WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
14 July 2011  
 
(11-3516) 
Committee on Customs Valuation Original:   Spanish 
  
 
NOTIFICATION UNDER ARTICLE 22 OF THE AGREEMENT ON 
IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE VII OF THE GENERAL 
AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE 1994 
 
COSTA RICA 
 
  The following communication, dated 11 July  2011, has been received from the Permanent 
Mission of Costa Rica. 
 
_______________ 
 
  Pursuant to Article 22 of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994 
(Customs Valuation Agreement) and in compliance with the Decision on Notification and Circulation 
adopted by the Committee on Customs Valuation on 12 May 1995 (G/VAL/5), I have the honour of 
notifying to the Committee on Customs Valuati on Costa Rica's Decree No. 36582-H, published in 
Special Section No. 101 of the Official Journal La Gaceta  of 26 May 2011.  The Decree will enter 
into force two months after its publication, namely , on 26 July 2011;  a co py is attached hereto. G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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  EXECUTIVE POWER 
 
DECREES 
 
Nº 36582-H 
 
THE ACTING SECOND VICE PRESIDENT OF THE 
PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC AND 
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE 
 
In application of the powers conferred by Ar ticle 140(3) and (18) and Article 146 of the 
Constitution;  Law No. 7207 of 24 October 1990, Ratifi cation of Costa Rica's Protocol of Accession 
to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT);  Articles 25(1), 27(1), and 28(2)(b) of 
General Public Administration Law No. 6227 of 2 May 1978 and amendments thereto;  General 
Customs Law No. 7557 of 20 October 1995 and amen dments thereto;  and the Code of Tax 
Regulations and Procedures, Law No. 4755 of  3 May 1971, and amendments thereto; 
 
Whereas:  
 
1. Pursuant to Article 24 of General Customs Law No. 7557 of 20 September 1995, the customs 
authority bears the obligation to exact and verify compliance with the criteria governing the customs 
tax obligation.  Such criteria include the nature , characteristics, tariff classification, origin, and 
customs value of goods;  and other obligations, requ irements, and duties arising from the entry into, 
stay in, and exit from the national customs terr itory of goods, vehicles, and transport units. 
2. In accordance with Article 9 of the General Customs Law, it is the responsibility of the 
National Customs Service to propose changes to sta ndards in order to bring them into line with 
technical and technological developments and inte rnational trade requirements, and to exercise 
control over the national customs territory. 
3. In the exercise of said control, the Nationa l Customs Service is called upon to strengthen 
instruments to deal with tax evasion by means of  standards which ensure effective and efficient 
customs control of the value of goods, in acco rdance with the provisions of the Agreement on 
Implementation of Article VII of the Gene ral Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994. 
4. International organizations such as the Worl d Customs Organization and the International 
Monetary Fund have, over time, established that  under-invoicing is an anomalous practice which 
affects trade and fair competition.  Similarly, th e Annual Plan to Combat and Prevent Tax Fraud and 
the report on the results of the Ministry of Finance study on Implementation of the System of Sanctions for Tax Offences, No. DFOE-SAF-IF-05-2010,  of the Office of the Comptroller General of 
the Republic, have shown that under-invoicing is an anomalous practice which must be prevented and 
fought in order to counteract customs tax evasion. 
5. To that end, it is necessary to implement imme diate control mechanisms for the detection of 
customs values the truth or accuracy of which requir es verification, thereby ensuring fair and effective 
collection of customs duties and preventing mark et distortions which affect the country's 
competitiveness. 
6. In this exercise, the Customs Administration must verify whether the prices declared are 
consistent with the prices typical of the corres ponding industry or trade sector and with those of 
identical or similar goods, establishing for this purpose a database which contains  the reference values 
to guide such control and verification.  G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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  7. Under the established value control procedure,  Customs must inform the declarant of the 
reasons for which the value is bei ng questioned.  Reference values th erefore constitute the basis for a 
preliminary technical study which allows the custom s authority to enter into communication with the 
declarant, as already provid ed for, and to inform the latter of the consequent obligation to provide 
documentation in support of the customs value declared. 
8. Article 13 of the Agreement on Implementation of  Article VII of the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Trade 1994 provides that, where the Ad ministration deems it necessary to delay the final 
determination of the declared value, the withdraw al of the goods may nevertheless be authorized upon 
provision, prior to their release, of a guarantee c overing the payment of import duties and other taxes 
to which the goods may be liable, without rejection of the value declared by the importer. 
9. Article 17 of the aforementioned Agreement provi des that nothing therein shall be construed 
as restricting or calling into question the rights of customs administrations to satisfy themselves as to the truth or accuracy of any statement, documen t or declaration presented for customs valuation 
purposes. 
10. This Regulation is issued with a view to est ablishing provisions fo r determining reference 
values for use as a preventive mechanism ensuri ng selectivity;  provisions in respect of the 
modification of said values;  and provisions in r espect of the corresponding actions of the Customs 
Control Office and other bodies of the National Customs Service. 
11. In compliance with Law No. 8220 of 4 March 2002, Law on the Protection of Citizens from 
Excessive Administrative Requirements and Formaliti es, this Decree has been reviewed by the 
Regulatory Improvement Directorate of the Ministry of the Economy, Industry and Trade in 
accordance with Official Letter No. DMRRT-OF-0130-11. 
THEREFORE DECREE: 
 
Regulation on the Implementation of Customs Reference Values 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
General Provisions 
 
Article 1:  Definitions and abbreviations . 
 
(a) Agreement on Implementation of Article VI I of the General Agreement on Tariffs and 
Trade 1994 :  the Agreement. 
 (b) Valuation Database :  set of data containing a list of the values of imported goods with 
up-to-date prices and serving as an instrument fo r determining potential and selective risks with 
regard to the truth or accuracy of declared customs values. 
 (c) Reference Value Code :  Single code which is based on the assorted variables enabling the 
identification of goods and which indicates their respective reference values, in the Valuation 
Database.  
(d) Directorate-General of Customs :  Directorate-General. 
 (e) Reference Value :  provisional value of goods identical or similar to the goods imported, 
previously validated by the customs authority. 
 G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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  Article 2:  Purpose and scope .  The purpose of this Regulation is to set down provisions for the 
establishment of reference values to guide cust oms control of goods which, upon import, have 
abnormally low prices, and provisions to be co mpiled within the application of selectivity. 
 Article 3:  Responsibilities of the Directorate-General of Customs .  The Directorate-General is the  
body responsible for issuing guidelines to ensure the proper implementation of the procedures set out 
herein;  it is also responsible for approving reference values based on the studies conducted and 
recommendations made by the Risk Management Dir ectorate and for keeping the Valuation Database 
up to date.  
Article 4:  Determination of reference values .  For the purposes of this Regulation, reference values 
shall serve to guide the control of the declared va lue of imported goods;  they may serve as a basis for 
calling into question the declared value of goods, in  accordance with the pr ovisions of Chapter III 
hereof.  The comparison reference value shall be used for the assessment of the amount of the 
guarantees payable.  It consists of a provisional value of the goods, valid while a value study is 
conducted in accordance with the methods establis hed under the Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VII of the GATT 1994.  Article 5:  Confidentiality of information .  Pursuant to the principle of  confidentiality of information 
and in accordance with the provisions of Article 8 of the General Customs Law and Articles 115 and 
117 of the Code of Tax Regulations and Pro cedures, the Administration shall preserve the 
confidentiality of the information provided under this  Regulation by chambers and other organizations 
representing industry and trade and the import sector.  
CHAPTER II 
 
Reference Values  
 
Article 6:  Selection of goods for study .  The Risk Management Directorate of the 
Directorate-General shall select for study goods subject to value control by means of the determination of reference values, taki ng into account the following criteria: 
 
(a) Goods whose declared prices are not consis tent with usual and reasonable prices 
applicable to the industry or trade sector concerned; 
(b) goods whose declared prices are not consistent  with the value of identical or similar 
goods; 
(c) justified requests submitted by chambers  and other organizations representing 
industry and trade and the import sector; 
(d) justified requests submitted by other State bodies and based on studies and research, 
subject to evaluation; 
(e) goods the value of which has been adjusted by the competent bodies and for which no 
reference value has been established; 
(f) other considerations deemed necessary by the Directorate-General, provided that such 
considerations are justified by technical studies, risk management criteria, or 
specialized reports. 
Following analysis of the information, the Dir ectorate-General shall determine the suitability 
of including the goods and their corresponding re ference values in the Valuation Database.  G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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Where their inclusion is deemed appropriate, the Directorate-General shall issue a resolution 
of general scope, indicating the specifics of the diffe rent variables used for identification of the goods, 
as well as their respective reference values.  The re solution shall be published in the Official Journal 
La Gaceta  and posted on the website of the Ministry of Finance. 
 
