GUIDE TO IMPORT

Customs clearance

Business entities and individuals participating in the foreign trade are required to undergo customs clearance and inspection of the goods and means of transport crossing the state border.

The Customs clearance is the complex formalities starting with the lodgment of customs declaration on goods and vehicles crossing the customs border at the customs and ending with customs permission to release them after inspection if required and payment of Customs duties and other taxes.

All necessary information related to the movement of goods across the state border shall be provided to the customs when declaring goods to the customs.

The location and timing of customs clearance are determined in accordance with the Customs Law and other regulations.

The customs clearance of goods crossing the customs border shall be regulated at the following Customs offices, branches and border crossings points:

Herewith the list of Customs clearance offices:

№	Name of Customs departments	Websites
1	Customs General Administration	www.customs.gov.mn
2	Customs department in Ulaanbaatar	www.ub.customs.gov.mn
3	Customs department in Buyant-Ukhaa	www.buyant-ukhaa.customs.gov.mn
4	International postal department	www.post.customs.gov.mn
5	Customs department in Selenge province	www.selenge.customs.gov.mn
6	Customs department in Zamiin-Uud	www.zamiinuud.customs.gov.mn
7	Customs department in Bulgan soum, Khovd province	www.khovd.customs.gov.mn
8	Customs department in Dornod province	www.dornod.customs.gov.mn
9	Customs department in Bayan-Ulgii province	www.bayanulgii.customs.gov.mn
10	Customs department in Orkhon province	www.orkhon.customs.gov.mn
11	Customs department in Uvs province	www.uvs.customs.gov.mn
12	Customs department in Gashuunsukhait, Umnugobi province	www.gashuunsukhait.customs.gov.mn
13	Customs department in Sainshand	www.sainshand.customs.gov.mn
14	Customs department in Darkhan-Uul province	www.darkhanuul.customs.gov.mn
15	Customs department in Shiveekhuren port of Umnugovi province	www.shiveekhuren.customs.gov.mn
16	Customs department in Azsuuri port of Zavkhan province	www.zavkhan.customs.gov.mn
17	Customs department in Gobi-Altai province	www.govialtai.customs.gov.mn
18	Customs department in Khuvsgul province	www.khuvsgul.customs.gov.mn
19	Customs department in Bichigt port of Sukhbaatar province	www.sukhbaatar.customs.gov.mn

Business entities and individuals shall submit the following Customs documents when admitting goods and means of transport  cross the state border:

• Cargo Manifesto
• Waybill or shipment documents
• Foreign trade agreement
• Pro-forma invoice
• Product packaging documentation
• Certificate of origin of goods
• Permissions, licenses of related authorities (if required)
• Product quality certificate, certificate of conformity, laboratory test results ( if required )
• Receipt of payment of customs taxes and  related fees
• Documents authorizing partial or complete exemptions from customs and other taxes (if necessary)
• Customs declaration
• Remittance for payment, price documentation
• Other materials on request

For detailed information please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn

Pre-arrival clearance

Simplified clearance of import goods crossing the state border may be performed by filling out a simple form approved by the Customs without lodgment of all the customs documents.

Customs simplified clearance may be applied on goods entering the Customs special zones and bonded zones directly from abroad, not being in transit through the customs territory and on goods sent abroad from the Customs bonded zones

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Temporary admission of goods into the customs territory

Goods can be brought into Customs territory across the border in accordance with the procedure for temporary admission or temporary entry regime in the following cases:

• Goods to be used in the manufacture, processing, assembly, modification, and repair of items for inward processing,
• Vehicles imported for project monitoring, tourism and business purposes, to be re-exported within the stated period,
• Items needed for the project monitoring and evaluation,
• Items related to exhibitions, science and education

The importer of above goods shall declare them according to the temporary admission procedure. In most cases such items will be relieved from payment of import taxes.

For detailed information please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn

Custom broker

According to the Mongolian Customs Law, goods are cleared in Mongolia through a licensed customs broker.

For detailed information please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn

Import tariffs

In Mongolia Import tariff is being imposed towards imported goods.

