RULES AND REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE IMPORTATION OF AGRICULTURAL AND FISH AND FISHERY/AQUATIC PRODUCTS, FERTILIZERS, PESTICIDES AND OTHER AGRICULTURAL CHEMICALS, VETERINARY DRUGS…

WHEREAS, it is the paramount objective of the government in view of
trade liberalization to adopt and enforce rules and regulations
necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health, ensuring
that the agricultural and fishery products are safe for consumers and to
prevent the introduction, establishment and spread of pests or diseases
among animals or plants.

WHEREAS, smuggled agricultural and fish and fishery/aquatic products,
fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural chemicals, veterinary
drugs and biological products pose serious threat to human, animal or
plant life or health.

WHEREAS, the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on the
Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures recognizes that
member-countries have the right to make SPS measures necessary to
protect human, animal or plant life or health.

WHEREAS, the Department’s various bureaus and agencies have their own
set of rules and regulations on the importation of various products
under their coverage.

WHEREAS, there is a need to streamline, harmonize and strengthen
these various rules and regulations on the importation of various
products under their coverage.

WHEREAS, there is a need to streamline, harmonize and strengthen
these various rules and regulations to enhance transparency and in
order to facilitate trade without compromising safety of human, animal
or plant life or health or causing damage to the environment.

WHEREAS, there is a need to establish and maintain an effective and
comprehensive regulatory system to ensure that the required sanitary and
phytosanitary measures are met.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARTHUR C. YAP, Secretary of the Department of
Agriculture, in accordance with the powers vested in me by law, do
hereby issue this Administrative Order governing the rules and
regulations on the importation of agricultural and fish and
fishery/aquatic products, fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural
chemicals, veterinary drugs and biological products into the
Philippines for the information, guidance and compliance of all
concerned.

SECTION 1. Definition of Terms –

A. Definitions. As used in this Order, the following words, terms and phrases shall be construed to mean as follows:

1. Agricultural products – products enumerated in Annex 1 of
the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. A listing of said products is hereto
attached as Annex “A”^[*]

2. Animal by-products – includes hides, horns, skin, bones, hooves, feathers and other parts or products animals

3. Animal products – fresh meat, meat products gelatin, eggs,
egg products, milk, milk products and honey when intended for human
consumption, meat-meal, liver-meal, bone-meal, blood-meal, feather-meal,
pork fat and milk products when intended for use in animal feeding,
animal organs, tissues and organic fluids to be used in the preparation
of pharmaceutical products or of surgical devices, products of animal
origin for agricultural or industrial use, except those in tended for
food for human consumption, pharmaceutical or surgical purposes and
animal feeding.

4. Animals as potential agricultural crop pests – certain
species of animals that are liable to become crop pests in all life
stages such as insects, monkeys, rodents, bats, birds, snails and other
forms of animal life capable of causing injury to agricultural crops.

5. Bill of Lading – document evidencing receipt of goods for
shipment issued by person engaged in business of transporting or
forwarding goods and it includes airway bill. It is receipt for goods,
contract for their carriage and is documentary evidence of title to
goods.

6. Biomolecules – organic molecules and their synthetic forms occurring in living organisms.

7. Competent authority – bureau or agency, mandated by law,
with having responsibility and competence for ensuring and supervising
the implementation of SPS measures or other standard codes.

8. Condemnation – declaration after due examination and
judgement of the products according to the approved protocols by a
competent authority as being non-compliant to the SPS measures including
the determination of unsafe or unsuitable products for human
consumption and requiring appropriate disposal thereof.

9. Confiscation – taking in to custody of products by the
competent authority for the proper disposal for having been the
subject of violation of herein rules and regulations or any pertinent
law or rule or regulation.

10. Consignment – quantity of agricultural or fish,
fishery/aquatic products, fertilizers, pesticides, or other agricultural
chemicals, veterinary drugs or biological products bound for a customer
into the country and conveyed by one means of transportation.

11. DA Border Inspector – includes BFAR Fisheries Quarantine
Officer, BAI Animal Quarantine Officer, NMIS Meat Control Officer and
Meat Inspector and BPI Plant Quarantine Officer stationed in every
international seaport and airport and inspection area/ facility in the
Philippines who perform quarantine and product safety/quality
inspection, documentation and clearance.

12. Feed – a mixture of feed ingredients by specific formula as food for animals.

13. Feed ingredient – any single article, raw material or
feeding stuff which enters into the composition of a feed or a ration,
concentrate, supplement or additive.

