Article 134p. 134

NATIONAL INTERNAL REVENUE CODE TAXATION, TARIFF and CUSTOMS LAWS

(e) In advising the President, on a trade agreement

entered into by the Philippines, the following shall be

observed:

(1) The Commission shall determine whether or not

the domestic industry has suffered or is being threatened

with injury and whether or not the wholesale prices at

which the domestic products are sold are reasonable,

taking into account the cost of raw materials, labor,

overhead, a fair return on investment, and the overall

efficiency of the industry.

(2)

The

NEDA

shall

evaluate

the

report

of

the

Commission

and

submit

recommendations

to

the

President.

(3) Upon receipt of the report of the findings and

recommendations

of

the

NEDA,

the

President

may

prescribe adjustments in the rates of import duties,

withdraw, modify or suspend, in whole or in part, any

concession under any trade agreement, establish import

quota, or institute such other import restrictions, as the

NEDA recommends to be necessary in order to fully

protect domestic industry and the consumers, subject to

condition that the wholesale prices of the domestic

products shall be reduced to, or maintained at, the level

recommended by the NEDA unless, for good cause

shown, an increase thereof, as recommended by the

NEDA, is authorized by the President. Should increases be

made

without

such

authority,

the

NEDA

shall

immediately notify the President who shall allow the

importation of competing products in such quantities as

to protect the public from the unauthorized increase in

wholesale prices.

(f) This section shall not prevent the effectivity of any

executive agreement or any future preferential trade

agreement with any foreign country.

(g) The NEDA and the Commission shall promulgate

such reasonable procedures, rules and regulations as they

may

deem

necessary

to

execute

their

respective

functions under this section.

CHAPTER III Tariff Nomenclature and Rate of

Duty

SECTION 1610. General Rules for the Interpretation

(GRI).

—

The

classification

of

goods

and

its

tariff

nomenclature as provided pursuant to this Act shall be

governed by the following principles:

(1) The titles of sections, chapters and subchapters are

provided for easy reference only. For legal purposes,

classification shall be determined according to the terms

of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes

and, provided such headings or notes do not otherwise

require, according to the following provisions:

(2)(a) Any reference in a heading to the goods shall be

taken

to

include

a

reference

to the same in their

incomplete or unfinished form or state: Provided, That the

incomplete

or

unfinished

goods

have

the

essential

character, as presented, of the complete or finished

goods. It shall also be taken to include a reference to the

same, in their complete or finished form or state (or

falling to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of

this Rule), presented unassembled or disassembled.

(b) Any reference in a heading to a material or

substance

shall

be taken to include a reference to

mixtures or combinations of that material or substance

with other materials or substances. Any reference to

goods of a given material or substance shall be taken to

include a reference to goods consisting wholly or partly of

such material or substance. The classification of goods

consisting of more than one material or substance shall

be according to the principles of Rule 3.

(3) When by application of Rule 2 (b) or for any other

reason, goods are, prima facie , classifiable under two (2)

or more headings, classification shall be effected as

follows:

(a) The heading which provides the most specific

description shall be preferred to headings providing a

more general description. However, when two (2) or more

headings each refer to part only of the materials or

substances contained in mixed or composite goods or to

part only of the items in a set put up for retail sale, those

headings are to be regarded as equally specific in relation

to those goods, even if one of them gives a more

complete or precise description of the goods.

(b) Mixtures, composite goods consisting of different

materials or made up of different components, and goods

put up in sets for retail sale, which cannot be classified by

reference to 3 (a), shall be classified as if they consisted of

their

essential

character,

insofar

as

this

criterion

is

applicable.

(c) When goods cannot be classified by reference to 3

(a) or 3 (b), they shall be classified under the heading

which occurs last in numerical order among those which

equally merit consideration;

(4) Goods which cannot be classified in accordance

with

the

above

Rules shall be classified under the

heading appropriate to the goods to which they are most

akin.

(5)

In

addition

to

the

foregoing

provisions,

the

following Rules shall apply with respect to the goods

referred to therein:

(a) Camera cases, musical instrument cases, gun

cases, drawing instrument cases, necklace cases and

similar containers, specially shaped or fitted to contain

specific goods or set of goods, suitable for long-term use

and

presented

with

the

goods

for

which

they are

intended, shall be classified with such goods when of a

kind normally sold therewith. The Rule does not, however,

apply to containers which give the whole its essential

character; and

(b) Subject to the provisions of Rule 5 (a), packing

materials and packing containers presented with the

goods therein shall be classified with the goods if they are

of a kind normally used for packing such goods. However,

this

provision

does

not

apply

when

such

packing

materials or packing containers are clearly suitable for

repetitive use.

(6) For legal purposes, the classification of goods in

the

subheadings

of a heading shall be determined

according to the terms of those subheadings and any

related subheading notes and, mutatis mutandis , to the

above

Rules,

on

the

understanding

that

only

subheadings at the same level are comparable. For the

purposes of the Rule, the relative section and Chapter

Notes also apply, unless the context otherwise requires.

SECTION 1611. Tariff Nomenclature and Rates of

Import Duty. — The provisions of Section 104 on Rates of

Import Duty of Presidential Decree No. 1464 , otherwise

known as the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines

of 1978 , as amended, specifically providing for the tariff

sections, chapters, headings and subheadings and the

rates of import duty, shall still apply and shall supplement

this Act. There shall be levied, collected and paid upon all

imported goods the rates of duty indicated thereon

except as otherwise specifically provided for in this Act:

Provided , That the maximum rate shall not exceed one

hundred percent (100%) ad valorem.

The rates of duty provided or subsequently fixed

pursuant to Sections 1608 and 1609 of this Act shall be

subject to periodic investigation by the Tariff Commission

and

may

be

revised

by

the

President,

upon

the

recommendation of the NEDA.

It shall also apply to all products, whether imported

directly or indirectly, of all foreign countries, which do not

discriminate

against

Philippine

export

products.

An

additional one hundred percent (100%) across-the-board

duty shall be levied on the products of any foreign

country which discriminates against Philippine export

products.

© Compiled by RGL

134 of 201