection and quarantine system. Chapter II Acceptance of Declarations for Inspection and Quarantine and Examination of Documents Article 5 Persons responsible for the acceptance of the declaration for inspection and quarantine shall check the qualification of the declarer for inspection and quarantine according to the requirements of the Provisions on Declaration for Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine, and check whether the declaration form and the attached documents are complete and meet the relevant requirements. Article 6 A declaration for inspection on inward goods must be accepted based on the information recorded in the transferred electronic documents. Where it is unable to use the information of transferred electronic documents for special reasons, an application for inspection on inward goods can be accepted according to the general procedure, but the number of the customs clearance sheet issued by the inspection and quarantine office at the port of entry shall be indicated in the column of “special requirements” of the declaration form. Article 7 When accepting a declaration for inspection on outward goods, if the letter of credit is inconsistent with the contract, the inspection and quarantine office shall demand the declarer to amend the contract or the letter of credit. If neither the contract nor the letter of credit can be amended, the letter of credit shall prevail. Article 8 When accepting port inspects an application for changing certificates, the inspection and quarantine office shall ask the declarer to provide the original “Electronic Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” or the original “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” marked with the words “General Inspection and Quarantine”. Where any certificate bears any false information or misses any information due to the fault of the inspection and quarantine office, the inspection and quarantine office at the port of entry shall timely contact the inspection and quarantine office at the place of origin of the goods to solve the problem. Article 9 For a declarer which has a high credit rating and meets the conditions for submitting attached documents by electronic means, its declaration for inspection and quarantine can be accepted upon the strength of the electronic attached documents, subject to approval of the inspection and quarantine office. Article 10 Where any inspection and quarantine office examines documents by electronic means, it shall examine the declaration form for inspection and quarantine and the attached documents based on the instruction of examining documents by electronic means. Chapter III Calculation and Collection of Fees Article 11 Workers calculating fees shall calculate fees in strict accordance with the Measures for Charging Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Fees and other provisions on charging inspection and quarantine fees. Article 12 Workers calculating fees shall check the calculation results produced by the business system and manually correct them if they are not identical with the receivable fees. Article 13 Workers collecting fees shall collect inspection and quarantine fees according to the calculation results and issue receipts as required. When conditions permit, the inspection and quarantine offices can collect fees by electronic means. Chapter IV Drafting and Making Certificates Section 1 General Provisions Article 14 The inspection departments shall, based on the inspection and quarantine results and the acceptance standards, timely and accurately make draft inspection and quarantine certificates according to the prescribed categories and formats of certificates and the norms for making draft inspection and quarantine certificates. A quality-related draft inspection and quarantine certificate shall include four basic elements: sampling, inspection basis, inspection results and appraisal opinions. Draft inspection and quarantine certificates shall meet the relevant laws and regulations, the requirements of the import country (region) on contents and the universal practices in international trade, be accurate in wording, fluent in language and stand to reason. Article 15 The inspection affairs departments shall, according to the prescribed categories, uses and formats of inspection and quarantine certificates, timely make and proofread the certificates and issue them upon the signature of the veterinary officers, authorized quarantine officers, quarantine doctors, doctors and authorized signers. Persons responsible for making certificates may not concurrently be held responsible for their issuance. Article 16 The serial number of an inspection and quarantine certificate shall be consistent with that of the declaration form for inspection and quarantine. Where a same kind of certificate is issued for a same batch of goods for two or more times, the original serial number shall be postfixed with -1, 2, -3 and so on for purposes of distinction. Article 17 Inspection and quarantine certificates (and the duplicates thereof) issued to foreign parties shall be affixed with the seal for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates. The Chinese-English seal for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates shall be used for issuing certificates, vouchers in Chinese and a foreign language and for the inquiries made by foreign parties about the issuance of inspection and quarantine certificates. The special seal for inspection and quarantine shall be used for