April 18, 1991
Mr. Ding Mou-Shih
Representative
Coordination Council for North American
Affairs
4201 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20016
Dear Mr. Ding:
I refer to the administrative arrangement between our authoriti-
es regarding the textile visa system effected by exchange of le-
tters in Washington dated August 16 and September 20, 1972, as
amended.
Since that time, as our textile trade has developed and expanded
, there have been a number of amendments to this administrative
arrangement. In the interest of clarity and to consolidate the
various changes into a single document, we have developed a com-
prehensive new text.
I propose that the administrative arrangement be amended to read
in its entirety as follows:
VISA ARRANGEMENT
Between the
Coordination Council for North American
Affairs and the American Institute in
Taiwan concerning Textiles and Textile
Products
1. Definition:
A. For the purpose of this arrangement, the term "textiles" mea-
ns textiles and textile products of cotton, wool and man-made f-
ibers, other vegetable fibers, blends of any of the foregoing f-
ibers and blends containing silk, but does not include garments
which contain 70 percent or more silk by weight (unless they al-
so contain 17% or more by weight wool), or products other than
garments which contain 85 percent or more silk by weight, as de-
fined in the agreement between the American Institute in Taiwan
and the Coordination Council for North American Affairs relating
to trade in textiles.
B. The term "category" includes part categories and merged cate-
gories as established in the textile agreement.
2. Visa Requirements:
A. The Coordination Council for North American Affairs or their
authorized agents shall issue a visa for each shipment of texti-
les or textile articles of Taiwan origin and exported to the Un-
ited States, regardless of value (except as specified in paragr-
aph N), of cotton, wool, man-made fiber, silk blend and other v-
egetable fiber textiles and textile products in categories 200-2
39, 300-369, 400-469, 600-670, 800-899, including part categori-
es and merged categories. The visa shall be presented to the U.S
. Customs Service before entry, or withdrawal from warehouse for
consumption, into the Customs territory of the United States (t-
he 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico).
B. In the future, should additional categories, merged categori-
es or part categories be added to the textile agreement or bec-
ome subject to import quotas, the entire category, part category
or categories shall be automatically included in the coverage of
this visa arrangement. Merchandise exported on or after the date
the category(s) is added to the agreement or becomes subject to
import quotas shall require a visa specifying the new designati-
on.
C. The Coordination Council for North American Affairs shall pr-
ovide the American institute in Taiwan with two original, clear,
reproducible copies of the visa stamp which shall be the stamp
designated for use throughout the entire period the visa arrang-
ement is in effect, and two originals of the signatures of the
officials authorized to sign visas. The stamp, and any subseque-
nt changes thereto, must be approved by the American Institute
in Taiwan. The Coordination Council for North American Affairs
shall notify the American Institute in Taiwan of any changes of
authorized officials.
D. A shipment shall be visaed by the stamping of the original c-
ircular visa in blue ink on the front of the original commercial
invoice (known as the 'textile export visa') . The original visa
shall not be stamped on duplicate copies of the invoice. The or-
iginal of the invoice with the original visa stamp will be requ-
ired to enter the shipment into the United States. Duplicates of
the invoice and/or visa may not be used for this purpose.
E. Each visa stamp shall include the following information:
i. The visa number: The visa number shall be in the standard
nine digit letter format beginning with one numeric digit
for the last digit of the year of export, followed by the
two character alpha code specified by the International O-
rganization for Standardization [ISO] (the code for Taiwan
is ("TW"), and a six digit numerical serial number identi-
fying the shipment; e.g., 1TW123456.
ii. The date of issuance: The date of issuance shall be the d-
ay, month and year on which the visa was issued.
iii. The signature of the issuing official(s): The signature s-
hall be that of the issuing official(s) of Taiwan.
iv. The correct category(s), merged category(s), part category
(s), quantity(s), and unit(s) of quantity in the shipment
in the unit(s) of quantity provided for in the U.S. Depar-
tment of Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA or succes-
sor documents) shall be reported in the spaces provided w-
ithin the visa stamp (e.g., "Cat. 340 - 510 DZ"). Quantit-
ies must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals or fractions
will not be accepted. Merged category quota merchandise m-
ay be accompanied by either the appropriate merged catego-
ry visa or the correct category visa corresponding to the
actual shipment. For example, quota category 347/348 may
be visaed as 347/348 or, if the shipment consists solely
of category 347 merchandise, the shipment may be visaed as
"Cat. 347," but not as "Cat. 348."
