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Under thesupervision of

EU-Japan Centrefor Industrial Cooperation

EU-Japan EPAFACTSHEET

This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.© Copyright EU-Japan Centre 2019

www.eu-japan.eu/epa-helpdesk

FISHERY PRODUCTS

PRELIMINARY REMARKS• 1. The aim of these Factsheets and Guidelines (hereafter ‘Report’) is to explain to EU

exporters of fishery products the market access opportunities offered by the EU-Japan Agreement for an Economic Partnership (EPA) as well as, in a brief overview and the relevant Rules of Origin.

• 2. As regards product description, only the Harmonised System (HS) code system at six-digit level, or the Japanese nomenclature at nine-digit level have been used. For detailed description of the Japanese nomenclature, reference is made to the Japanese Schedule in the Agreement.

• In the Japanese Schedule, a fiscal year means the period between 1 April of one year and 31 March of the next year. As the Agreement has entered into force on 1 February 2019, the first year was the period between 1 February 2019 and 31 March 2019.

• All quantities are expressed in metric tonnes (t), unless stated otherwise.• The complete text of the EPA, and annexes, incorporating the Schedule of Japan, can be found on

the following website of the European Commission: https://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1684. Japan’s tariff Schedule is in Annex 2-A-4; “Notes for the Schedule of Japan” can be found in Annex 2-A-3. These Notes explain inter alia the various types of concessions.

Page 2

Under thesupervision of

EU-Japan Centrefor Industrial Cooperation

EU-Japan EPAFACTSHEET

This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

www.eu-japan.eu/epa-helpdesk

FISHERY PRODUCTS

1. MARKET ACCESS

1.1. CATEGORIESAll the fish products have been, or will be liberalised over time. One can distinguish three different categories of liberalisation.

• Products that were already liberalised by Japan (at MFN level) before the entering into force of the EPA;• Products whose tariffs were eliminated as an EPA concession at the entry into force (EIF) of this Agreement on 1 February 2019, and• Products whose tariffs were reduced as an EPA concession at the entry into force of this Agreement, and which will be further phased out to zero over a period of time.

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This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

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EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

1.2. TARIFF LINESThe Schedule of the EPA does not list the tariff lines of products which have been liberalised at MFN level before the EIF of the Agreement. As regards the products liberalised at the EIF of the Agreement, as an EPA concession, only a part of them are listed in the EPA Schedule. In other words, if one does not find a tariff line in the Schedule, then the relevant duty can be considered as being zero.

The complete list of all the products, together with the base rates and applied tariffs under the EPA, including those with duty free access, can be found on the website of the Japanese Customs: http://www.customs.go.jp/english/tariff/2019_4/data/e_50.htm.Caution: updates are published regularly with the preferential tariffs of the relevant fiscal year.

1.3. DIFFERENT TYPES OF EPA PREFERENCE APPLIED BY JAPAN ON IMPORTS OF EU FISH PRODUCTS

TYPECATEGORY IN THE EPA SCHEDULE

DESCRIPTION

Immediate liberalisation A

The base rate[1] currently applied by Japan is eliminated at the entry into force of the Agreement. Tariff lines not listed in the Schedule of Japan have duty free access from 1 February 2019

[entry into force].

Duty elimination spread over a

periodB Gradual elimination of the base rate over a period of time (between 3 and 15 years), in

equal annual instalments. The zero duty will be applied in subsequent years.

[1] “Base rate” means the starting point of elimination or reduction of customs duties. It is Japan’s Most Favoured Nation (MFN) rate as scheduled in the WTO, and applied on imports EU products as long as the EPA has not entered into force.

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EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

1.4. FURTHER DETAILS OF THE CONCESSIONS ON A SELECTED NUMBER OF PRODUCTS

• As mentioned above, all products have been or will be liberalised in the future.

• As it would be impossible to describe the concessions of all the different fish products, as selection of tariff lines has been made on the basis of EU export performance of fish products to Japan in 2019[2].

HS CODE AT 6 DIGITS/

JAPAN. CODE AT 9 DIGITS

LABELBASE RATE (MFN)

PREF. RATE 1/4/2020

UNTIL 31/3/2021

PREFERENCEEXP.

VALUE (1000€) [3]

030235Fresh or chilled atlantic and pacific

bluefin tuna (thunnus thynnus, thunnus orientalis)

030235.010 Atlantic bluefin tunas 3.5% 1.8% B5 Base rate phased out in 5 years

030235.020 Pacific bluefin tunas 3.5% 2.5% B10 Base rate phased out in 10 years[4]

030487Frozen fillets of tuna "of the genus thunnus", skipjack or stripe-bellied bonito "euthynnus [katsuwonus]

pelamis" 60756

030487.020 Bluefin tunas 3.5% 1.8% B5 Base rate phased out in 5 years

030487.030 Southern bluefin tunas 3.5% 2.5% B10 Base rate phased out in 10 years.

030487.040 Yellowfin tunas 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF

030487.050 Yellowfin bigeye tunas 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF

030487.060 Yellowfin other than bigeye tunas 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF

030487.090 Skipjack or stripe bellied bonito 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF

030345 frozen atlantic and pacific bluefin tuna (thunnus thynnus, thunnus orientalis) 35895