issuing vouchers in Chinese and for the inquiries made by domestic parties about the issuance of inspection and quarantine certificates. For a certificate with two pages or more, a seal shall be affixed across pages between the top right corner (where the serial number of the document is printed) of the first page and the top left corner of the next page of each two neighboring pages. Where any import country has special requirements in this regard, such special requirements shall be followed. Article 18 An inspection and quarantine certificate is usually composed of one original and three duplicates. The original shall be issued to the foreign party, while two duplicates can be provided to the declarer for inspection and quarantine and one duplicate shall be kept by the inspection and quarantine office. Article 19 Where any foreign country requires putting inspection and quarantine certificates on file, the filing issues shall be handled by the AQSAQ in a unified way. Article 20 Inspection and quarantine certificates requires the hand-writing signatures of veterinary officers, authorized quarantine officers, quarantine doctors, doctors and authorized signers. Where the official institution of any foreign country requires the signature of those put on records, the inspection and quarantine certificates shall be signed by those put on records. Section 2 Language and Text of Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Article 21 Inspection and quarantine certificates shall be prepared in strict accordance with the formats provided or approved by the AQSAQ and be issued in English, Chinese, and English plus Chinese, respectively. Where the government of any import country (region) requires any inspection and quarantine certificates be prepared in the official language of the country (region) or has any special requirements on contents, such requirements shall be followed according to the actual situations. Damage claims shall be generally issued in English plus Chinese. However, if the declarer for inspection and quarantine so requires, they can be issued in Chinese. Article 22 As a general principle, an inspection and quarantine certificate can only have one original. If any declarer for inspection and quarantine requires two or more originals, it is required to get the approval of the person in charge of the inspection affairs department and declare in the remarks column of the certificate that “This Certificate is a duplicate of the original certificate No.XXX”. Article 23 The restriction mark “**” shall be added in front of the figures entered in the quantity and weight columns of a certificate. The end mark “********” shall be put in the mid position of the next line upon the end of the contents of a certificate. Any items to be added beyond the contents certified by a certificate shall be added above the end mark. Article 24 Where any import country (region) so requires or for any certificate used for claim or settlement, the amount of inspection and quarantine fees can be noted in the remarks column of the certificate. Section 3 Date and Period of Validity of Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Article 25 As a general principle, the date of issuance of an inspection and quarantine certificate shall be the date when the inspection and quarantine is completed. Article 26 The period of validity of an inspection and quarantine certificate shall not exceed the period of validity of the inspection and quarantine. The period of validity of inspection and quarantine shall be determined by the inspection department according to the relevant state provisions and the inspection and quarantine results of goods. The period of validity of the following certificates shall be: A “Customs Clearance Sheet for Inward Goods” shall be valid for 60 days. A “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” (including one transferred by electronic means) under the “General Inspection and Quarantine” and a “Customs Clearance Sheet for Outward Goods” shall be valid for 60 days for general goods, 21 days for plants and plant products (which can be extended to 35 days in winter of the northern region), and 14 days for fresh and live goods. A “Sanitary Certificate for Means of Transportation” used in telecommunication health quarantine shall be valid for: 12 months for ships and 6 months for airplanes and trains. A “Ship Sanitation Control Exemption Certificate/Ship Sanitation Control Certificate” shall be valid for 6 months. A “Health Certificate for International Traveler” shall be valid for 12 months. An “International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis” shall be valid for a period determined according to the effective term of protection of vaccines. If the AQSIQ has different provisions on the period of validity of inspection and quarantine certificates, such provisions shall apply. Article 27 The inspection affairs department shall issue exit inspection and quarantine certificates within two workdays after receiving the draft certificates and issue entry inspection and quarantine certificates within three workdays after receiving the draft certificates, unless it is under any special circumstance. Section 4 Examination and Issuance of Draft Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Article 28 The draft inspection and quarantine certificates for inward goods which pass the inspection and quarantine shall be made and signed by inspectors and examined and issued by the examiners of the competent department. If