QuestionsQuestions (Republic Act No. 4109)
RA 4109 converts the Division of Standards into a Bureau of Standards and empowers it to establish standards and perform inspection and certification for Philippine products and for imported commodities, including measures affecting discharge/release and trade-related prohibitions.
The Division of Standards under the Bureau of Commerce is converted into a Bureau of Standards under the Department of Commerce and Industry.
The Bureau is headed by a Director of Standards and two Assistant Directors (one technical, one administrative). The Director and Assistant Directors are appointed by the President with the consent of the Commission on Appointments.
Personnel of the Bureau whose duties and functions are technical in nature are exempt from the operation of the Wage and Position Classification Office.
The Bureau handles: establishment of standards and inspection of agricultural, forest, mineral, fish, industrial, and other products of the Philippines for which no standards have yet been fixed by law or regulations; inspection and certification of the quality of imported commodities (including country-of-origin determination and conformity to buyer/importer requirements/specifications); and prohibition of discharge/release of articles from countries without trade relations.
It inspects and certifies quality to determine country of origin and whether the articles satisfy buyer/importer requirements or specifications for domestic consumption.
Physical, biological, and/or chemical tests or analyses may be undertaken in any branch of the Government with facilities for the purpose until the Bureau establishes its own facilities.
Subject to approved rules, the Director may establish standards for covered products; inspect and sample to determine standards; and certify the inspection and standard of the products.
They must inspect and sample to determine compliance with kind/class/grade/quality/standard, and certify that the products satisfy these requirements before purchase.
Before sale, producers/manufacturers/dealers offering for sale commodity affecting life, health, and property must allow inspection and sampling to determine compliance and certification that the products satisfy the requirements.
The Director must inspect and sample to determine and certify that the whole shipment satisfies the buyer’s or importer’s requirements as to kind/class/grade/quality/standard.
Its customs or shipping papers/documents must be stamped conspicuously with the caption: “not under government commodity standardization,” and it may be released by the Collector of Customs in accordance with existing tariff/customs laws.
Before the Bureau of Customs releases/discharges imported commodities covered by Section 3, the Bureau must inspect to sample and determine the country of origin and certify that the whole shipment satisfies local buyer/importer requirements.
They must be labeled or stamped conspicuously with the caption “do not conform to buyer's or importer's specifications.”
Imports of any article from such countries are to be confiscated and/or seized at the disposal of the government.
No customs export entry, import entry, declaration, release certificate, manifest, clearance, import permit, or permit to ship abroad/discharge shall be issued unless the products/commodities are first inspected in accordance with Section 4 subsections (b) to (e) (as applicable).
They cannot be sold/disposed of or exported unless and until their standard has been certified by the Director (or authorized representatives) as conforming to the established standard for local distribution and/or export.
Certification is not required if the manufacturer/exporter applies under oath that the shipment is in small quantity and the product is for private use or consumption only.
Collectors of customs are duty-bound to enforce the prohibition on exportation and/or importation under the Act.
Imprisonment of not less than two nor more than six months and a fine of not less than Php 500 nor more than Php 1,000, with deportation if the person is an alien; if false/misleading data was given under oath, the maximum penalty for false testimony is imposed.