030345.010 Atlantic bluefin tunas 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF

030345.020 Pacific bluefin tunas 3.5% 2.5% B10 Base rate phased out in 10 years.

030331.000Frozen lesser or greenland halibut

"reinhardtius hippoglossoides", atlantic halibut "hippoglossus hippoglossus" and pacific halibut "hippoglossus stenolepis"

3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF 15973

030354.000Frozen mackerel "scomber scombrus,

scomber australasicus, scomber japonicus"

7% 5.7% B15 Base rate phased out in 15 years. 11926

030355.000 Frozen jack and horse mackerel "trachurus spp." 10% 8.1% B15 Base rate phased out in

15 years. 11536

[2] Source: StaR – Statistical Reports.[3] Export values at 6 digit level only.[4] First year: 1/2/2019 – 31/3/2019; second year: 1/4/2019 – 31/3/2020; third year: 1/4/2020 – 31/3/2021; etc.

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This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

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EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

HS CODE AT 6 DIGITS/

JAPAN. CODE AT 9 DIGITS

LABELBASE RATE (MFN)

PREF. RATE 1/4/2020

UNTIL 31/3/2021

PREFERENCEEXP.

VALUE (1000€) [3]

030214.000 Fresh or chilled atlantic salmon "salmo salar" and danube salmon "hucho hucho" 3.5% 0% Duty free since EIF 10756

160300.090 Extracts and juices of fish or crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates 9.6% 0% Duty free since EIF 9736

160529Crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates, prepared or preserved

– Shrimps and prawns in airtight containers

9129

160529.010Smoked and simply boiled in water or in

brine; chilled, frozen, salted, in brine or dried, after simply boiled in water or in brine

4.8% 0% Duty free since EIF

160529.021Other than smoked and simply boiled in water or in brine; chilled, frozen, salted, in brine or dried, after simply boiled in

water or in brine – containing rice5.3% 3.9% B10 Base rate phased out in

10 years.

160529.029Other than smoked and simply boiled in water or in brine; chilled, frozen, salted, in brine or dried, after simply boiled in water

or in brine – other than containing rice5.3% 0% Duty free since EIF

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This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

www.eu-japan.eu/epa-helpdesk

EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

2. RULES OF ORIGIN

2.1. GENERAL• To benefit from EPA preferential tariff rates, the product needs to be originating in Japan or the EU. In order to be considered ‘originating’, the product needs to comply with the provisions “Rules of Origin” of Chapter 3 Section A and the Product Specific Rules of Origin – PSR - (Annexes 3-A, 3-B, Appendix 3-B-1) of the Agreement.[5]

• A product shall be considered as ‘originating’ in the other Party if:

- Wholly obtained or produced products as provided for in Art. 3.3 of the Agreement;

- Products produced exclusively from materials originating in the Party;

- Products produced using non-originating materials, provided they satisfy all applicable requirements of Annex 3-B (PSR).

• Chapter 3 Section A includes provisions allowing more flexibility to comply with these Product Specific rules (tolerance, bilateral full cumulation, absorption rule etc.).

• Chapter 3 Section B (“Origin procedures”) of the EPA sets out the procedures to claim preferential treatment. The EPA is based on the self-certification system, therefore the EU or Japanese exporters self-certify that the product is originating by making a statement on origin in line with Chapter 3, Section A including its Annex 3-D (“Text of the statement on origin” – can be found on http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2018/august/tradoc_157231.pdf#page=149). Moreover, the EPA gives for the first time a possibility for the importers to claim preferential tariff treatment on the basis of ‘importer’s knowledge’, which contributes to trade facilitation for the related companies.

[5] More information can be found on the following websites: Japan’s Customs: http://www.customs.go.jp/english/c-answer_e/imtsukan/1524_e.htmEuropean Commission (DG TRADE): http://madb.europa.eu/madb/viewPageIFPubli.htm?doc=ppo&hscode=0402&countryid=JP

• Annex 3-A contains Introductory Notes to Annex 3-B (the Product Specific Rules of Origin).

- It includes a number of definitions, including the below listed:

∙ “Chapter” means the first two-digits in the tariff classification number under the Harmonized System;

∙ “Heading” means the first four-digits in the tariff classification number under the Harmonized System; ∙ “Subheading” means the first six-digits in the tariff classification number under the Harmonized System;∙ “Wholly obtained”: EU/JPN origin is required.

In this context, the territorial scope of a Party does not include the sea, seabed and subsoil beyond its territorial sea (EPA Art. 3.2).

However, EPA Art. 3.3 specifies that fish, shellfish or other marine life (*) are Wholly Obtained if taken by a Party’s vessel[6] from the sea, seabed or subsoil beyond the territorial sea of each Party and, in accordance with international law, beyond the territorial sea of third countries.