the inward goods fail to pass the inspection and quarantine or any damage claim is made against the foreign party, the draft inspection and quarantine certificates shall be examined and issued by the person in charge of the inspection department. Under any of the following circumstances, the inspection department shall report to the AQSIQ leader-in-charge: 1. the circumstances are complex, the claim for compensation is relatively big in amount or the losses are relatively big; 2. the goods have been inspected by any other institution or the consignee or user and the inspection results differ significantly from the results given by the inspection and quarantine office; 3. the inspection and quarantine certificates need to be issued at another place on a consolidated basis and the office issuing certificates on a consolidated basis needs to change the original appraisal opinion; or 4. the goods fail to pass the inspection and quarantine and need to be destroyed or returned. Article 29 Where any outward goods pass the inspection and quarantine, the inspection and quarantine certificates shall be drafted and signed by the inspectors, and the examiners of the competent department shall sign them for confirmation. If the goods fail to pass the inspection and quarantine, the person in charge of the inspection department shall sign them for confirmation. Article 30 Where the inspection and quarantine certificates are issued on the spot, upon the approval of the persons in charge of the inspection department and the inspection affairs department and the AQSIQ leader-in-charge, the inspectors can directly issue the inspection and quarantine certificates but shall timely make up the formalities for signature upon check later. Where the computer management system is available, the relevant data shall be entered into the system. Article 31 Where a certificate involves more than one inspection department, the principal inspection department shall draft the certificate and organize the countersignature issues. Article 32 For goods combined into batches for exit, it is required to get the approval of the inspection department which shall draft inspection and quarantine certificates when necessary. Section 5 Issuance of Certificates on a Commission or Consolidated Basis Article 33 For outward goods inspected at the port of inspection and quarantine of the place of origin so as to change certificates, if it needs to change or supplement any content of the original certificate, the inspection and quarantine office at the port can, upon request of the declarer for inspection and quarantine, handle it upon the strength of the written commission of the inspection and quarantine office at the place of origin. Article 34 For inward goods which arrive in a same batch and will be distributed to different destinations, the inspection and quarantine certificates shall be issued by the inspection and quarantine office of the port. Where it is impossible to make inspection and quarantine on the whole batch of goods at the port under special circumstances, the inspection and quarantine can be done at other places, and then the inspection and quarantine office of the port shall collect the inspection and quarantine results obtained by the inspection and quarantine offices of different places before issuing inspection and quarantine certificates. If no goods arrive at the port, the inspection and quarantine office at the place where the most goods arrive shall collect the inspection and quarantine results obtained by the inspection and quarantine offices of the different places before issuing inspection and quarantine certificates. If the certificates need to be issued by the inspection and quarantine office of the port, the inspection and quarantine office of the port shall be responsible for making inspection and quarantine and issuing certificates. Article 35 Where any inward goods have any quality or weight problem or get damaged, certificates shall be issued separately according to different causes of damage and the different liable parties. Where any goods are deteriorated, short of weight or get damaged due to multiple reasons, the inspection and quarantine certificates can be issued on a consolidated basis but all damage reasons shall be listed one by one. Section 6 Revision, Supplement and Reissuance of Certificates Article 36 Where, after an inspection and quarantine certificate is issued, a declarer for inspection and quarantine requests for revising or supplementing any content, an application form for revision shall be filled out and the revision shall be done upon the approval of the inspection affairs department. If any inspection and quarantine content is involved, it is also required to get the approval of the inspection department. A certificate may not be revised with respect to the commodity name, quantity, weight, package, consignor, consignee or any other important item that will lead to inconsistency with the contract or letter of credit or lead to violation of any law or regulation of the importing country. An inspection and quarantine certificate may not be revised, supplemented or reissued after its period of validity expires. Article 37 Where a certificate is revised, the original (as well as the duplicate) shall be surrendered. If it cannot be surrendered under special circumstances, the applicant shall give a written explanation which shall be signed by the legal representative and affixed with the official seal, and invalidate the original on a designated