F. If the quantity indicated on the visa is less than that of t-
he shipment, entry shall not be permitted.
G. If the quantity indicated on the visa is more than that of t-
he shipment, entry shall be permitted and only the amount enter-
ed shall be charged.
H. The visa will not be accepted and entry will not be permitted
if the shipment ry quota may be does not have a visa, or if the
visa number, date of issuance, signature, category, quantity or
units of quantity are missing, incorrect, illegible or have been
crossed out or altered in any way.
I. The categories and quantities shall be those determined by t-
he U.S. Customs Service. The U.S. Customs Service classifies all
imports into the Customs territory of the United States in comp-
liance with applicable U.S. laws and regulations.
J. If the visa does not comply with the requirements set forth
in this arrangement, a new visa must be obtained from the Coord-
ination council for North American Affairs or their authorized
agents or a waiver may be issued by the U.S. Department of Comm-
erce at the request of the Coordination Council for North Ameri-
can Affairs or their authorized agents in Washington, DC., and
presented to the U.S. Customs Service before any portion of the
shipment will be released. The waiver, if used, only waives the
requirement to present a visa with the shipment. It does not wa-
ive the quota requirement. Visa waivers will only be issued for
classification disputes or for one time special purpose shipmen-
ts that are not part of an ongoing commercial enterprise.
K. If the visaed invoice is deficient, the U.S. Customs Service
will not return the original document after entry, but will pro-
vide a certified copy of that visaed invoice for use in obtaini-
ng a new correct original visaed invoice or a visa waiver. The
new visa number must begin with the numeric digit corresponding
with the last digit of the year of export as stated in E(i).
L. The American Institute in Taiwan will make available to the
Coordination Council for North American Affairs, upon request,
information on the amounts and categories involved in the visa
waiver process and for all items subject to the quota administ-
ered by the U.S. Customs Service.
M. The date of export is the actual date the merchandise finally
leaves the territory represented by the Coordination Council for
North American Affairs. For merchandise exported by vessel, this
is the day on which the carrier departs the last port in tat te-
rritory.
N. Merchandise imported for the personal use of the importer and
not for resale, regardless of value, and properly marked commer-
cial sample shipments valued at U.S. $250 or less do not require
a visa or exempt certification for entry and shall not be charg-
ed to the agreement levels. All other commercial shipments of t-
he above mentioned require a visa or exempt certification for e-
ntry.
3. Annex I lists all the part-category and merged category visas
required for entry. Annex II lists all the exempt products w-
hich will require a "Non-Quota Exempt Certification."
4. Either authority may terminate, in whole or in part, this ad-
ministrative arrangement by giving 1.80 days written notice
to the other.
This letter and your reply confirming the contents thereof on b-
ehalf of the Coordination Council for North American Affairs w-
ill constitute an administrative arrangement between the Coordi-
nation Council for North American Affairs and the American Inst-
itute in Taiwan.
Sincerely,
(Signed)
Natale H. Bellocchi
Chairman of the Board
and Managing Director

ANNEX I
Part-categories
Descriptions below are for general
reference only Other miscellaneous
products may also be included
359-C - Coveralls & Overalls
359-H - Headwear
359-O - Other
369-L - Luggage
369-S - Shoptowels
369-O - Other
640-O - Other Shirts
640-Y - Shirts with two or more colors
in the warp and/or filling
641-O - Other Blouses
641-Y - Blouses with two or more colors
in the warp and/or filling
659-C - Coveralls & Overalls
659-H - Headwear
659-5 - Swimwear
659-O - