Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin (industry and technical standardisation law)

Article (1)  
Definitions  
In appl ication of the provisions of this Law, the following words and expressions shall have 
the meanings ascribed thereto unless the context requires otherwise:  
State  : United Arab Emirates.  
Ministry  : The Ministry of Economy.  
Department  : Competent Department at the Ministry.  
Customs Departments  : Local Customs Department in each Emirate.  
Chamber  : Chambers of Commerce & Industry in State.  
Commodities  
: Materials and Products.  
Materials  : Any items, raw materials or components or parts and others, 
which are used in manufacturing the product.  
Products  : Products which have been manufactured even if used in other manufacturing processes.  
Manufacturing  : 
All processes of operation or processing including the 
assembly operations or certain operations.  
Customs Value  : Value of a commodity as stated by the customs law in State.  
Rules of Origin  : Basics which identify the country of origin of the commodity  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 3 subject to this law or conventions.  
Certificate of 
Origin  : A document identifying the country of origin concerning the commodity.  
 
Preferential 
Origin  : 
Country of origin identified according to the conventions in 
order to give the commodity a preferential treatment at the 
export or import.  
Non -Preferential 
Origin  : : Country of origin identified according to the general 
application of rules of origin without giving the commodity a 
preferential treatment at the export or import.  
Label of Origin  : Any statement points to or indicates that the commodities had been manufactured or produced in a country, whether stated on the commodity itself or on its cover in 
non -removable manner.  
Conventions  : 
International or regional or bilateral conventions to which 
the State is a party.  
Country of 
Origin  : Country in which the comodity is produced or manufactured or extracted in accordance with the rules of origin.  
Preferential Treatment  : Granting the commodities a relief or reduction from customs fees or granting them any other benefits at the import or 
export as identified by provisions of the conventions.  
 
Chapter Two  
Rules Identifying the Country of Origin

Article (2)  
Wholly Obtained Commodities  
The commodity shall be deemed to belong to the country of origin from which it was wholly 
obtained in any of the following cases:  
1. Mineral products extracted from its soils or from its seabed.   
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 4 2. Vegetable products harvested or gathered in that country.  
3. Live animals born and raised in that country.  
4. Products obtained from live animals in that country.  
5. Products obtained from hunting or fishing in that country.  
6. Products obtained from maritime fishing and other products taken from the sea by a 
vessel outside territorial waters of that country. Products obtained aboard a factory ship 
of that vessel, in accordance with controls stated by the Executive Regulation of this law.  
7. Products used articles, collected in that country and fit only for the recovery of raw materials.  
8. Waste of products resulted from manufacturing operations carried out therein.  
9. Products extracted from marine soil or subsoil outside that country's territorial waters, 
provided that the country has sole rights to work that soil or subsoil.  
10. Commodities produced in that country solely from the products referred to in paragraphs (1) to (9) of this Article.

Article (3)  
Wholly processed, produced or manufactured Commodities  
Product shall be deemed from the country in which it is obtained and that product contains 
materials that are not fully obtained inside it, provided these materials are processed, 
produced or manufactured wholly inside the country in accordance with the standards and 
controls stipulated by the Executive Regulation of this law.

Article (4)  
Minimal Operations  
Operations shall be deemed as insufficient or secondary, whether made separately or 
together, to give a commodity the originating status in any of the following cases:  
1. Operations necessary for assuring the proper preservation of commodities for the 
purposes of transportation or storage including, ventilation, diffusion, drying, cooling, 
removal of damaged parts, etc.  
2. Simple operations conducted on the products including, removal of dust, filtering,  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 5 ordering, classification, washing, varnishing, cutting, changing and disengaging and 
assembling of covers, simple packaging in bottles, vials, bags, cans or boxes, labelling the 
trademarks on the products or its boxes, simple mix -up, animal slaughtering, in addition 
to other similar simple operations.  
  