14. Fertilizer – includes any substance, solid or liquid or any
nutrient element or elements organic or inorganic singly or in
combination with other materials, applied directly to the soil or to the
plant for the purpose of promoting plant growth, increasing crop yield
or improving their quality.

15. Final border inspection – last form of inspection and
clearance of agricultural products, fish and fishery products including
agricultural inputs being undertaken by the Department of Agriculture
Border Inspectors (DABI) assigned at the final point of border control
to ensure that such imported products/commodities have finally satisfied
the DA safety, quality and environmental requirements before their
distribution for domestic use.

16. Fish and fishery/aquatic products – products enumerated in
the World Customs Organization (WCO) Harmonized Tariff System including
finfish, mollusks, crustaceans, echinoderms, marine mammals and all
other species of aquatic flora and fauna and all other products of
aquatic living resources in any form. A listing of said products is
hereto attached as Annex “B”.^[*]

17. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) – living organisms,
the genetic material of which have been altered or modified by any of
the varieties of modern molecular biology to make them capable of
producing new substances or perform new functions.

18. Importation – act of bringing into the country by sea, land
or air foreign products intended for planting, consumption,
manufacturing, trading, distribution, domestication, formulation,
repacking or by any other purposes.

19. Importer – owner or consignee or clientele of shippers of
merchandise or for whose account or benefit the consignment is made.

20. Import Permit – written certificate issued by the
concerned authority stating the volume of consignment. This includes the
minimum access volume (MAV) import certificate.

21. International SPS Certificate – a written guarantee issued by a
competent authority from the country of origin, certifying that the
products have been handled, processed and packed in a hygienic manner
and do not contain microorganisms, harmful substances that may pose food
safety hazard and endanger human, animal or plant life or health and
includes international health certificate, international phytosanitary
certificate and international veterinary health certificate.

22. Meat – fresh, chilled or frozen edible carcass including offal derived from food animals.

23. Meat product – any product capable of use as human food
which is made wholly or in part from any meat or other portion of the
carcass of any food animals, except products which contain meat or other
portions of such carcasses only in a relatively small proportion or
historically have not been considered by consumers as products of the
meat industry and which are exempted from definition as a meat product
by the Secretary under such conditions as he may prescribed to assure
that the meat or other portions of such carcasses contained in such
product are not adulterated and that such products are not represented
as meat products.

24. Microorganisms – include but not limited to viruses,
bacteria, fungi, parasites and other similar organisms and their
products in any form.

25. Must ship out by date – date appearing in the SPS
Clearance, within said period, the actual product/consignment must have
left the country of origin.

26. Other agricultural chemicals – chemicals, chemical inputs
and chemical compounds not covered under the definition of fertilizer
and pesticide but utilized by the agricultural sector.

27. Packaging – procedure of protecting the products by a wrapper, container or any other suitable device.

28. Packing materials – includes leaves, straw, wood, bark
and other plant materials used as wrapping, packing or covering and are
capable of harboring plant pests to pack any imported products.

29. Person – any natural or juridical person such as
corporation, partnership, society, association, firm, company and other
legal entity.

30. Pesticide – any substance or product or mixture thereof,
including active ingredients, adjuvants and pesticide formulations
intended to control, prevent, destroy, repel or mitigate directly or
indirectly any pest. The term shall be understood to include
insecticide, fungicide, bactericide, nematocide, herbicide,
molluscicide, avicide, rodenticide, plant regulator, defoliant,
dessicant and the like.

31. Plants – living plants and parts thereof including seeds,
cuttings, rhizomes, bulbs and corms, grafts, leaves, roots, scions and
other plant parts that are capable of propagation.

32. Plant pest – any form of plant or animal life or any
pathogenic agent injurious or potentially injurious to plants or plant
products.

33. Plant products – products derived from plants either in
their natural state or in manufactured or processed form and are capable
of harboring plant pests.

34. Preliminary border inspection – initial inspection and
examination of agricultural products, fish, and fishery products
including agricultural inputs being undertaken by the DA Border
Inspectors (DABI) assigned at the ports of entry to ensure that such
imported products/commodities have satisfied the DA quarantine and
inspection requirements prior to their release to the final point of
border control.

35. Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures – measures relating to
food safety and quality, and animal and plant safety and quality
standards, rules and regulations including documentary and certification
requirements in the production, handling, transport, importation,
exportation and marketing and distribution of all agricultural and
fishery products as well as the DA quarantine and product safety/quality
inspection and clearance.

