Article 1 These Provisions are enacted in accordance with the "Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China" and other relevant laws and administrative regulations with a view to severely cracking down smuggling and rule-violating activities as well as maintaining the foreign trade order.

Article 2 Smuggling or rule-violating enterprises as mentioned in these Provisions shall refer to various types of enterprises engaged in foreign trade and economic cooperation, which are adjudicated by the people's court to have committed the crime of smuggling, or ascertained by the customs to have committed smuggling or have violated the customs' surveillance provisions.

Article 3 The basic premise for imposing administrative penalties including warning, suspension or revocation of operational permit upon smuggling or rule-violating enterprises for foreign trade or international freight agency is: the fact of rule-violating or smuggling conduct exists, and the administrative penalty imposed by the customs has come into force; or the crime of smuggling is constituted, and the judgment made by the court has come into force. The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (hereinafter referred to as the MOFTEC) or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby shall, after receipt of the notice of the customs or the court, have the right to impose administrative penalties including warning, suspension or revocation of operational permit upon smuggling or rule-violating enterprises for foreign trade or international freight agency.

Article 4 Where an enterprise engaged in foreign trade and economic cooperation is under any of the following circumstances, it shall be imposed upon an administrative penalty of warning by the MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby:

(1) Smuggling imported or exported goods or articles, with the amount of evaded tax to be no less than 30,000 Yuan but less than 250,000 Yuan;

(2) Smuggling goods or articles restricted by the state from being imported or exported, with the value involved to be no less than 100,000 Yuan but less than 1 million Yuan;

(3) Violating the customs' surveillance provisions in importing or exporting goods or articles, with the amount of delinquent tax to be no less than 300,000 Yuan but less than 3 million Yuan;

(4) Violating the customs office's surveillance provisions in importing or exporting goods or articles, with the value involved to be no less than 1 million Yuan but less than 10 million Yuan.

Article 5 Where an enterprise engaged in foreign trade and economic cooperation is under any of the following circumstances, it shall be imposed upon an administrative penalty of suspension of operational permit for foreign trade or international freight agency for 3 months by the MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby:

(1) Smuggling imported or exported goods or articles, with the evaded tax amount to be no less than 250,000 Yuan but less than 3 million Yuan;

(2) Smuggling goods or articles restricted by the state from being imported or exported, with the value involved to be no less than 1 million Yuan but less than 10 million Yuan;

(3) Violating the customs office's surveillance provisions in importing or exporting goods or articles, with the amount of delinquent tax to be no less than 3 million Yuan but less than 10 million Yuan;

(4) Violating the customs office's surveillance provisions to import or export goods or articles, with the amount involved to be no less than 10 million Yuan but less than 30 million Yuan.

Article 6 Where an enterprise engaged in foreign trade and economic cooperation is under any of the following circumstances, it shall be imposed upon an administrative penalty of revocation of operational permit for foreign trade or international freight agency by the MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby:

(1) Smuggling imported or exported goods or articles, with the amount of evaded tax to be no less than 3 million Yuan;

(2) Smuggling goods or articles restricted by the state from being imported or exported, with the value involved to be no less than 10 million Yuan;

(3) Violating the customs office's surveillance provisions in importing or exporting goods or articles, with the amount of delinquent tax to be no less than 10 million Yuan;

(4) Violating the customs' surveillance provisions in importing or exporting goods or articles, with the value involved to be no less than 30 million Yuan;

(5) Smuggling goods or articles prohibited by the state from being imported or exported, and constitutes a crime.

Article 7 When an enterprise engaged in foreign trade and economic cooperation is under any two circumstances mentioned in the above penalty clauses, it shall be punished by a severer penalty.

Article 8 Where a party is under any of the following circumstances, the MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby may, in accordance with the law, impose a lighter or mitigated administrative penalty or exempt it from administrative penalty:

(1) Eliminating or reducing, of its own accord, the endangering consequences caused by the illegal act;

(2) Being coerced by others to commit the illegal act;

(3) Performing meritorious services in cooperating with the administrative organ to investigate illegal acts;

(4) Other circumstances under which it shall be imposed upon a lighter or mitigated administrative penalty in accordance with the law.

Article 9 The MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby shall, before imposing an administrative penalty, inform the party concerned, and the party shall have the right to state the facts and defend himself. For the administrative penalty of suspension or revocation of operational permit for foreign trade or international freight agency, the party concerned shall have the right to request a hearing; if the party requests a hearing, the MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby shall arrange for the hearing. When a hearing is concluded, the MOFTEC or its authorized local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation shall make a decision on administrative penalty in accordance with the relevant laws, regulations and the facts verified in the hearing.

Article 10 The MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby shall, within 7 days after making a decision on administrative penalty, serve the penalty decision to the party concerned; if the penalty decision cannot be served directly or by mail, it shall be served by announcement.

Article 11 Any party who refuses to accept the decision on administrative penalty may, in accordance with the "Administrative Reconsideration Law of the People's Republic of China", institute an administrative reconsideration, or in accordance with the "Administrative Procedural Law of the People's Republic of China", institute an administrative litigation.

Article 12 These Provisions shall be applicable to enterprises with foreign investment. The MOFTEC or local department of foreign trade and economic cooperation authorized thereby may, in accordance with these Provisions, impose such administrative penalties as warning, notification of the customs to suspend or cease the handling of import and export business or international freight agency business upon the smuggling and rule-violating foreign-funded enterprise, and shall notify the foreign parent company.

Article 13 The power to interpret these Provisions shall remain with the MOFTEC.

Article 14 The present Provisions are promulgated on March 15, 2002, and shall come into force 30 days after the date of promulgation. The "Interim Provisions on Imposition of Administrative Penalties Including Warning, Suspension or Revocation of Operational Permit upon Rule-violating or Smuggling Enterprises for Foreign Trade or International Freight Agency" jointly promulgated by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation and the General Administration of Customs on December 1, 1998 (WaiJingMaoZhengFa [1998] No.929) shall be abrogated simultaneously.

Promulgated by The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, the General Administration of Customs on 2002-2-26