CAO2-2020, DISPUTE SETTLEMENT and PROTEST

Section 6. Dispute Settlement Arising from Customs Valuation.

6.1 Parties can submit documentation and negotiate to reach an agreement. If a resolution cannot be reached, parties
can file a protest against the customs valuation decision.

6.2 If the District Collector finds that the Valuation Issue involves difficult or highly technical questions relating to the
application of customs valuation rules, the following procedures shall be undertaken: 6.2.1; 6.2.2; 6.2.3; 6.2.4; 6.2.5.

6.2.1. The District Collector shall accordingly inform the importer within two (2) days that the Valuation Issue
involves difficult or highly technical questions;
6.2.2. In such case, the District Collector shall require the importer and the Customs Officer to submit position
papers to support their declaration or findings, respectively within five
(5) days from the receipt of the notice;
6.2.3. If the nature of the goods permit, the District Collector shall require the taking of samples subject to
verification of the Customs Officer concerned to be returned to the importer upon termination of the dispute
settlement;
6.2.4. The importer may request release of the goods under
Tentative Assessment upon payment of duties and taxes as declared in the goods declaration and posting of
sufficient Security to cover the disputed amount of duties, taxes and other charges as determined by the
examiner and appraiser and compliance with other pertinent applicable rules and regulations; 15 and
6.2.5. The District Collector shall resolve in writing the Valuation Issue within fifteen (15) days from submission
of the position papers.
6.3 If determining the value of your imported goods is complex (6.2.1), you'll be informed within 2 days and there will
be a process to resolve the disagreement. If the valuation is straightforward and the customs officer's value is accepted
(6.3), you'll be notified within 48 hours and instructed to pay duties and taxes based on that value.
6.4: If the customs officer's valuation wins, you'll owe any additional duties and taxes. Any guarantee you posted for
early release of goods will be used to cover the difference.
6.5: If you disagree with the customs officer's decision on the value of your goods, you can appeal the ruling following
the procedures outlined in this administrative order (CAO).
6.6: If you lose your appeal to the district collector (Commissioner's ruling is against you), you can still fight the decision.
You have two options:
* Request a reconsideration by the Commissioner.
* File a formal appeal following the guidelines set in this document (CAO).
Section 7. Dispute Settlement Arising from Rules of Origin. The following procedures shall be followed:
7.1 When you import goods, a customs officer can check the document (CO) proving where the product came from.
They can question if the document is real or if the information about the origin is accurate, before finalizing the import
fees.
7.2 If you disagree, you can request they verify the CO with the issuing country.
7.3 If you request verification of the document proving where your imported goods came from (CO), the district
collector will send it to a special group (Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group) to confirm its authenticity with
the country that issued it.
7.4 While waiting for the verification of the document proving the origin of your goods (CO), you can request the
release of your goods. You'll need to:
* Pay the estimated duties and taxes based on your declaration.
* Put up a guarantee (security) to cover any potential additional fees if the verification proves the origin is
different.
* Follow other import rules.
7.5 Once the verification of the origin document (CO) is complete, the district collector will be informed.
* If the CO is authentic and accurate (7.5.1), you'll get the preferential rate you applied for, and any guarantee
you posted will be released.
* If the CO is found to be fake or inaccurate (7.5.2), the guarantee you posted will be forfeited (if it's a cash
bond) or you'll need to pay the additional duties and taxes based on the correct origin.
Section 8. Dispute Settlement Arising from Other Customs Issues.
8.1 Customs can disagree with your import declaration on various issues (besides value). If you don't agree with them,
you can challenge their decision through a series of supervisors up to the district collector.
8.2 If customs disagrees with your import declaration on issues affecting duties and taxes (besides value), you can
contest their decision through a supervisor chain up to the district collector.
 * The District Collector shall require the importer and the Customs Officer to submit position papers to support
their declaration or findings, respectively within five (5) days from the receipt of the notice;
* The District Collector shall resolve in writing the issues within fifteen (15) days from submission of the
position papers; and
* While waiting for the decision, you can request the release of your goods with an estimated payment and
guarantee (security) to cover any potential differences. However, this option is not available if the
disagreement involves the authenticity of your submitted documents.
8.3 The district collector sides with the customs officer on the disputed issue affecting duties and taxes, they'll notify
you within 48 hours. The notice will explain their decision and instruct you to pay the duties and taxes based on the
customs officer's assessment.
8.4 If you disagree with the district collector's decision on the customs issue, you can file a protest following the
procedures outlined in this document (CAO).
8.5 The Commissioner shall render a ruling within thirty (30) days from receipt of the protest. If the Commissioner
doesn't respond within 30 days, the district collector's original decision automatically stands.
8.6 If you lose your appeal to the Commissioner (their decision goes against you), you still have options to challenge it:
* Request a reconsideration by the Commissioner.
* File a formal appeal following the guidelines set in this document (CAO).
Section 9. Dispute Settlement Arising from Mixed Issues.
9.1 If import disagreement involves both valuation issues and other customs issues (mixed issues), the district collector
will address them together using the procedures explained earlier in this document.
9.2 If your disagreement involves both tariff classification (what category your goods belong to) and other customs
issues, the district collector can resolve the non-classification issues right away, as long as they don't rely on the
classification to be decided. Otherwise, they'll wait for the Tariff Commission's ruling on classification first.
Section 10. Protest.
10.1 If you disagree with the district collector's final decision on any customs issue (tariffs, valuation, origin, etc.), you
can file a written protest with the Commissioner within 15 days of receiving the decision or making a payment based on
it.Otherwise, the district collector's decision becomes final.
10.2 Your protest must clearly state which decision you're contesting and the reasons for your disagreement. You can
raise multiple issues related to the specific goods declaration involved.
10.3 The Commissioner has 30 days to respond to your protest. If they don't respond, the district collector's original
decision stands.
Section 11. Motion for Reconsideration. The importer aggrieved by the ruling of the Commissioner, other than a ruling on tariff
classification, may, within fifteen (15) calendar days, from receipt of the ruling, file a Motion for Reconsideration with the
Commissioner.