Import and Export (Amendment) Bill 2025 gazetted
The Government published the Import and Export (Amendment) Bill 2025 in the Gazette today (March 21) to make technical amendments to the Import and Export Ordinance (Cap. 60) and other relevant pieces of legislation for the implementation of Phase 3 services of the Trade Single Window (TSW).
A spokesman for the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau said, "The Government is implementing the TSW in three phases to provide a one-stop electronic platform for the trade to lodge business-to-government trade documents for trade declaration and cargo clearance. The Bill aims to provide the legal basis for Phase 3 of the TSW, such that the trade can make use of the system to submit Import and Export Declaration (TDEC), Cargo Manifest as well as applications for Certificate of Origin (CO) and Permit for Dutiable Commodities (DCP)."
At present, the Government Electronic Trading Services (GETS) is the only electronic platform for the submission of TDEC, Cargo Manifest and applications for CO and DCP, which are governed by different pieces of legislation. To implement Phase3 of the TSW, the Government proposes to make technical amendments to relevant existing legal provisions to replace GETS by the TSW for the submission of those trade documents, and to remove GETS-related provisions from the legislation.
In addition, the Bill makes necessary legislative amendments for some of the Phase3 services, including the introduction of value-added service provider and its regulatory framework, allowing the trade to submit pre-shipment TDEC and Cargo Manifest on a voluntary basis, the introduction of electronic road Cargo Manifest and the digitalisation of return of licences service. The Bill also includes provisions on transitional arrangements to allow parallel run of TSW Phase 3 and GETS for a certain period of time to provide sufficient time for the trade to migrate to the new system.
"The implementation of the TSW is a major business and operational process reengineering exercise. It overhauls and enhances the document submission workflows between participating government agencies and the trade. At the same time, it enhances the efficiency of cargo clearance in Hong Kong and helps maintain Hong Kong's status as an international trade centre and a logistics hub. The Government is developing the information system of Phase 3, with the target of rolling out the services by batches from 2026 onwards," the spokesman added.
The Bill will be introduced into the Legislative Council for first and second readings on April 2.
FS visits companies in Beijing
The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, who is currently in Beijing, made visits to a number of companies today (March 22). He will also attend the dinner of the China Development Forum this evening.
In the morning, Mr Chan visited a leading pop cultural entertainment company on the Mainland. This company, listed in Hong Kong, operates several popular intellectual property (IP) artistic toys that are well-received both domestically and globally. Mr Chan visited the company's thematic park and met with its senior management to understand their business status and development plans. He expressed his pleasure that the company, as a leading cultural and creative enterprise, has successfully used Hong Kong as a platform to enter both regional and global markets. He welcomed the company's plans to establish more physical sales networks in Hong Kong and to diversify its services. Mr Chan pointed out that to promote the development of Hong Kong as a regional intellectual property trading centre, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government has proposed in the Budget to review the tax deduction arrangements for acquiring IP usage rights, etc., with a view to driving the further development of the relevant industries and ecosystem. He also encouraged the company to fully leverage Hong Kong's advantages in funding, talent and professional services by establishing its international business headquarters and corporate treasury centre in Hong Kong to support their global business development.
Mr Chan then visited another company focused on the research and development of high-precision artificial intelligence products. Their intelligent sensing solutions are widely applied in smart traffic management, self-driving, perception robots and the low-altitude economy. They have been adopted by several cities across the country, including Beijing and Shanghai. The company is planning to establish its international business headquarters and global research and development (R&D) centre in Hong Kong, and is preparing for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Mr Chan viewed the company's latest high-end products and engaged in in-depth discussions with the company's senior executives and R&D team. He encouraged them to bring their R&D teams and more technological solutions to Hong Kong, and to utilise Hong Kong's international capital, talent and professional services to further expand their business into other markets in the world.
Mr Chan will attend the China Development Forum tomorrow (March 23) and will speak at a thematic seminar during the forum.
FS visits companies in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
FS visits companies in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
FS visits companies in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
FS visits companies in Beijing Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
