Goods seeking preferential treatment under ChAFTA must be accompanied by appropriate documentation. This can be done by using a ChAFTA Certificate of Origin (COO), or Declaration of Origin (DOO).

Certificate of Origin

A COO must be issued by an authorised body in the country of origin and may need to be provided, on request, to customs officials in the importing country.

A COO applies to a single shipment. It may cover one or more goods, but must not exceed 20 items (that is, 20 unique goods) and may be valid for up to one year.

For exporters to China, Australia's authorised bodies are:

• The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI)
• The Australian Industry Group (AIG)
• The International Export Certification Services (IECS)
• TradeWindow Origin (TWO)
• Wine Australia - for wine and wine-related products.

For importers to Australia, China's authorised bodies are:

• The General Administration of Customs of China
• The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade

Please note the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) ceased to provide Certificates of Origin on 21 August 2018, although COOs issued prior to this date are still valid until expiry.

Declarations of Origin

Alternatively, an exporter or producer may choose to complete a Declaration of Origin (DOO). A DOO may be accepted in place of a COO, for goods covered by an advance ruling on ChAFTA origin (see section on advance rulings on page 3 above and ChAFTA Article 4.9).

A DOO is completed by the exporter of a good and must comply with the template set out in Annex 3-B of ChAFTA [DOCX] (also available on page 21 of this guide). There is no need for a DOO to be approved by an authorised body. DOOs apply to a single shipment, may cover up to 20 items, and remain valid for one year.

The Guide to using ChAFTA to export or import goods page has more-detailed information about how you can make the most of ChAFTA.