The Ministry of Finance yesterday agreed to relax restrictions on testing procedures for wine imports in the face of strong protests from European business groups and wine dealers.
During a 90-minute meeting with European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT) representatives yesterday, the ministry's National Treasury Agency decided to drop testing requirements for methanol and lead in line with Europe's customary practice, said Guy Wittich, the chamber's chief executive officer, during a phone interview.
However, certificates specifying the sulphur dioxide content would still be required, although details have not yet been decided on testing procedures and what kind of authorities were qualified to provide such reports, said Wittich, who led the ECCT team that met with the ministry.
According to the original regulations, certificates for methanol and lead content were to be required beginning in July, or else 5 percent of each batch would undergo testing by Taiwanese customs officials in order to crack down on counterfeit liquor.
But no conclusion has been reached on the thornier issue of how to define what qualifies as a "rare and expensive wine."
The ministry last week said it had considered relaxing import standards so that wine products which came in batches of less than 90 liters each with average CIF quotes of NT$4,000 (US$123) per liter or more, would not be subject to testing.
CIF quotes refer to prices including cost, insurance and freight.
The ECCT hopes to see the regulations relaxed further to allow for batches
as large as 180 liters and average CIF quotes of NT$1,000 per liter.
Wittich said the chamber has been asked by the ministry to provide detailed
information and market surveys on pricing and quantity for another meeting
in two weeks.
If consensus can be reached next time, the chamber will also make a request
that the government postpone the implementation date of new customs
regulations and allow wine dealers more time to rearrange orders and
shipments, he added.
Ministry officials denied meeting with the chamber.
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