Financial Observation: Tomorrow, the entire island will be closed, and Hainan will become a new frontier in opening up to the outside world
On December 17th, with only 24 hours left until the closure of Hainan Free Trade Port, the land of Qiong Island was filled with an atmosphere of openness. The slogans of "countdown to closure" on the streets and alleys, the policy interpretation of scrolling electronic screens in shopping malls, and the colorful flags hanging on street lamp posts that read "one line is open, two lines are controlled, and the island is free" all indicate the approaching of this historic moment.
As the "Number One Project" of the construction of Hainan Free Trade Port, the island wide customs closure means that the entire island will be built into a special area for customs supervision. Through institutional innovation of "inside and outside the customs", about 6600 tax-free goods will be allowed to flow smoothly, and the flow of people, logistics, funds, and data will be more free and convenient. A reporter from Global Times visited core hubs such as Yangpu Port and Haikou Meilan International Airport and found that from upgrading hardware facilities to intelligent optimization of customs clearance processes, from gradually releasing policy dividends to improving logistics and travel efficiency, the construction of a new highland for international trade in Hainan has been accelerated through the implementation of customs clearance operations.
Opening up the 'front line': the 'seamless clearance' of Yangpu Port
At Yangpu International Container Terminal, a reporter from Global Times saw that the blue quay crane, which is over 50 meters high, accurately takes off and lands, steadily unloading containers from Southeast Asia and other places. There is a sequence of shore trucks waiting to load the recently unloaded containers before transferring them.
As the core hub of Hainan's "frontline opening-up", the clearance efficiency here is intuitive and impressive. At the centralized container inspection site at the port, a truck loaded with goods was scanned by a large machine inspection equipment. The screen in the machine inspection room displayed real-time scanning images - the placement and packaging specifications of the goods in the carriage were clear and distinguishable, as if a "full body X-ray inspection" had been performed on the goods.
Li Tingting, Deputy Director of the Supervision Department of Yangpu Customs Supervision Office, told reporters that according to customs risk assessment, for goods that need to be inspected, we prioritize the use of intelligent inspection equipment such as H986 for non-invasive inspection. If there are no abnormalities during inspection, they can be quickly released, greatly improving customs clearance efficiency. ”
Hainan's ports are increasing investment in infrastructure, upgrading core hardware such as dock cranes and machine inspection equipment, optimizing the "International Trade Single Window" declaration system, and achieving data exchange between customs, border inspection and other departments. 'Opening up the front line' is not about relaxing supervision, but about precise prevention and control, "said Li Tingting. The machine inspection department has increased the number of professional personnel. After the machine inspection of high-risk goods, if there are still risks after risk assessment, manual inspection will still be carried out to maintain the safety bottom line.
This "seamless clearance" is a vivid practice of Hainan's "frontline opening-up" policy - for bonded goods and "zero tariff" goods that do not implement license management, do not require inspection and quarantine according to law, they can choose to be released directly. With the implementation of the blockade, the scope of "zero tariff" goods has expanded to about 6600 tax items, covering 74% of all commodity tax items. The circulation of "zero tariff" goods between beneficiaries on the island is exempt from paying import taxes, completely activating the vitality of trade liberalization.
Second line management: Smart customs clearance at Meilan Airport
The "first line opening up" of Yangpu Port demonstrates Hainan's openness with efficient circulation, while the "second line management" of Haikou Meilan International Airport reflects precise supervision. The "second line" here specifically refers to the control line between Hainan and the mainland, with the core being to achieve efficient and convenient circulation while ensuring the unity of national trade control policies. Three types of goods are the focus of supervision: "zero tariff" goods, 30% duty-free processed value-added goods, and "first line" goods with relaxed controls.