36. Secretary – means the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture

37. Smuggling – importation of prohibited commodities (outright smuggling) as well as the
misdeclaration/misclassification/undervaluation of imported
goods/products in violation of the Tariff and Customs Code of the
Philippines and related laws. It also refers to the illegal entry of
imported agricultural or fish, fishery/aquatic products, fertilizers,
pesticides, or other agricultural chemicals, veterinary drugs or
biological products into Philippine territories including special
economic and free-port zones without the required SPS clearance/import
permit and/or without undergoing the mandatory DA border control
measures which include quarantine and product safety/quality inspection
and clearance.

38. SPS Clearance – document issued prior to importation by the
concerned bureau or agency to ensure that the products being imported
meet standards to protect human, animal or plant life or health,
ensuring that the agricultural and fishery products are safe for
consumers and to prevent the spread of pests or diseases among animals
or plants. Such documents also prescribes the conditions to be complied
with by the importer for the maintenance of quality and suitability of
the product for the intended purpose.

39. Veterinary biological products – viruses, bacteria, live
micro-organisms, killed micro-organisms, component or products of
micro-organism, anti-sera sera, antigens, antibodies, toxins, test kits,
or analogous products and other homologous substances whether of
natural or synthetic origin, intended for use in the diagnosis,
treatment and prophylaxis of diseases of animals or for the
identification of the causative organisms of a disease of animals and
for research purposes.

40. Veterinary drugs and products – any substance, including
biological products, applied or administered to food producing,
companion, aquatic, laboratory and exotic animals, whether used for
therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic purposes or for modification of
physiological functions or behaviors

B. Acronyms used in this Order shall refer to:

1. BAI – Bureau of Animal Industry
2. BFAR – Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources
3. BOC – Bureau of Customs
4. BPI – Bureau of Plant Industry
5. DA – Department of Agriculture
6. DABI – DA Border Inspector
7. FIDA – Fiber Industry Development Authority
8. FPA – Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority
9. GMO – Genetically Modified Organisms
10. NFA – National Food Authority
11. NMIS – National Meat Inspection Service
12. NTA – National Tobacco Administration
13. PCA – Philippine Coconut Authority
14. RFU – Regional Field Unit
15. SPS – Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
16. SRA – Sugar Regulatory Administration

SECTION II. Coverage

Scope – This Order covers the importation of:

A. Plant, plant products and other related materials capable of harboring plant pests to include:

1. living plants
2. nursery stocks, including vegetative parts thereof used as propagating materials.
3. seeds and nuts for planting
4. fresh fruits, vegetables and other plant products which have
been declared as prohibited/restricted import under special quarantine
orders because of being known host of dangerous plant pest or
originating from restricted areas.
5. pure culture of fungi, bacteria, virus, nematodes and other phytopathogenic materials.
6. mushroom cultures including spawn
7. algae cultures, rhizobial cultures as legume inoculants
8. soil and plant materials for isolation or organism
9. other plant cultures
10. wood packaging materials and other packing materials capable of harboring plant pests
11. frozen/chilled fruits and vegetables including diced vegetables and processed fruits.
12. grains and cereals
13. other plant products

B. Animals, animal products and by-products

C. Live/fresh/chilled/frozen fish and fishery and aquatic products including microorganisms and biomolecules.

D. Fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural chemicals

E. Feeds, feed ingredients, and other feed products

F. Meat and meat products

G. Pet Foods

H. Processed agriculture and fishery products not elsewhere specified

J. Veterinary biological products

K. Veterinary drugs and products

SECTION III. Application and Issuance for SPS Clearance –

A. Any person who desires to import any of the products enumerated
in Section II except Sec. II.A. 10 hereof must secure an Application for
SPS Clearance (Annex “D”^[*] hereof) from any of the following:

1. Issuing bureau or agency

a. BAI – for animals (including small animals that are plant
pests except insects), animal feeds and feed ingredients, animal
products and by-products including meat and meat products, eggs, milk,
dairy, veterinary drugs and biological products.

b. BFAR – for fish, fishery/aquatic products as enumerated in
Section I.A.16, fish intended for feed and products used in fish
propagation.

c. BPI – for plants and plant products as enumerated in Section II.A.

d. FPA – for fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural chemicals.

2. Concerned bureau or agency’s regional or provincial offices

Application forms may also be downloaded from the Department of Agriculture’s website.

Securing the application form and filing may be done at the
bureau or agency’s regional or provincial offices but the issuance of
the SPS Clearance shall be made at the central office of the concerned
bureau or agency.