 Where chambers or other representative organi zations as mentioned in subparagraph (c) of 
this Article submit a request, or where the Directorate-General deems it necessary, the Directorate-General may summon representatives of th e sectors in question to form working groups to 
provide grounds for the proposed establishment of a reference value, and/or to further develop the 
initial request.  This process shall be completed with in 15 working days of the meeting held as a result 
of the aforementioned summoning.  Article 7:  Directorate-General's criteria regarding the inclusion of goods in the valuation 
database .  To include a good in the Valuation Database,  the Directorate-General shall ensure that 
each good is defined using the ten-digit tariff classi fication and other variables allowing its precise 
identification.   Some of the following elements shall also be taken into consideration: 
 
(a) Whether there has been an analysis of impor ts of the goods in question over a period 
of three months or longer; 
(b) whether sources have been consulted and/ or whether specialized information has 
been obtained from producers and/or national traders to establish a reasonable and normal guidance value vis-à-vis  the international wholesale market for the product in 
question. 
Article 8:  Modification of reference values .  The modification of the re ference values established by 
the Directorate-General shall, following a study by the Risk Management Directorate of the Directorate-General, take into account international price variations, the observations and input of the 
private sector, and the information produced by other duly authorized bodies of the Directorate-General.  
 To this end, the Risk Management Director ate may, as it deems appropriate, conduct specific 
consultations with the authorities or sectors concer ned in order to obtain new information to confirm 
or amend the reference value in question.  Such in formation shall be provided within 15 working days 
of the notification of the request.  
 In addition to the aforementioned specific cons ultations, the Directorate-General, where it 
deems appropriate, may establish pe rmanent working groups involving the authorities and/or private 
sectors concerned, in order to monitor market pr ice variations and propose the necessary periodic 
adjustments to the Risk Management Directorate.   Once the competent body determines that the reference values should be modified, it shall 
make its proposal to the Directorate-General so th at the latter may issue the corresponding resolution. 
 Article 9:  Disclosure of reference values .  Any resolution on the determination or modification of 
reference values shall be published in the Official Journal La Gaceta  and made available on the 
website of the Ministry of Finance. 
 G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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  Article 10:  Non-application of reference values .  Reference values shall not be applied by reason of 
similarity to goods not specifically included in the Valuation Database.  Reference values may not be 
used as substitute values or as a mechan ism for establishing minimum values. 
 Article 11:  Updating and administration of valuation database .  The Risk Management 
Directorate shall conduct and update the studies on re ference values to be included in the Valuation 
Database, for their approval and certification by the Directorate-General.  
CHAPTER III 
 
Implementation of a Reference Value 
 
Article 12:  Submission of customs declaration .  For a group of goods having an established 
reference value, in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation, the declarant shall fill out the 
mandatory fields in the corresponding customs decl aration document according to the type of goods 
in question and in compliance with the procedur e established by the Directorate-General in a 
resolution of general scope.  Article 13:  Acceptance and validation of information a nd type of review assigned to customs 
declaration .  Once the customs declarati on has been accepted, the computer system will validate the 
declared value in respect of the established reference value.  Where the declared value is found to be 
lower than the reference value, the computer system will assign a document review and physical 
inspection, automatically notifying the reference value of the goods. 
  Thereafter, the declarant shall have ten worki ng days to submit to the Customs Control Office 
an additional explanation regarding the grounds for the price actually paid or payable for the imported 
goods, and to present the market justification and other reasons for the customs value declared.  
Before the ten-working-day deadlin e, the declarant may request an additional extension in accordance 
with the Regulation to the General Customs Law.  Article 14:  Documentation supporting declared import value of goods .  The declarant may submit 
the following documentation in support of the declared value of the imported goods: 
 