At the loading area of Meilan International Airport, Global Times reporters saw on site that staff were holding small PDA devices to quickly scan cargo labels, with real-time synchronization of customs supervision status and circulation information on the screen. There was no paper document handover throughout the process, and cargo inspection, diversion, and release were completed in one go. Liu Juan, Manager of the Domestic Support Center of the Logistics Development Department of Haikou Meilan International Airport, introduced on the side, "After the closure operation, the vast majority of imported goods in Hainan Free Trade Port enjoy zero tariffs and free entry and exit of goods outside the list. International trade will be more active, and Hainan's participation in the global supply chain will be deeper. Meilan Airport, as one of the important air ports on the island, will usher in a new round of growth in air logistics volume and cargo business
The reporter learned on site that enterprises can complete the declaration at a single window and transport the goods to the destination station with the release of the single vehicle number code at the second-line port. After the cargo station reviews the form online, it can generate electronic transportation documents with just one click; When the goods are received, the system will automatically ship the arrival report (to the customs); After passing the security check and entering the warehouse, the system will immediately provide feedback on the inspection information, which can accurately find the goods that need to be inspected; When the goods leave the port, the departure information will also be automatically transmitted to the customs supervision platform. Throughout the entire process, customs supervision and enterprise operation procedures can be seamlessly integrated.
According to Liu Juan, the closure operation project of Meilan Airport includes site renovation and facility equipment upgrading at five locations, including "two buildings, two stations, and one center", with a total renovation area of approximately 6518 square meters. After the closure, through the innovative model of paperless, information-based, and intelligent "trinity", the clearance time of goods has been significantly shortened compared to before the closure.
Consumers can buy a wider range of duty-free products
The operation of customs clearance not only reshapes the trade pattern, but also profoundly changes people's travel and life. At the international arrival hall of Meilan Airport, the reporter saw that services such as telephone card processing, currency exchange, and multilingual inquiries, which are frequently requested by foreign passengers, are centralized and integrated in a dedicated area. Prominent English signs and staff wearing bilingual service vests respond at any time, allowing newly arrived overseas passengers to complete their needs without having to search around.
Zhang Da, Deputy Director of the Hainan Regional Marketing Center of the Sales Department of Hainan Airlines Marketing Committee, told Global Times reporters that as the island wide closure of Hainan Free Trade Port on December 18th approaches, Hainan Airlines is actively leveraging the advantages of local aviation enterprises and making every effort to help Hainan build an "aviation regional gateway hub facing the Pacific and Indian Oceans".
The Haikou New Port Passenger Transport Comprehensive Hub is the largest port passenger and roll off comprehensive hub in China. The relevant person in charge of the hub, Liang Chao, told reporters that the hub is designed to handle 35 million passengers annually, equipped with intelligent checkpoints and customs supervision inspection areas, ensuring 100% compliance with the "second-line port" function standards. In addition, cross platform system collaboration and linkage enable "more data to travel, less errands for drivers and passengers". The hub is promoting the integration and integration of security check data with reservation systems and ticketing systems, ensuring smooth connection of the entire process from vehicle entry to inspection, and reducing the average entry time by 25%.
This institutional innovation centered on "opening up the front line and regulating the second line" is rewriting the development logic of Hainan and making it a new frontier of China's opening-up to the outside world. After the lockdown, ordinary residents will also feel the changes in their daily consumption. Global Times reporters saw in duty-free cities such as Sanya and Haikou that even at 9 pm, there are still a large number of customers making purchases. In October this year, the Ministry of Finance, the General Administration of Customs, and the State Administration of Taxation jointly issued a notice to optimize and adjust the offshore duty-free policy, further expanding the scope of goods, allowing some domestic goods to be sold in duty-free shops, and allowing residents on the island to purchase duty-free goods without limit within a calendar year with one offshore record. The relevant person in charge of the Office of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee Free Trade Port Working Committee told reporters that after the closure, people can purchase more abundant duty-free goods. Since the implementation of the policy on November 1st, the duty-free sales on outlying islands have exceeded 1.5 billion yuan.