newspaper. After that, the certificate can be reissued upon the examination and approval of the person in charge of the inspection affairs department. Article 38 If the original certificate can be surrendered after it is revised, the date of issuance on the revised certificate shall be that of the original certificate. If the original certificate cannot be surrendered, the serial number of the revised certificate shall be the serial number of the original certificate prefixed with “R”, the sentence “This Certificate is revised from the Certificate No. ××× issued on ××× (date) which is hereby invalidated” shall be added to the revised certificate, and the date of issuance of the revised certificate shall be the actual date of issuance. To issue a duplicate of a certificate, if the original certificate can be surrendered, the date of issuance of the duplicate shall be that of the original. If the original cannot be surrendered, the serial number of the duplicate shall be the serial number of the original prefixed with “D”, the sentence “This Certificate is a duplicate of the Certificate No. ××× issued on ××× (date) which is hereby invalidated” shall be added to the duplicate, and the date of issuance of the duplicate shall be the actual date of issuance. To issue a supplement, the serial number of the supplement shall be that of the original certificate prefixed with “S”, the sentence “This Certificate is a supplement to the Certificate No. ××× issued on ××× (date)” shall be added to the revised certificate, and the date of issuance of the supplement shall be the actual date of issuance. Chapter V Customs Clearance and Release Article 39 For the import and export goods listed in the catalogue of import and export commodities subject to inspection and quarantine, the inspection and quarantine office shall issue to the owner of the goods a “Customs Release Form for Inward Goods” or a “Customs Release Form for Outward Goods” to handle the customs clearance formalities, and make on-line check on the customs release form as required. Article 40 For inward goods, the “Customs Release Form for Inward Goods” shall be issued by the inspection and quarantine office at the place where the customs declaration is made. If the inspection and quarantine is made by the inspection and quarantine office at the place where the customs declaration is made, a “Customs Release Form for Inward Goods” (in three pages) shall be issued. If the inspection and quarantine needs to be made by the inspection and quarantine office at the destination, a “Customs Release Form for Inward Goods” (in four pages) shall be issued, and the relevant electronic information and a “Notice of Transfer of Inward Goods” (the direction page) shall be sent to the inspection and quarantine office of the destination. The contact information of the consignee or user at the destination shall be noted in the reference column of the customs clearance sheet. Where any goods subject to inspection before customs clearance pass the inspection or fail to pass the inspection but can be effectively treated, the “Customs Release Form for Inward Goods” shall be issued. If they fail to pass the inspection and could not be treated effectively by any means, they shall be returned or destroyed, and an “Inspection and Quarantine Treatment Notice” shall be issued with a written notice being issued to the customs and the party concerned. Article 41 Where any inward goods pass the inspection and quarantine after going through the customs formalities or fail to pass the inspection and quarantine but have been effectively treated, an “Inspection and Quarantine Certificate for Inward Goods” shall be issued, and, for import foods, a sanitation certificate shall also be issued. If they fail to pass the inspection and quarantine and need to be returned or destroyed, an “Inspection and Quarantine Treatment Notice” shall be issued and the customs and the party concerned shall be notified in writing. Article 42 For outward goods subject to “general inspection and quarantine”, if they pass the inspection and quarantine, they shall be handled according to the following provisions: If they are declared to the local customs, a “Customs Clearance Sheet for Outward Goods” and the relevant certificates shall be issued. If they are declared to the customs at another place, the relevant certificates and a “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” with a remark “General Inspection and Quarantine” shall be issued. If the paper is to be transferred by electronic means, an “Electronic Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” shall be issued. The inspection and quarantine office at the place where the customs declaration is made shall accept an application for obtaining the customs clearance sheet based on the original “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” or the electronically transferred information, make port inspection on the goods as required and issue a “Customs Clearance Sheet for Outward Goods” if they pass the inspection. Article 43 After an export pre-inspection application is accepted, a “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance sheet of Outward Goods” with a remark “Preliminary Inspection” must be issued. For goods subject to pre-inspection, it is not permitted to transfer the paper by electronic means until the general inspection and quarantine formalities are completed at this institution or an authorized institution within the jurisdiction of the competent inspection