Chapter Three  
Proving the Country of Origin

Article (5)  
Cases of proving the Country of Origin  
1. Imported commodities shall prove the country of origin by providing the certificate of 
origin or any other documents issued by the competent authority in the export country 
or by a non -removable label of origin on the product, in accordance with the rules 
adopted within the framework of the agreements and cases determined by the Executive 
Regulation of this law.  
2. As an exception of the provisions of paragraph (1) of this article, commodities imported 
to the State may be exempted from providing the certificate of origin or the documents 
proving the country of origin in accordance with the cases determined by the Executive 
Regulation of this law.

Article (6)  
Issuing the Certificates of Origin  
1. The Ministry shall issue the preferential certificates of origin for the national 
commodities exported abroad in accordance with the rules and forms set out in the 
agreements and procedures determined by the Executive Regulation of this law.  
2. The Ministry shall issue the preferential certificates of origin for the national 
commodities exported abroad, and the Chamber shall issue them in coordination with 
the Ministry, in accordance with the general rules and forms and procedures determined 
by the Executive Regulation of this law.  
3. The Chamber shall issue the certificates of origin for the foreign commodities  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 6 re-exported in accordance with the regulations and procedures adopted thereby.

Article (7)  
Validity of Certificate of Origin  
Validity of preferential and non -preferential certificate of origin shall be in accordance with 
the periods determined by the Executive Regulation of this law, unless otherwise stated.

Article (8)  
Register of Certificates of Origin  
1. The department shall establish a register to record all the preferential and 
non -preferential certificates of origin and shall keep a copy at least for three years.  
2. The Executive Regulation of this law shall determine the rules and controls to establish 
and keep these registries.  
  
Chapter Four  
Controlling the Validity of Country of Origin

Article (9)  
Verifying the Validity of Country of Origin  
1. In coordination with the department, in exceptional cases, upon the occurrence of 
serious doubts concerning the validity of the certificate of origin, or origin of concerned 
products, in case of duplication of the origin between the certificate and proof or if there 
is more than a proof on the origin of the commodities, the Customs Departments may: Reject to grant the preferential treatment to the products imported to the State till the 
Department ensures the validity of certificate of origin or the real origin of the imported 
products.  
2. In case of rejection to grant the preferential treatment to the products imported to the 
State, the Department shall return the certificate of origin and related documents to the 
competent authority in the country of export, clarifying the reasons beyond the request 
to verify the validity of country of origin or the origin of imported products. The  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 7 Executive Regulation shall determine the reasons and procedures to verify the validity of 
certificates of origin.  
3. Subjec t to Clause (1) of this Article, the Customs Departments shall offer the importer to 
release these products in accordance with the customs procedures stipulated in the customs laws of the State.

Article (10)  
Review of Documents of Country of Origin  
1. The Department may carry out a subsequent, selective review for the documents of proof of country of origin when it finds serious doubts on the validity of these 
documents or the origin of the specified products or data and information provided for 
the proof of country of origin and other relevant reasons.  
2. The C ustoms Departments shall automatically and periodically, or upon a request from 
the Department, provide the Ministry with copies of preferential certificates of origin upon importing to the State, in order to carry out a subsequent selective review for the 
validity of certificates of origin or the real country of origin of the imported products.  
3. In coordination with the Customs Departments, the Department may suspend granting 
the preferential treatment for the products under verification within the verification 
period, provided that the importer is offered to release these products in accordance 
with the customs procedures stipulated in the customs laws in the State.  
4. The Executive Regulation of this Law shall specify the controls and procedures of subsequent review stipulated in paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of this Article.

Article (11)  
Simple and Formal Differences  
1. The detection of simple differences between the data stated in the certificate of origin and customs clearance documents shall not cause the certificate of origin to be 
automatically invalid whenever these documents are proved to be related to the 
provided products. The executive Regulation of this Law shall specify the requirements 
to determine simple differences between the data stated in the certificate of origin and  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 8 customs clearance documents.  
2. The typographical or formal errors in the certificate of origin or the customs clearance 
shall not justify the rejection of the document if such errors do not result in serious 
doubts on the validity of data stated in these documents.