B. Said application form must be duly accomplished along with the
payment of the non-refundable service fee and submitted to the
concerned bureau or agency with the following documents:

1. Pro-forma invoice
2. Notarized affidavit of undertaking as required by the concerned bureau or agency
3. Official Receipt
4. Other commodity specific requirements, including permits/clearances from other concerned agencies

C. Upon receipt of the duly accomplished application form
together with the other requirements, the concerned bureau or agency
shall determine if it is sufficient in form and substance and inform the
applicant accordingly. If the application is incomplete or not in the
proper format, the applicant shall be informed accordingly and the
application form and other requirements returned immediately.

D. The application found sufficient in form and substance shall
be officially accepted and recorded by the central office of the
concerned bureau or agency and shall be processed within five (5)
working days. The application shall only be approved and issued a SPS
Clearance by the concerned bureau or agency upon determination of the
following:

1. The exporting company or country/zone is
registered/accredited by the concerned DA bureau or agency and is in
“good standing”

2. Latest advisory of the relevant international bodies (OIE,
IPPC, Codex and other DA recognized bodies) and/or the exporting
government on the “absence” of relevant disease/pest outbreaks,
contaminations and other SPS-related risks

3. The applicant importer is licensed by the concerned DA
bureau or agency and is in “good standing”, except when the concerned
bureau or agency determines that importer licensing is not required.

4. The product is registered with and/or included in the list
of allowable commodities of the concerned DA bureau or agency, if
applicable

5. The applicable risk management protocols that are to be
prescribed including certifications of exporting governments, if
applicable; and

6. Other information pertinent to SPS concerns.

E. Upon approval of the application and payment of a SPS
Clearance fee and such other charges for administrative and technical
services rendered in connection with the importation, a SPS Clearance
(Annex “E”^[*] hereof) shall be issued as follows except for FPA which shall follow its existing procedures:

1. Four (4) copies for consignments by sea. The original shall
be retained by the concerned bureau or agency for release to the
applicant only upon presentation of photocopies of the (a) consignment’s
bill of lading; (b) invoice and (c) international SPS certificate to
the same DA bureau or agency which shall be presented to the DA Border
Inspector for cargo inspection and clearance. The other three copies
shall be furnished to (1) applicant to execute importation; (2)
transmitted to the Collector of Customs at the port of entry and (3)
retained by the concerned bureau or agency to be filed with the
application.

2. Four (4) copies for consignments by air. The original shall
be issued to the applicant for presentation to the DA Border Inspector
at the port of entry. One (1) copy shall be transmitted to the Collector
of Customs at the port of entry and two (2) copies shall be retained by
the concerned bureau or agency with one (1) copy being filed with the
application.

F. Close coordination/consultation shall be observed in
processing the issuance of SPS clearances for products involving more
than one DA bureau/agency, as follows:

1. BPI with BAI (unprocessed feeds and feed ingredients of
plant origin such as grains), FIDA (for fibers including coir), PCA (for
coconuts, coconut products and by-products, including processed coconut
coir, and oil palm and its by-products), NTA (for tobacco), SRA (for
sugar beet and sugar cane), NFA (for palay and rice), and BFAR (for
seaweeds and aquatic plants)

2. BAI with NMIS (for meat and meat products), BPI (for small
animals that are plant pests) and BFAR [for brine shrimp (artemia
cyst)]

3. FPA with BFAR (for agro chemicals for fishery and aquatic use) and BPI and BAI (for other agricultural chemicals)

G. Must ship out by date – The SPS Clearance shall indicate the
period for which the actual product/consignment should have left the
country of origin which period is reckoned from the date of issuance of
the SPS Clearance as follows:

1. 20 days for fresh and chilled fruits and vegetables;
2. 30 days for eggs, milk and dairy products, animal feeds and
feed ingredients and other products of animal origin i.e. embryos and
semen, frozen fruits and vegetables.
3. 60 days for live animals, fish and fishery/aquatic products,
meat and meat products, fertilizers, pesticides and other agricultural
chemicals.
4. 90 days for veterinary biological and drug products
5. 60 days for all other products not specified immediately above.

For clarity and ease of inspection and clearance at the port, the
“Date of Issuance” and “Must ship out by date” must be both indicated
by the issuing bureau/agency on the SPS Clearance.

The SPS Clearance shall be valid for a period specified above
unless sooner revoked for any of the reasons set forth in this Section
K. An unused SPS clearance shall be considered automatically cancelled
after its must ship out by date.