(a) Price lists, catalogues (where necessary, in ac cordance with the nature of the goods in 
question); 
(b) outward clearance permits (unless it is not possible to obtain them with a sworn 
statement from the importer); 
(c) banking instruments; 
(d) exclusive distribution or representation contract (if such a contract exists and has not 
already been submitted); 
(e) in exceptional cases, where justified by the nature of the transaction, the declarant 
shall present additional documentation, su ch as a sales invoice for the domestic 
market, a list of export prices obtained via the Internet, or representative samples 
where deemed appropriate; 
(f) at the declarant's discretion, any item c onsidered to justify the transaction value 
declared.  G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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  Article 15:  Agreement with reference value .  If, following the document review and physical 
inspection, the declarant agrees w ith the difference detected betw een the declared value and the 
reference value, payment of such difference may be made and the goods may be released, without 
prejudice to the customs authority's right to perform subsequent controls.  
Article 16:  Confirmation of declared va lue by customs control office .  If, following analysis of the 
information submitted by the declarant and physi cal inspection of the goods, the Customs Control 
Office determines that the declared  customs value of the imported goods is to remain unchanged, it 
shall authorize the release of the goods.  This sh all take place within ten working days of the 
submission of information and proof, and without prejudice to the rights arising from subsequent 
controls. 
  Where the goods have been previously released  with payment of a guarantee, Customs shall 
release and return the guarantee paid.  
 Customs shall notify the Risk Management Director ate of the analysis resu lts so that the Risk 
Management Directorate may conduct a study in order to issue a recommendation to the Directorate-General as to the rectification or maintenance of the reference value established for the goods in question.  Article 17:  Customs control office confirmation of reference value and determination of customs 
value in accordance with the methodology derived from the agreement .  If, following physical 
inspection of the goods and analysis of the info rmation submitted by the declarant, the Customs 
Control Office finds that the declared customs valu e of the goods cannot be determined according to 
the transaction value or the price actually paid or payable for the goods, it shall notify the declarant, 
within ten calendar days after the deadline establis hed in Article 13 of these Regulations, that the 
reference value is to remain unchanged. 
  In that case, the Customs Control Office shal l determine the value of the goods in accordance 
with the valuation procedures established in Articl es 2 to 7 of the Agreement and within 30 calendar 
days following the aforementioned notification of the maintenance of the reference value.  The 
foregoing shall be coordinated with  the National Customs Valuation and Verification Authority where 
necessary. 
  Once the customs value has been determined, the established value of the goods shall be 
notified.  Where appropriate, collection shall be gin in respect of the outstanding amount, or the 
corresponding proportion of the guarantee shall be released.  The foregoing shall not limit the rights 
of the Customs Service in respect of subsequent controls. 
 Article 18:  Reference value follow-up .  In the event of the circumstances laid out in Article 16, 
wherein, after analysis of the additional explana tion and information submitted by the importer, the 
Customs Control Office determines that the declar ed customs value of the imported goods is to 
remain unchanged and confirms the total price actua lly paid or payable for the imported goods, the 
declared customs value shall be considered with a view to reference value follow-up. 
 Article 19:  Release with guarantee .  Pursuant to the provisions of the General Customs Law and 
Article 13 of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs 
and Trade 1994, upon submission of a customs declara tion and if, in the course of determining the 
customs value of the imported goods, it becomes ne cessary to delay the final determination of such 
value, the importer of the goods may neverthel ess withdraw them upon request if the importer 
provides sufficient guarantee covering the diffe rence between the amount paid and the amount 
calculated in respect of the reference values.  G/VAL/N/1/CRI/2 
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   In that case, the customs value determined sha ll not be final but provisional, pending a final 
decision by Customs in the ex ercise of immediate control. 
  The guarantees established within the framework of this Regulation shall be enforced or 
waived, depending on the results of the study. 
 
Article 20:  Definition of procedures .  The Directorate-General shall define, by means of a resolution 
of general scope, the rules of procedure which ar e to be followed in the implementation of this 
chapter.  
CHAPTER IV 
 
Other Provisions  
 
Article 21:  Coordination with other institutions .  Where considered necessary, the 
Directorate-General shall communicate the results to the corresponding bodies and shall take the 
requisite coordination measures to ensure more effective management of tax/customs control. 
 Article 22:  Entry into force .  This Regulation shall enter into force two months after publication. 
 Done at San José, on the eighteenth day of May two thousand and eleven. 
 
LUIS LIBERMAN GINSBURG. - Minister of Finance, Fernando Herrero Acosta. - Once - O.C. No. 11502. Request No. 9597. - C-173720. (D36582-IN2011038641).  
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