There are general and MFN import tariffs, the general tariff is twice higher than the MFN tariff.  The import tariff and the MFN import tariffs are subject to approval by the Parliament. 

The government approves the list of countries to apply the MFN tariffs on imported goods.

The MFN tariffs are applied for goods originated from the following foreign countries:

- A contracting party (or a member state) to a multilateral treaty on tariffs and trade to which Mongolia has acceded;

- A country as agreed  by an international treaty other than that referred to in 4.4.1 of the Customs law;

.- Other country which is considered to be appropriate to apply the MFN tariffs

For detailed information on customs tariffs and the list of goods please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn  

Import tax exemptions

Import tax exemptions are regulated by the laws approved by the Parliament and legal acts approved in accordance with them.

The following goods admitted into the Customs territory are exempted from the Customs duties:

-Special purpose equipment for use by people with disabilities, artificial bodyparts and parts thereof;

-Goods of humanitarian and irrevocable assistance (relief goods);

- Currencies and mongolian national bank-notes ordered and produced abroad;

-. Travellers’ personal effects;

- Blood, blood-products, tissues and body organs (bodyparts) for medical use;

- Fuel gas, gas containers, equipment, special purpose machines, machinery, mechanical appliances and tools or accessories thereof;

- Imported logs, timber and lengthwise sawn wood as well as seeds, seedlings and saplings of such trees or bushes (shrubs) which are not subject to prohibition

More information for goods to be exempted from import tariffs please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn

Prohibited and restricted goods

Before importing goods into Mongolia, an importer should ensure that the goods do not fall into the category of prohibited goods.  The prohibited goods cannot be imported, exported, transited, sold or circulated in Mongolia.

The importers who attempted to smuggle prohibited goods into Mongolia will be punished by fining in accordance with the laws of Mongolia, the prohibited goods will be confiscated or destructed in accordance with the customs and excise tax laws, or other measures provided by law will be taken.

For the detailed information on the prohibited goods please visit: www.Customs.gov.mn

Import permits, license and certificate

Mongolia uses most broadly the license form among non-tariff restriction methods for regulation of foreign trade.

The Government is controlling certain types of import goods to cross Mongolian border by the issuance of permits and licenses.

Business enterprises, legal persons and individuals engaged in foreign trade shall obtain special permits and licenses from the competent Authority of public administration in order to transport goods requiring license through the state border.

Special permits and licenses for the goods can be obtained from government Ministries and Agencies:

1. Ministry of food, agriculture and light industry

• Strategic Food
• Organic Food
• Alcoholic Beverages
• Tobacco
• Plant protection substances

General authority for veterinary services

• Animal feed
• Animals and their raw materials certificate (Eagle and others)
• Veterinary drugs and medical devices

2. Ministry of environment and tourism

• Ozone Depleting Substances and other substitutes and equipment containing them- National Ozone Agency
• Endangered species of wildlife and flora
• Toxic and hazardous chemicals
• Plants, their raw materials and non-timber forest

3. Ministry of health

• Medical instruments, equipment, accessories and prostheses
• Medicines and medical devices
• Narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances

4. Ministry of mining and heavy industry

• Petroleum products
• Pyrotechnic devices
• Explosives and explosive devices

6. Ministry of energy

Electricity

7. Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs

• Firearms, ammunition and firearm-like devices

1. General Agency for Specialized Inspection

• Animal, plant, its raw materials and products made from it

 Customs Valuation Methods of Imported Goods

  

In determining the Customs value of imported goods the following methods are applied in their sequences:

- The transaction value method;

- The transaction value method of identical goods;

- The transaction value method of similar goods;

- The deductive method;

- The computed method; or

-The fall-back or residual method.

Free Trade Agreement

The first Economic Partnership Agreement or Free Trade Agreement was signed between Mongolia and Japan on June 7, 2016.

Under this Agreement, Mongolia agreed to exempt or gradually reduce the import tariffs on about 5,700 types of goods, and Japan on about 9,300 types of goods.

Mongolia has joined the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Agreement and its full membership will start in 2021.

For the detailed information on FTAs please visit: www.Mongoliatradeportal .gov.mn