Article (12)  
Obligations of Ministry towards the Country of Origin  
1. The Ministry shall reply to all subsequent requests of verification referred thereto from the competent authority in the country of import with respect to the preferential 
certificates of origin issued thereby for the national products.  
2. The Ministry shall settle the disputes which may arise with the importing or exporting countries with respect to the application of rules of origin or other relevant cases.  
3. The Ministry shall cooperate and coordinate with the competent authority in the country 
of import for the proper application of rules of origin and shall provide it with templates 
for the seals used in the preferential certificates of origin.  
  
Chapter Five

Article (13)  
Objection, Grievance and Appeal  
1. Anyone the department rejects to grant him the preferential certificate of origin may 
object before the Director of the Department within (7) seven working days from the 
date of the notice sent to him. His objection should be considered within no more than 
(10) ten working days from the date of submission of the request. In case of rejection of 
the request, the relevant person shall be informed in writing and such rejection shall be 
reasoned.  
2. Anyone whose objection is denied or whose request is not replied may appeal before the 
Minister within (10) ten working days from the date of rejection of the request. His 
grievance shall be decided within no more than (20) twenty working days from the date 
of submitting the grievance. In case of rejection of the request, the relevant person  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 9 should be informed in writing and such rejection shall be reasoned.  
3. Anyone the Minister has rejected his grievance may appeal before the competent courts 
in State subject to the aforementioned Civil Procedures Law.  
  
Chapter Six  
Penal and Administrative Penalties

Article (14)  
Penal Punishments  
Without prejudice to any more  severe penalty set forth in any other law, whoever falsifies 
the data of commodities imported to the State or exported outside it or provides misleading 
information with a view to cheating in the certificate of origin or proof of origin, shall be 
punished of temporary imprisonment and a fine that is not less than AED (100.000) one 
hundred thousand dirhams and not more than AED (500.000) five hundred thousand 
dirhams, or by one of these two punishments. The punishment shall be doubled in case of repetition.

Article (15)  
Administrative Penalties  
The Minister or his delegate may impose on the exporter, whether natural or legal personalty, upon violating any of the provisions stipulated in this law, its Executive 
Regulation and resolutions issued for its enforcement, any of the following administrative 
penalties:  
1. Warning.  
2. Temporary suspension of granting the preferential and non- preferential certificates of 
origin for no more than a year.  
3. Permanent suspension of granting the preferential and non- preferential certificates of 
origin.  
  
  
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 10 Chapter Seven  
 Final Provisions

Article (16)  
Power of Judicial Officer  
Employees of the Ministry, who are determined by a resolution by the Minister of Justice in 
agreement with the Minister shall be granted the power of judicial officer in proving the 
violation of the provisions of this Law and the resolutions issued for its enforcement, each 
within their area of competence.

Article (17)  
Fees  
The Cabinet shall issue a resolution to determine the fees of preferential and 
non -preferential certificates of origin issued by the Ministry, upon the proposal of the 
Minister of Finance.

Article (18)  
Executive Regulation  
The Cabinet shall issue the Executive Regulation of this Law, upon the proposal of the 
Minister, within six months as of the date of its issuance.

Article (19)  
Repeals  
1. The Federal Law No. (6) of 1983  with respect to identifying t he fees imposed on 
certificates of origin for the national products of the United Arab Emirates and its 
executive resolutions shall be repealed. It, as well as its executive resolutions, shall 
remain in force until the issuance of the Cabinet resolution mentioned in article (17) of this Law.  
2. Any provision that contradicts or conflicts with the provisions of this Law shall be repealed.   
Federal Law No. (11) of 2019 on the Rules and Certificates of Origin 11

Article (20)  
Publication and Enforcement  
This Law shall be published in the official Gazette and shall come into force after a month 
from the date of its publication.  
 
  
Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan  
President of the United Arab Emirates  
 
Issued by us in the presidential palace at Abu Dhabi: on 22/Rabiaa II/1441  
AH Corresponding to: 19 December 2019 AD