A particular consignment of a product shall be loaded at the port
of the country of origin on or before the last day of the “Must Ship
Out by Date” of the corresponding SPS Clearance. Only such a consignment
that is shipped not later than this date shall remain having a valid
SPS Clearance once it arrives at any of the Philippine international
ports otherwise it shall be subjected to confiscation procedures as
provided for under Section VII hereof.

In no case shall the date of loading at the port of the country
of origin as specified in the bill of lading be earlier than the date of
issuance of the SPS Clearance otherwise it shall be subjected to
confiscation procedures as provided for under Section VII hereof.

H. However, the fish, fishery/aquatic products must arrive within
thirty (30) days from date of issuance of the SPS Clearance in case of
consignment by air and within sixty (60) days in case of consignment by
sea.

I. The SPS Clearance shall be good for one shipment and is not transferable to other persons.

J. If there shall be a required efficacy/expiration date/product
shelf life/best before date for the product, the same shall be indicated
in the SPS Clearance.

K. The SPS Clearance may be suspended or revoked at any time for any of the following grounds;

1. Providing false information in the application form or in any of the accompanying documents to the application.

2. Misdeclaration of consignment

3. Violation of relevant SPS and biosafety rules and regulations or any conditions imposed in the SPS Clearance.

4. Refusal to allow the inspection of the physical containment facility or intermediate destination of the product.

5. Legal authority to commercially distribute the product in the country of origin has been suspended or revoked; or

6. New technical information becomes available to the concerned
bureau or agency indicating that the product, if allowed for its
intended use will result to risks to human, animal or plant health or
life and the environment.

L. Modification, revocation or cancellation of the SPS Clearance
shall be without prejudice to being further subjected to penalties.

SECTION IV. Appeal – Decision of the concerned bureau or
agency head may be appealed to the DA Secretary within ten (10) days
from notice of the action.

SECTION V. Fees and Charges – The current amount of fees
and charges being imposed and collected by the concerned bureau or
agency shall continue to be observed.

SECTION VI. Inspection at the Port of Entry –

A. Forty-eight (48) hours before the arrival of a consignment at
the preliminary border inspection site (port of entry), the importer or
his authorized representative shall notify the concerned DA Border
Inspector by completely filling out Section 1 – Application for Import
Inspection as contained in DA Border Inspector’s Report Form (Annex “F”^[*]
hereof) and submitting the same. After the products have been inspected
and before removing them from the place of landing, the importer shall
also indicate in the said form, the type and route of transport, the
complete name and address of the ultimate consignee and the exact
location of the final place of destination.

B. The products and if included, their packing materials shall
not be removed or transferred from the place of landing nor released to
the importer without the written approval of the DA Border Inspector.
Provided, that official covering document issued by the BOC allowing
transfer of such cargoes to bonded warehouses, container yards and other
places outside the customs zone shall first be coursed to the DA Border
Inspector for notation and/or approval before actual transfer
commences.

C. A consignment may be in bulk or consist of a number of
packages, crates or cartons containing either uniform or various unit
sizes of the product containers, arriving all at one time in one port of
entry or in several portions or batches, all arriving in one port
provided the whole consignment is covered only by one (1) bill of
lading/airway bill.

D. Upon arrival, the consignment shall be subjected to the following DA border inspection requirements;

1. Documentation – Original SPS Clearance, original
International SPS Certificate from competent authority of the country of
origin, airway bill/bill of lading and invoice and if applicable,
import permit must be presented and surrendered to the DA Border
Inspector. In the absence of an International SPS Certificate, the
consignment shall be kept in a storage facility for a period not
exceeding ten (10) days to allow the importer to submit said document,
provided the date of the SPS certificate is not earlier than the date of
the SPS Clearance. Failure to comply with the same within the specified
period, the consignment shall be returned to the country of origin or
disposed of with the expenses involving storage, return to origin or
disposition of the consignment being borne by the importer.

2. Preliminary border inspection – The DA Border Inspector,
together with the BOC examiner at the port shall conduct routine
inspection of the consignment. Depending on the result of the routine
inspection which essentially involves sensory-based examination, the DA
Border Inspector may perform rigid inspection of the consignment which
covers chemical and microbial examination.

Preliminary border inspection shall be conducted by the DA
Border Inspector in the presence of the importer or his authorized
representative. Thereafter the DA Border Inspector shall place a stamp
on the BOC entry permit to indicate whether the consignment is cleared
for final release, on hold, for confiscation or transfer to an
accredited establishment for final border inspection and clearance.