Furthermore, the definition of Wholly

[6] A Party’s Vessel, or a Party’s Factory Ship means a vessel or a ship which is registered in an EU Member State or in Japan, flies the flag of an EU Member State or of Japan, and satisfies one of the following requirements:∙ It is at least 50% owned by one or more natural persons of a Party, or∙ It is owned by one or more juridical persons which have their head office and their main place of business in a Party, and in which at least 50% of the ownership belongs to natural persons or juridical persons of a Party.

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EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

Obtained also applies on products exclusively produced from the above-mentioned products (see above (*)) on board of a Party’s factory ship beyond the territorial sea of each Party and, in accordance with international law, beyond the territorial sea of third countries.

∙ “CC (Change of Chapter)” means that non-(EU/JPN) originating materials (imported from non-contracting parties) may be used in the production of the goods concerned, if these materials are classified under another tariff chapter of the goods in the HS classification system (at 2-digit level).

∙ “CTH (Change of Tariff Heading)” means that non-(EU/JPN) originating materials (imported from non-contracting parties) may be used in the production of the goods concerned, if these materials are classified under another tariff heading of the goods in the HS classification system (at 4-digit level).

∙ “CTSH (Change of Tariff Sub-Heading)” means that non-(EU) originating materials (imported from non-contracting parties) may be used in the production of the goods concerned, if these materials are classified under another tariff sub-heading of the goods in the HS classification system (at 6-digit level).

• Product Specific Rules of Origin (PSR) are laid down in Annex 3-B of the Agreement. This annex sets out (per 4 or 6-digit tariff heading) the requirements to be originating. Further to the three conditions specified under the above 2nd indent under Point 2.1., these requirements can be:

- a change in tariff classification,- a production process,- any other requirement specified in Annex 3-A and in Annex 3-B (PSR).

• As in most of similar Agreements the EU has concluded with third countries, the EPA provides for a clause of “Bilateral Cumulation”. This clause specifies that if a product qualifying as originating in one Party, it is considered as qualifying in the other Party if that product is used as a material in the production of another product in the other Party (Art. 3.5 of the Agreement), or in other words bilateral cumulation allows inputs/materials originating in Japan to be considered as originating in the EU when further processed or incorporated in the EU and exported to Japan (and vice and versa). Only materials deemed originating can benefit from this basic type of bilateral cumulation.

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This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

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EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

2.2. PSR AS REGARDS FISHERY PRODUCTS

2.2.1. CHAPTER 3 PRODUCTS – FISH AND CRUSTACEANS, MOLLUSCS AND OTHER AQUATIC INVERTEBRATES

Distinction is made between Atlantic Bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) and other Chapter 3 products.

- PSR for Atlantic bluefin tuna

• Wholly obtained, or

• Production is subject to caging in farms with subsequent feeding and fattening/farming for a minimum period in a Party. The duration of the fattening or farming shall be established according to the date of the caging operation and the date of harvesting recorded in the electronic Bluefin tuna Catch Document (eBCD) of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

- Other Chapter 3 products

• Wholly obtained.

2.2.2. HEADING 1504 PRODUCTS – FATS AND OILS AND THEIR FRACTIONS, OF FISH OR MARINE ANIMALS, WHETHER OR NOT REFINED, BUT NOT CHEMICALLY MODIFIED

CTH meaning that non- (EU/Japan) originating materials, i.e. imported from non-contracting Parties, can be used in the production of these goods if these materials are classified under a Heading other than the produced good.

2.2.3. CHAPTER 16 PRODUCTS

- Heading 1603 (1603 extracts and juices of fish, crustaceans and molluscs): the PSR specifies that all the materials of Chapter 2 (Meat and edible meat offal), Chapter 3 (Fish and crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates) and Chapter 16 used in this production must be wholly obtained.

- Headings 1604 (prepared fish, caviar and caviar substitutes prepared from fish egg) and 1605 (prepared crustaceans and molluscs), the PSR is that all the materials of Chapter 2 (Meat and edible meat offal), Chapter 3 (Fish and crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates), Chapter 16 and Heading 10.06 (Rice) used in this production has to be wholly obtained.

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Under thesupervision of

EU-Japan Centrefor Industrial Cooperation

This document has been prepared with the sole purpose of simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA and bears no legal standing.

www.eu-japan.eu/epa-helpdesk

EU-Japan EPA FACTSHEET

Fishery Products

DISCLAIMER

The Report has been prepared with the sole purpose of clarifying and simplifying the understanding of some parts of the EU-Japan EPA related to Fishery Products, and bear therefore no legal standing.While utmost care was taken in the preparation of the report, the author, the EU-Japan Centre, and the European Commission cannot be held responsible for any error or omission.This report does not constitute legal advice in terms of business development cases. As a result, only the legal text and annexes of the EU-Japan EPA, as well as relevant legislation in the EU and Japan prevail.The Report reflects the view of the author who cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained herein.