A Department Supervising Trade
The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) is a ministry of the Singapore Government with the mandate to direct the formulation of policies related to the development of trade and industry in Singapore. The stated mission statement of the MTI is to promote economic growth and create good jobs and enable Singaporeans to improveThe MTI's strategies are derived from Singapore's general philosophy of economic management -strong adherence to a free market economic system and active pursuit of outward-oriented economic policies
The MTI also oversees 10 statutory boards, of which these four deal with specific trade issues O Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS"): The CCS works with its foreign counterparts to promotecompetition by mitigating non-tariff barriers, building necessary capacities and rendering technical assistance, as well as cooperating on cross-border competition matters
() Economic Development Board(EDB"): The EDB is the lead government agency for planning and executing strategies to enhance Singapore's position as a global business centre
(i)International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore"): IE Singapore is the government agency promoting international trade and partnering Singapore companies in going global. IE Singapore seeks to promote a thriving business hub with globally competitive companies and leading intemational traders (iv)JTC Corporation(JTC"): JTC is the lead agency in Singapore spearheading the planning, promotion and development of a dynamic industrial landscape. Since its inception in 1968, JmC has played a major role in Singapore's economic development journey by developing land and space to support the transformation ofindustries and create quality jobs
B. Brief Introduction of Trade Laws and Regulations
The MTI administers the following legislation and regulations relating to trade
() The Commodity Trading Act Chapter 48A of Singapore covers all commod ties and regulates commodity trading actvtes, incuding commodity forward contracts, leveraged commod ty trading trading in differences and spot commodity trading Regulatory oversight under the Commodity Trading Act lies with the Monetary Authonity of
Chapter 508 of Singapore passed by Parament in 2004. It is largely modeledafter the UK con Act 1998 and promotes the efficient f functioning of Singapore's markets therebyenhancing the (a) The Consumer Protection(Trade Descriptions and Safety Requirements) Act, Chapter 53 of
misdescr ptions of goods suppled in the course of a trade, confers power to prescribe requirements
marking and adve ent of goods and to their safe composition, construction or design. (wv) The MultH-level Marketing and Pyramid Selling (Prohibition) Act. Chapter 190 of Singapore prohibits the gustation of businesses that are designed to promote multilevel marketing schemes or pyramid selling schem In relation to the distnbution and sale of commodities and makes it unlawful for any person to promote st schemes. There is also a Mult -level Marketing and Pyramid Selling(Excluded Schemes and Arrangements)Order which explicitly excludes certain schemes and arran nts from the ambit of this Act (v) The Singapore Business Federation Act 2001. Chapter 297A of Singapore was passed in 2001 and the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) was established a year later. All companies that have a paid-up capital of ss500,000 and above are members of the SBF. The SBF represents Singapore's business interests both locally
C. Trade Management
Singapore is generally a free port and an open economy. There are a variety of schemes and incentives avallable in Singapore with the aim to make Singapore a good place to do business
a Global Trader Scheme Under the Global Trader Scheme, an approved global trading company is granted concessionary tax rates on qualifying offshore trade income, depending on the company's tumover and business spending. "Global Trader" status is typically granted only to well-established players in their respective industries with a proven track record of intemational trade, procurement and transportation of qualifying products
b Major Exporter Scheme The Major Exporter Scheme(MES) is administered by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) and is designed to ease the cash flow of businesses that import and export goods substantially. Under normal the businesses have to pay Goods and Services Tax (GST)upfront on imports and subsequenty obtain a und from IRAS after submission of their GST returns. This can create cash flow problems for businesses that export goods substantially as no GST is collected from the zero-rated supplies to set-off their initial cash outflow on imports. Businesses granted MES status are able to import non-dutiable goods with GST suspended. Ce conditions must be met to qualify for MES status, including good intemal controls and the maintenance of propacco
c Temporary Import/Export Scheme
Singapore also has the Temporary Import/Export Scheme which is designed to allow traders to temporary rt goods up to a maximum of six months, for approved purposes into Singapore, with suspension of GST and duty(where applicable), or temporarily export GST-paid goods for approved purposes and re-import the samegoods without GST and duty (where applicable).