and quarantine bureau directly under the AQSIQ. No inspection and quarantine office may issue any customs clearance sheet based on a “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods” with a remark “Preliminary Inspection”. Article 44 When necessary, it is permitted to use a paper for obtaining the customs clearance sheet as the inspection or testing report of raw materials for production, but it must bear the words “supply of materials”. The paper may not be transferred electronically and the customs clearance sheet may not be directly issued upon the strength of the electronically transferred information. Article 45 For goods exiting in batches, the quantity of goods exiting in each batch shall be written off on the original “Paper for Obtaining the Customs Clearance Sheet of Outward Goods”, a photocopy after writing-off shall be kept in the archives and the original paper shall be returned to the declarer for inspection and quarantine. The inspection affairs department shall handle the formalities for each batch of outward goods, and the number of batches may not exceed the number of columns on the paper. The original paper shall be surrendered and kept in the archives after all goods have exited China. If the paper is transferred electronically, it can only be transferred once. In this case, goods can not be written off in batches. Article 46 Where any outward goods fail to pass the inspection and quarantine or the goods are inconsistent with their certificates upon port check, a “Notice of Disqualification of Outward Goods” shall be issued. If they fail to pass the port inspection due to any error or omission of information on the inspection and quarantine certificate issued by the inspection and quarantine office, the inspection and quarantine office at the port shall timely contact the inspection and quarantine office at the place of origin of these goods to work out a solution. Other circumstances shall be handled according to the relevant provisions. Article 47 For outward goods which are under electronic supervision and meet the requirements for expedite check and release, the inspection affairs department is allowed to directly issue a customs clearance sheet or transfer paper electronically. Article 48 Goods that can enjoy the green channel, non-stop release or other customs clearance conveniences shall be released according to the prescribed procedure. Article 49 For any means of conveyance or containers declared to the customs, if they pass the inspection and quarantine, an inspection and quarantine certificate shall be issued to release them. If they need to be put under quarantine treatment so as to eliminate risks, a quarantine treatment certificate shall be issued to release them. Article 50 After a person entering or exiting China accepts a quarantine examination and a health inspection, corresponding proofs or certificates shall be issued according to the relevant provisions on heath quarantine. Article 51 For a corpse, coffin or skeleton that enters or exits China, a release certificate for the entry or exit of corpse/coffin/skeleton shall be issued by the inspection and quarantine office where the customs declaration is made. Chapter VI Administration of Blank Certificates, Seals for Issuing Certificates and Inspection Archives Section 1 Administration of Blank Certificates Article 52 The AQSIQ shall administer the blank inspection and quarantine certificates in a unified way, determine their format, specifications, categories, type of certificates and their uses in a unified way and have them printed in a unified way. All inspection and quarantine certificates (and duplicates) shall be subject to the printing serial number administration. Article 53 The AQSIQ shall appoint a special institution to take charge of the nationwide subscription and distribution of blank inspection and quarantine certificates, and this institution shall set up sound subscription and distribution rules. Article 54 The blank inspection and quarantine certificates distributed to the inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall be managed by their inspection affairs departments in a unified way, and rules shall be formulated for the storage, safekeeping, transfer, use and writing-off of blank certificates. Article 55 The inspection and quarantine offices of all regions must use the specified computer management system to manage the storage, transfer, use and writing-off of blank certificates and corresponding management records shall be kept accordingly. Article 56 The inspection and quarantine bureaus directly under the AQSIQ shall, according to the AQSIQ requirements, work out their respective blank certificate purchase plans based on the quantity of blank certificates they used and their actual development needs, and submit them to the institution designated by the AQSIQ for the subscription and distribution of certificates in October of each year. They may place an additional order in May of the next year where it is necessary. If they feel it necessary to place an additional order at any other time, they shall contact the institution designated by the AQSIQ for the subscription and distribution of certificates at least one month beforehand. Article 57 The inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall, after receiving blank certificates, serious check them against the checklist and the order they placed and put them in the storehouse after registration. If they find any unusual circumstances, they shall