Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 8800)
The short title of Republic Act No. 8800 is the "Safeguard Measures Act."
The State shall promote the competitiveness of domestic industries and producers based on sound industrial and agricultural development policies and shall provide safeguard measures to protect domestic industries from increased imports which cause or threaten serious injury.
It applies to products being imported into the Philippines regardless of source.
Domestic industry refers to domestic producers as a whole of like or directly competitive products manufactured or produced in the Philippines, or those whose collective output constitutes a major proportion of the total domestic production of those products.
Serious injury means a significant impairment in the position of a domestic industry based on objective and quantifiable factors such as increased imports, market share lost, changes in sales, production, productivity, capacity utilization, profits and losses, and employment.
The Secretary shall apply a general safeguard measure upon positive final determination of the Tariff Commission that increased imports are a substantial cause of serious injury or threat to the domestic industry and must establish public interest (for non-agricultural products).
Any person, natural or juridical, belonging to or representing a domestic industry may file a verified petition with the Secretary to request action to remedy serious injury or threats thereof due to increased imports.
In critical circumstances, the Secretary may impose provisional safeguard measures in the form of tariff increases or quantitative restrictions to prevent difficult-to-repair damage to domestic industries for a maximum of 200 days.
The period of action may not exceed four years, including provisional relief periods. Extensions may be granted but the total effective period may not exceed ten years.
Such officials shall be guilty of gross neglect of duty and shall suffer dismissal from public service and absolute disqualification from holding public office.
No, there is a prohibition on concurrent recourse to general safeguard measures and special safeguard measures as stated in Section 31.
It is an additional duty imposed when import volume exceeds trigger volume or when the import price falls below a trigger price, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture, based on specific conditions.
Any interested party adversely affected by the Secretary’s ruling may file a petition for review with the Court of Tax Appeals within 30 days from receipt, but this does not suspend the imposition or collection of duties.
The Adjustment Plan outlines actions to be taken by firms, workers, communities, and associations to facilitate positive adjustment to import competition.
It is a committee composed of chairmen from Senate and House committees on Trade and Industry, Ways and Means, and Agriculture to oversee the implementation of the Safeguard Measures Act.