D. The Inspection and Quarantine of Import and Export Commodities
Goods imported into and exported from Singapore must be cleared with Singapore Customs at the relevantcustoms checkpoint The goods will generally have to be presented for inspection by the Customs officer together with relevant documentation such as a valid Customs Permit, the invoice, packing list and bill of lading
ain types of goods may also require further inspection. For example, the Agri-Food and veterinaryAuthority(AVA") requires health certification for a wide range of uncooked meats and shellfish, with all meatmports visually inspected and subject to regular testing
An authorised officer of Singapore Customs also has the power under the Regulation of Imports and ExportsAct. Chapter 272A of Singapore (RIEA,) to conduct ad hoc examination of goods, For example, an examination ofpackages and goods may be conducted if there is a reason to believe that they are to be, or have been, exported or imported in contravention of Singapore law
b Quarantine Certain types of goods may have to be quarantined under Singapore law. For ther small mammals may have to undergo a period of quarantine upon arrival in country the animal is coming from. Traders who wish to import food into Singapore r some dogs, cats anmeet AVAs import conditions. Some of these conditions include meeting AVAS ore, dependingimportation, importing from approved food sources, providing the required food labels, etc. ure that their products
Iry conditions prior toE Customs Management
evenue enforcement. It upholds customs and trade laws to build trust in Singapores extemal trading system. facilitate trade, and protect revenue
Singapore Customs' facilitates extemal trade through collaboration with govemment agencies and businesses robust regulations and effective enforcement. It plays a proactive role in balancing requirements of trade facilitation, security, and regulatory compliance to strengthen Singapore's position as a global trade hub trusted by foreign trading partners and businesses operating in Singapore The RIEA sets out the framework for regulating the import and export of goods into and out of Singapore. In eneral, all import, export and transhipment of goods have to be covered by a relevant Customs Permit (Permit?) Before applying for a Permit, a trader must ascertain whether the importation or exportation of the goods in
Singapore controls the importation and exportation of goods in two ways 0 Prohibition: If the proposed importation or exportation is prohibited, the trader will not be able to proceed For example, importation or exportation may be prohibited if it would result in a breach of United Nations Security Council sanctions in force in Sine
()Licensing scheme: If a licence, approval, permit, consent, authorisation, declaration, registration or the like collectively, "Licence")is required before the commodity in question may be imported or exported, then the tradermust obtain the Licence before proceeding with the proposed
If the proposed importation or exportation is not subject to control (or is subject to control otherwise than byof a prohibition and a Licence has been obtained), the trader will have to apply to via TradeNet for a Permit before proceeding with the proposed importation or exportation. The TradeNet system is a nationwide Electronic Data Interchange System which allows the both the public and the prvate sector to exchange structured trade tion electronically. such or an importation, a trader may either bring the goods into the customs teritory of Singapore or store or keep cn& Singapore has three FTZ authorities which oversee eight FTZs. They provide m ange of facies and es for storage and re-export of dutiable and controlled goods Goods can be stored within the FTZ without any customs documentation until they are released into the market. They can also be processed and re-exported with minimum customs formalities. GST is suspended for imported goods in an FTZ and is onty payable upon removal for local consumption. GST is not payable on supply made in an FTZ if the goods supplied are meant for transhipment or re-export Traders bringing goods into Singapore are subject to GST. at the current rate of 7%, which is calculated on the value of the commodity (including cost, insurance and freight plus the duty payable (if any) at the point of importation). Intoxicating liquors, tobacco products, motor vehicles and petroleum products ter the importation or exportation of goods subject to duty or GST, the trader is required to retain its records ttract import duty
and documents in relation to the goods and the transaction for five years