immediately report to the AQSIQ. Article 58 Blank certificates shall be kept by special personnel. Special storehouses with fireproofing, theft protection, damp-proof, moth-proof and other security measures must be arranged for the blank certificates. Article 59 To obtain blank certificates, registration shall be made in terms of the category, serial number and quantity of certificates and the name of the person that obtains them. The writing-off formalities shall be undergone in a timely manner after they are obtained. Where the inspection department needs to get blank certificates, the person in charge of the inspection department shall affix his signature, subject to the approval of the person in charge of the inspection affairs department. Article 60 No blank certificate can be carried outside. Where it is indeed necessary to do so, it is required to get the approval of the AQSIQ leader-in-charge and set a specific time for writing-off. Article 61 Blank certificates shall be used according to the category, format and purpose of use as prescribed by the AQSIQ. Article 62 Invalid blank certificates shall not be destroyed without approval, but both the original and the duplicate shall be marked “invalid” and surrendered. The blank certificates invalidated in the daily routine of the inspection affairs department shall be written off in a timely manner. Those invalidated in the daily routine of the inspection department shall be surrendered within the prescribed time limit for write-off by the inspection affairs department only. Article 63 Before new certificates are put into use, all inspection and quarantine bureaus directly under the AQSIQ shall check the blank certificates invalidated by the new certificates. The invalidated certificates shall be disposed of by the inspection affairs department of each inspection and quarantine bureau only, and no other department may do so. Article 64 The inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall set up rules for checking blank certificates on a regular basis so as to regularly check the safekeeping and use of blank certificates. Where any certificate is lost or damaged, they shall report it to the higher authorities in a timely manner. Where the loss of certificates has caused any bad consequences, the liable personnel shall be subject to corresponding liabilities. Any person who illegally sells certificates shall be brought to justice. Article 65 To use a specimen of a blank certificate for establishing archives or putting on the records of foreign parties, it is required to get the approval of the person in charge of the inspection affairs department and affixed with the Chinese-English seal “样本(SPECIMEN)”. Section 2 Management of Seals for Issuing Certificates Article 66 The AQSIQ shall manage the seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates in a unified way, determine their format, category, specification, printing material and purpose of use in a unified way, using the same design and the same stamp-pad ink. Article 67 The AQSIQ shall appoint an institution to be responsible for the nationwide subscription and distribution of seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates, and this institution shall set up sound management rules for the subscription and distribution of seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates. Article 68 The seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates obtained by the inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall be under the unified management of their inspection affairs departments, which shall set up management rules for the registration, safekeeping, use and writing off of seals. Article 69 The inspection affairs department shall assign special personnel to keep the seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates. Seals must be put in a safe with adequate security measures. Article 70 Seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates must be used according to the category and purpose of use as specified by the AQSIQ. Seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates may not be carried outside. Where it is indeed necessary to make inspection and quarantine and issue certificate on the spot, it is required to get the authorization of the AQSIQ leader-in-charge and subject to the supervision and administration of the inspection affairs department. Article 71 Seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates shall be separated from blank certificates and both of them shall be kept by specially designated personnel. Article 72 To start the use of a new seal for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates or to have a new seal made, an inspection and quarantine bureau directly under the AQSIQ shall submit an application to the AQSIQ. Article 73 Where a seal runs out of its service life or becomes defected, illegible or deformed and thus affects the quality of certificates, it shall be removed from service, and the entity concerned shall apply to the institution designated by the AQSIQ for the subscription and distribution of seals for repairing or replacing it. In the case of replacement, the original seal shall be surrendered. Article 74 Invalided seals shall be surrendered to the institution designated by the AQSIQ for the subscription and distribution of seals in time. The institution designated by the AQSIQ for the subscription and distribution of seals shall destroy the invalidated and replaced seals according to the relevant provisions. Article 