CONSULAR INFORMATION BULLETIN NO. 13/, SERIES 2000
 
 
Specific Rules and Regulations Governing the Importation of Donations from Filipino Associations/Individuals Overseas

I. General Requirements for the Processing of Donations with Duty-Free Privilege

The documents required from the donor prior to the issuance of duty-free certification by government agencies concerned are the following:
 

1.  Deed of Donation, duly authenticated by the Philippine Embassy/Consulate;

2.  Commercial invoice and/or packing list/inventory of donated items; and

3.  Shipping documents (bill of lading/airway bill).

II. General Procedures to Facilitate the Entry, Processing, and Release of Foreign Donations
 

A.  Prior to Shipment of Donations

1. Prospective donors who intent to ship goods/articles/equipment must inform the nearest Philippine Embassy/Consulate of their intention to donate.  The donor will have to provide the Embassy/Consulate with a complete list of items to be donated, name of consignee, complete address, and telephone number of the designated consignee, and the contact person in the Philippines;

2. The Philippine Embassy/Consulate will refer the prospective donation to the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO).  Upon receipt of the notice of intent to donate, the CFO will coordinate with government agencies concerned and the designated consignee to determine if the intended donation is eligible for duty-free entry and if the designated consignee is qualified to accept the donation free from duties.  CFO will inform the Philippine Embassy/Consulate about the requirements and obligations in connection with the intended donation; and

3. The Philippine Embassy/Consulate will advise the donor on feedback from Manila, including the requirements for duty-free entry.  The Philippine Embassy/Consulate authenticates the Deed of Donation prior to its shipment to Manila.

   
B.  Shipment of Donations
 

1. To allow sufficient time for the processing of the donation, the donor must     send advance copies of the following documents to the designated consignee at least 30 days prior to the arrival of the shipment in the Philippines:

• Deed of Donation, duly authenticated by the Philippine Embassy/Consulate; and

• Commercial invoice and/or packing list/inventory of donated items.

2. The donor must ensure that the name of consignee is identical in both the deed of donation and shipping documents, i.e.  Bill of Lading or the Airway Bill.  The donor must also see to it that the shipment contains only the items in the packing list.  The donor may also send advance copies of the aforementioned documents to the CFO thru the Philippine Embassy/Consulate for purposes of coordination;

3. Upon receipt of the advance copies of required documents from the donor, the recipient will be advised to coordinate with appropriate agencies and submit required documents; and

4. The recipient must monitor the arrival of the shipment by coordinating with the shipping agency.  The shipping agency will usually send an arrival notice to the consignee.

 C.  Processing of Donations

1. Upon receipt of the request of the consignee for the duty-free importation, the appropriate agency (Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Education, Culture and Sports, or the National Economic Development Administration) will recommend to the Department of Finance (DOF) that the importation be exempted from customs duties, if deemed meritorious.  These agencies can also recommend denial of the request for exemption from payment of duties pursuant to applicable rules and regulations;

2. Upon the endorsement by the appropriate agency for the duty-free entry of the donation, the DOF will issue a clearance and will forward this document to the Tax Exempt Division, Bureau of Customs (BOC).  The consignee may obtain a duplicate copy of the DOF clearance from DOF;

3. The Tax Exempt Division of the BOC will endorse the release of donation and will forward this document to the Informal Entry Division (IED) of the BOC District Office concerned (i.e. South Harbor, Manila International Container Port, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, etc.).  The IED checks, verifies, appraises, and examines the donated shipment;

4. The original copies of the Deed of Donation, commercial invoice and/or packing list, and the Bill of Lading or the Airway Bill must be received by the consignee on or before the arrival of the shipment in the Philippines to effect its release; and

5. After the consignee complies with all the documentation and pays the fees and charges (i.e. arrastre, wharfage, value-added tax, etc.), the BOC will release the shipment to the consignee.

CFO may be contacted at 1345 Citigold Center, Quirino Avenue, corner South Superhighway, Manila, telephone nos. (0632) 562-3852 to 53, fax no. (0632) 561-83-32, or through e-mail address:  cfodfa@info.com.ph.

Source:  Foreign Service Circular No. 61-00 dated 16 March 2000
 

PHILIPPINE EMBASSY, LONDON, 12 May 2000