1.   Taking into account the respective competencies of the European Community and the Member States, the provisions of this Agreement shall:

2.   Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, the provisions of this Agreement shall take precedence over the provisions of any bilateral agreement on customs cooperation and mutual administrative assistance which has been or may be concluded between individual Member States and the People's Republic of China, insofar as the provisions of the latter are incompatible with those of this Agreement.

3.   In respect of questions relating to the applicability of this Agreement, the Contracting Parties shall consult each other to resolve the matter in the framework of the Joint Customs Cooperation Committee set up under Article 21 of this Agreement.

1.   The Contracting Parties shall undertake to develop customs cooperation. In particular, the Contracting Parties shall seek to cooperate in:

2.   The Contracting Parties undertake to develop trade facilitation actions in customs matters taking account of the work done in this connection by international organisations.

3.   Under this Agreement, customs cooperation shall cover all matters relating to the application of customs legislation.

1.   The customs authorities shall assist each other by providing appropriate information which helps to ensure the proper application of customs legislation and the prevention, investigation and combating of any breach of customs legislation.

2.   Assistance in customs matters, as provided for in this Agreement, shall apply to any administrative authority of the Contracting Parties which is competent for the application of this Agreement. It shall not prejudice the rules governing mutual assistance in criminal matters. Nor shall it cover information obtained under powers exercised at the request of a judicial authority;

3.   Assistance to recover duties, taxes or fines, or the arrest or detention of any person or seizure or detention of property is not covered by this Agreement.

1.   At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall provide it with all relevant information which may enable it to ensure that customs legislation is correctly applied, including information regarding activities detected or planned which are or could be operations in breach of customs legislation. In particular, upon request, the customs authorities shall furnish to each other information regarding activities that may result in offences within the territory of the other Party, for example, incorrect customs declarations and certificates of origin, invoices or other documents known to be, or suspected of being, incorrect or falsified.

2.   At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall inform it of:

3.   At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall, within the framework of its laws, provisions or other legally binding instruments, take the necessary steps to ensure special surveillance of:

1.   Requests pursuant to this Agreement shall be made in writing. They shall be accompanied by the documents necessary to enable compliance with the request. When required because of the urgency of the situation, oral requests may be accepted, but shall be confirmed promptly in writing.

2.   Requests pursuant to paragraph 1 shall include the following information:

3.   Requests shall be submitted in an official language of the requested authority or in a language acceptable to that authority. This requirement shall not apply to any documents that accompany the request under paragraph 1.

4.   If a request does not meet the formal requirements set out above, its correction or completion may be requested; precautionary measures may be ordered in the meantime.

1.   In order to comply with a request for assistance, the requested authority shall proceed, within the limits of its competence and available resources, as though it were acting on its own account or at the request of other authorities of that same Contracting Party, by supplying information already possessed, by carrying out appropriate enquiries or by arranging for them to be carried out.

2.   Requests for assistance shall be executed in accordance with the laws, regulations or other legally binding instruments of the requested authority.

3.   Duly authorised officials of a Contracting Party may, with the agreement of the other Contracting Party and subject to the conditions laid down by the latter, be present at enquiries carried out in the latter's jurisdiction into specific cases.

4.   In the event that the request cannot be complied with, the applicant authority shall be notified promptly of that fact, with a statement of the reasons and of any other information that the requested authority considers may be of assistance to the applicant authority.

1.   The requested authority shall communicate results of enquiries to the applicant authority in writing together with relevant documents, certified copies or other items.

2.   This information may be in computerised form which shall where necessary be confirmed in writing immediately afterwards.

1.   Assistance may be refused or may be subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions or requirements in cases where a Contracting Party is of the opinion that assistance under this Agreement would:

2.   Assistance may be postponed by the requested authority on the ground that it will interfere with an ongoing investigation, prosecution or proceeding. In such a case, the requested authority shall consult with the applicant authority to determine if assistance can be given subject to such terms or conditions as the requested authority may require.

3.   Where the applicant authority seeks assistance which it would itself be unable to provide if so requested, it shall draw attention to that fact in its request. It shall then be for the requested authority to decide how to respond to such a request.

4.   For the cases referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the decision of the requested authority and the reasons therefor must be communicated to the applicant authority without undue delay.

1.   Any information communicated in whatsoever form pursuant to this Agreement shall be of a confidential or restricted nature, depending on the rules applicable in each of the Contracting Parties. It shall be covered by the obligation of official secrecy and shall enjoy the protection extended to similar information under the relevant laws of the Contracting Party that received it and the corresponding provisions applying to the Community authorities.

2.   Personal data may be exchanged only where the Contracting Party which may receive it undertakes to protect such data in at least an equivalent way to the one applicable to that particular case in the Contracting Party that may supply it. The Contracting Party that may supply the information shall not stipulate any requirements that are more onerous than those applicable to it in its own jurisdiction. The Contracting Parties shall communicate to each other information on their applicable rules, including where appropriate, legal provisions in force in the Member States of the Community.

3.   Nothing in this Agreement shall preclude the use of information or documents obtained in accordance with this Agreement as evidence in administrative proceedings subsequently instituted in respect of operations in breach of customs legislation. Therefore, the Contracting Parties may, in their records of evidence, reports and testimonies and in administrative proceedings use as evidence information obtained and documents consulted in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement. The competent authority which supplied that information or gave access to those documents shall be notified of such use.

4.   Information obtained shall be used solely for the purposes of this Agreement. Where one of the Contracting Parties wishes to use such information for other purposes, it shall obtain the prior written consent of the authority which provided the information. Such use shall then be subject to any restrictions laid down by that authority.

5.   Practical arrangements for the implementation of this Article shall be determined by the Joint Customs Cooperation Committee established under Article 21.

1.   The Contracting Parties shall waive all claims on each other for the reimbursement of expenses incurred pursuant to this Agreement, except, as appropriate, for expenses to experts and witnesses, and those to interpreters and translators who are not public service employees.

2.   If expenses of a substantial or extraordinary nature are, or will be, required to execute the request, the Contracting Parties shall consult to determine the terms and conditions under which the request will be executed as well as the manner in which the costs shall be borne.

1.   The implementation of this Agreement shall be entrusted to the customs authorities of the Commission of the European Communities and, where appropriate, of the Member States of the European Community on the one hand, and to the customs authority of the People’s Republic of China, on the other. They shall decide on all practical measures and arrangements necessary for its application, taking into consideration the rules in force in particular in the field of data protection. They may recommend to the competent bodies amendments which they consider should be made to this Agreement.

2.   The Contracting Parties shall consult each other and subsequently keep each other informed of the detailed rules of implementation which are adopted in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.

1.   A Joint Customs Cooperation Committee is hereby established, consisting of representatives of the customs authorities of the European Community and the People’s Republic of China. It shall meet at a place, on a date and with an agenda, fixed by mutual agreement.

2.   The Joint Customs Cooperation Committee shall, inter alia:

3.   The Joint Customs Cooperation Committee shall adopt its internal rules of procedure.

4.   The Joint Customs Cooperation Committee will where appropriate, keep informed the Joint Commission set up under Article 15 of the Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation between the European Economic Community and the People’s Republic of China of activities going on under this Agreement.

1.   This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the date on which the Contracting Parties have notified each other of the completion of the procedures necessary for this purpose.

2.   Each Contracting Party may terminate this Agreement by giving notice to the other in writing. The termination shall take effect three months from the day of notification to the other Contracting Party. Requests for assistance which have been received prior to the termination of the Agreement shall be completed in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.