75 The inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall set up rules for checking the seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates on a regular basis so as to regularly check the safekeeping and use of seals. Where any seal is lost or damaged, they shall report to the higher authorities in a timely manner. Where any bad consequences are caused, the liable personnel shall be subject to corresponding liabilities and, if the circumstances are serious, be brought to justice. Section 3 Management of Inspection Archives Article 76 Inspection archives shall be placed under the unified management of the inspection affairs department, which shall set up rules for the registration, safekeeping and consultation of the archives. Article 77 Inspection archives shall include paper-form materials, such as declaration forms for inspection and quarantine and the attached documents, inspection and quarantine records, draft inspection and quarantine certificates and the archive pages of inspection and quarantine certificates, etc., electronic data and other primary materials. Article 78 The inspection department shall timely transfer the inspection materials to the inspection affairs department after finishing the inspection and quarantine work and guarantee the integrity and validity of these archives. The inspection affairs department shall, after receiving the inspection materials transferred from the inspection department, check their integrity and validity and set up archives as required. If any materials are missing or if there is any error, or the inspection and quarantine work is not accomplished at a certain link, the inspection affairs department shall archive them after they are completed or corrected. Article 79 Inspection archives must be stored in special storehouses with fireproofing, theft protection, damp-proof, moth-proof and other security measures. Inspection archives in electronic forms shall be saved and a backup be made in appropriate ways so as to prevent any electronic data from being transmitted, stolen, lost or damaged. Article 80 For the retention period of inspection archives, as a general principle, exit inspection and quarantine archives shall be kept for two years, entry inspection and quarantine archives shall be kept for three years, and electronic data shall be kept on a long–term basis. Archives about serious or typical cases shall be kept for a long term or permanently. Article 81 Inspection archives can only be consulted inside the inspection and quarantine offices. To consult the paper-form inspection archives, one shall get the approval of the person in charge of his department and the person in charge of the inspection affairs department. The insiders can consult electronic archives within their respective capacities. No one may copy any archives or provide, spread or transmit any archives to the outsiders without approval. Article 82 Inspection archives in the paper form can only be consulted on the spot and may not be carried out of the archival storeroom. Where it is necessary to carry any archives out of the storeroom under special circumstances, it is required to get the approval of the AQSIQ leader-in charge. When consulting inspection archives, it is required to maintain their original state. It is prohibited to change, take away or insert any page of paper-form inspection archives or alter or defile any paper form inspection archives. Electronic archives cannot be altered or deleted. Article 83 Where it is necessary to consult inspection archives for judicial investigation, the prescribed procedures shall be followed. Article 84 Paper-form inspection archives can be destroyed according to the procedures for destroying confidential materials after their retention period expires. Article 85 The inspection and quarantine offices of all regions shall set up rules for checking inspection archives on a regular basis so as to regularly check the safekeeping and use of inspection archives. Where any archives are lost or damaged, they shall timely report it to the higher authorities, investigate into the case, give corresponding punishment and subject the liable personnel to corresponding liability. Chapter VII Duties of Persons Engaging in the Issuance of Inspection and Quarantine Certificates Article 86 Persons in charge of the inspection affairs departments shall be responsible for administering the issuance of inspection and quarantine certificates by the departments and the subordinate institutions, controlling the quality of certificates, and coordinating and handling the issuance work relating to all business departments. Article 87 Persons in charge of the inspection departments shall be responsible for drafting the inspection and quarantine certificates of their respective departments and the administration thereof, strictly implementing the level-by-level examination and signature system and guaranteeing the quality of draft certificates. Article 88 Persons accepting the declarations for inspection and quarantine shall be responsible for checking whether the declaration forms, declared electronic data and attached documents are complete and in the required forms, recording the declarations that fail to meet the prescribed requirements and, after finishing the acceptance procedure, forwarding the declaration forms and attached materials to the next link. Article 89 Persons calculating fees shall be responsible for accurately calculating fees according to the charging provisions and requirements. Article 