3. Final border inspection – A final border inspection shall
be conducted and/or consignment integrity is initially checked at the
port and a detailed examination, i.e. sampling and laboratory analysis
is further required to ensure compliance with health and safety
requirements.

E. In case inspection of some products/commodities or consignment
may involve two or more bureaus or agencies, the concerned bureaus or
agencies shall coordinate/consult with each other in clearing said
products/commodities or consignment.

SECTION VII. Confiscation and Disposal of Refused Entry Products/Commodities –

A. If it appears from the examination of subject
product/commodity that (1) the product/commodity has been manufactured,
processed or packed under unsanitary conditions or (2) product/commodity
is forbidden or restricted from sale in the country in which it was
produced or from which it was exported or (3) the product/commodity is
adulterated, contaminated, dangerous, noxious, misbranded, misdeclared,
unregistered or in violation of the terms and conditions embodied in the
SPS Clearance; this Order and sanitary and/or phytosanitary measures;
4) arriving without the required SPS Clearance and International SPS
Certificate; 5) using a fake SPS Clearance then the DA Border Inspector
shall so inform the BOC examiner and such product/commodity shall be
seized, confiscated or refused admission, unless such product/commodity
is exported under regulations prescribed by the Bureau of Customs within
ninety (90) days of the date of notice of such refusal or within such
time as may be permitted pursuant to such regulations. If the
product/commodity arrives at a port of entry other than Metro Manila,
the collection of such samples shall be the responsibility of the
regional office having jurisdiction over the port of entry.

B. Any product or commodity, at the preliminary border
inspection, found to be deficient, damaged, adulterated, injurious or in
violation of this order, shall be confiscated after the DA Border
Inspector informs the BOC district collector of his decision for the
latter’s appropriate action. The same procedure shall be followed
should the product/com modity be in transit. In case of final border
inspection, the DA Border Inspector shall be the one to take appropriate
action after his findings and decision to confiscate the consignment.
In all cases, the impounding and disposition shall be at the expense of
the importer.

The Secretary or his duly authorized representative may formally
investigate the case and conduct a summary hearing on the proper disposition of the product / commodity. If the disposition shall have been
finally decided, the same shall be at the expense of the importer.

C. A Notice of Confiscation shall state the reason/s for the confiscation, a copy of said Notice is hereto attached as Annex “G”^[*].
Three (3) copies of the same shall be issued as follows: one (1) copy
shall be given to the BOC district collector; one (1) copy to the
importer and one (1) copy shall be retained by the DA Border Inspector.
Further, the notice shall indicate the date of condemnation and disposal
of the products or commodities.

D. All products or commodities imported or brought into the
Philippines unlawfully shall be disposed of in any of the following
manners:

1. Confiscated and destroyed
2. Returned to the country of origin
3. Shipped to a third country

In no case shall a confiscated consignment be auctioned, redeemed, donated or sold by any government bureau or agency.

E. All expenses (including travel, per diem or subsistence,
overtime pay and premium pay) of officers or employees of the Philippine
government in connection with the destruction or disposition of the
seized product/commodity and all expenses in connection with the
storage, cargo or labor with respect to any product/commodity refused
admission shall be paid by the importer.

F. The impounding or seizure shall not be a bar to subsequent
prosecution in the court of the person/s concerned in accordance with law.

SECTION VIII. Penalties – The existing laws and rules and
regulations of the concerned bureau or agency prescribing the
violations and corresponding penalties shall be applied and imposed.

SECTION IX. Transitory Provision – All in-transit
consignments of the covered products/commodities which are shipped out
from the country of origin prior to the effectivity of this Order shall
be subjected to the provisions of the concerned bureau or agency’s
rules and regulations.

SECTION X. Non-exclusivity – All existing rules
and regulations, policies, procedures and standards not inconsistent
with this Order shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SECTION XI. Repealing Clause –
All existing administrative orders, rules and regulations or parts
thereof, which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Order are
hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION XII. Separability Clause – If any portion of
this Order is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other portions
thereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full
force and effect.

SECTION XIII. Effectivity – This Administrative Order
shall take effect fifteen (15) days after publication in two (2)
newspapers of general circulation and its filing with the National
Administrative Register, U. P. Law Center.

Adopted: 7 May 2009

(SGD.) ATTY. ARTHUR C. YAP
Secretary

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^[*] Not Filed with ONAR.