46A1.04
(a)
| (i) | The certificate of origin shall be completed and signed in accordance with the instructions specified on the reverse of the form. |
| (ii) | Completion of a certificate of origin and application for a visa is conditional on the exporter holding and being able to produce on demand all necessary evidence that the goods comply with the provisions of origin for the preference group declared on the certificate. |
| (iii) | In terms of 19 CFR 10.216(b)(1) to (3) it is required that the certificate must be— |
| (aa) | in writing or must be transmitted electronically pursuant to any electronic data interchange system authorised by US customs for that purpose; |
| (bb) | signed by the exporter or by the exporter's authorised agent having knowledge of the relevant facts; |
| (cc) | completed either in the English language or in the language of the country from which it is exported. If the certificate is completed in a language other than English, the importer must provide to Customs upon request a written English translation of the certificate. |
| (iv) | The exporter must be a natural person ordinarily resident in the Republic or a person whose place of business or the place of business of which is in the Republic. |
(v)
| (aa) | Subject to the provisions of rules 46A1.06 and 46A1.08, the exporter shall complete and sign a certificate of origin in respect of every shipment and each preference group of textile and apparel articles for which an importer in the US intends claiming preferential tariff treatment under the AGOA. |
| (bb) | The customs code number of the exporter and the producer (manufacturer) must be inserted in the block for official use, by the exporter. |
| (vi) | Where the exporter is not the producer of the article, that exporter may complete and sign a certificate of origin on the basis of: |
| (aa) | reasonable reliance on the producer's written representation that the article qualifies for preferential treatment, or |
| (bb) | a completed and signed certificate of origin for the article voluntarily provided to the exporter by the producer. (19 CFR 10.214(a), AGOA section 113(b)(1) and Article 501 of NAFTA). |
| (vii) | The descriptions in respect of the preference groups on the certificate of origin and the application for a visa are merely summaries of the US provisions and it is the duty of the exporter to ascertain the precise qualifying requirements from the various enactments, in particular Customs Regulations 19 CFR 10 and the relevant origin provisions, and if necessary, from the importer in the US or the US Customs Service. |
(viii)
| (aa) | The certificate of origin and the visa will be allocated different numbers electronically when the export documents are processed. |
| (bb) | The officer designated to perform the administration of the rules of origin function at the office of the Controller must insert the certificate of origin number on the certificate and both numbers on the application for a visa in the respective blocks for official use printed on the forms. |
[Rule 46A1.04(a)(viii)(bb) substituted by paragraph (g) of Notice No. R. 1472 dated 22 December 2017]
(b)
| (i) | An exporter may authorise only a licensed clearing agent to complete and sign the certificate of origin and application for a visa. |
| (ii) | The authorisation must be completed on the exporter's own letter headed paper and confirm full details of the agent's name, physical and postal address, telephone and facsimile numbers and full name(s) of the staff who will complete and sign the said forms. |
| (iii) | The exporter shall authorise and issue instructions to the clearing agent in writing in respect of each shipment and shall specify clearly that he holds evidence to the effect that the goods qualify as originating products within the meaning of the provisions of origin and other requirements for the preference group concerned. |
| (iv) | The letter of authority shall be submitted together with each completed certificate of origin and application for a visa and will be retained by the Controller. |
| (c) | Commercial invoices must— |
| (i) | be serially numbered and the number and date quoted in Block 4 of the certificate of origin and application for a visa; |
| (ii) | describe the goods with sufficient detail to enable them to be identified and for the purposes of determination of the tariff subheading to the 6-digit level; |
| (iii) | reflect the applicable tariff subheading which must correspond with the subheading (up to the 6-digit level) on the export bill of entry; |
| (iv) | contain reference numbers or other particulars according to which the goods can be readily identified in the exporter's records; |
| (v) | state the preference group number according to the application for a visa; |
| (vi) | when both preference group goods and other goods are packed together, contain— |
| (aa) | a full description and the tariff subheading in respect of the other goods which must be marked with an asterisk; and |
| (bb) | the following statement: "Goods marked * on the invoice are not AGOA preference group goods and are not covered by the visa"; |
| (viii) | be completed in respect of each preference group of textile and apparel articles contained in a shipment. |
| (d) | Where a consignment consists of various preference groupings the commercial invoice for each grouping which is required to be completed in terms of rule 46A1.04(c)(viii), must reflect appropriate cross references to the other invoices for the goods comprising the shipment. |