90 Persons collecting fees shall be responsible for collecting inspection and quarantine fees based on the calculation results and issuing receipts as required. Article 91 Inspectors shall be responsible for examining the attached documents meet the inspection and quarantine provisions and the actual situations of the goods, making inspection and quarantine records and giving inspection and quarantine results according to the inspection and quarantine procedures, drafting inspection and quarantine certificates as required and, where it is necessary to issue certificates in a foreign language, accurately translating them into the foreign language. Article 92 Persons responsible for examination and signature in the inspection department shall be responsible for examining the inspection and quarantine records and results and the draft inspection and quarantine certificates and, if the draft certificates meet the prescribed requirements, signing them and transferring them to the inspection affairs department. Article 93 Examiners of inspection affairs shall be responsible for examining whether the declaration forms for inspection and quarantine and the contents of draft inspection and quarantine certificates are in line with the laws and consistent with the contract and letter of credit and whether the translation is accurate and, for any draft certificates that fail to meet the prescribed requirements, give their revision opinions or return them to the inspection department. Article 94 Persons making certificates shall be responsible for correctly using all certificates, make certificates strictly based on the contents of draft certificates to make sure that the typeset is appropriate and each certificate is eligible, neat and artistic, hand them over to proofreaders, and do a good job in keeping and writing-off the certificates they have obtained. Article 95 Proofreaders shall be responsible for checking whether certificates are used correctly, whether the contents of certificates are inconsistent with those of the draft ones, whether there is any misprint or any word missing and whether the certificates are eligible, neat and artistic and, if finding any error or violation of any legal provision, return them to the responsible personnel. Article 96 Authorized signatories shall be responsible for checking whether the results and wording of draft certificates are right, whether certificates are used correctly and whether they are in line with the contract, letter of credit and the legal provisions on the issuance of certificates and then put their signatures on certificates if all things are inerrant. Article 97 Persons issuing certificates shall be responsible for affixing seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates on the signed certificates, verify the payment of inspection and quarantine fees by the declarer for inspection and quarantine, handle formalities for issuing certificates and archiving the duplicates of certificates, draft certificates, declaration forms for inspection and quarantine and attached documents. Article 98 Blank certificate managers shall be responsible for making, detailing and reporting the certificate use plans and the check, storage, account establishment, classified retention, distribution and writing-off of certificates. Article 99 Managers of seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates shall be responsible for obtaining, distributing and keeping seals for issuing inspection and quarantine certificates and setting up corresponding records. Article 100 Inspection archivists shall be responsible for establishing, keeping, transferring and destroying the inspection archives formed after the inspection and quarantine procedure has been undergone. Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions Article 101 The certificates of origin and other certificates which shall be issued under special requirements shall be governed by the relevant provisions. Article 102 The administration of issuance of certificates in judicial authentication, inspection and authentication commissioned by administrative organs, inspection and authentication for which the inspection and quarantine offices shall issue certificates as required by foreign trade contracts or letters of credit and other commissioned inspection and authentication business shall be analogically governed by these Measures. Article 103 Where any inspection and quarantine staff violates these Measures, he shall be subject to corresponding responsibilities according to the relevant provisions. Article 104 The power to interpret these Measures shall remain with the AQSAQ. Article 105 These Measures shall come into force on March 1, 2009. The Measures for the Administration of the Issuance of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates as issued by the former State Administration of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine on December 17, 1999 and the Provisions on the Administration of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates and the Seals for Issuing Certificates (No.386 [1999] of the State Administration of Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine) shall be abolished simultaneously. Where there is any inconsistence between the Measures for the Administration of Transferring Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Certificates by Electronic Ways (No.51 [2001] of the AQSAQ) issued by the AQSAQ on July 17, 2001 and the present Measures, the latter shall prevail.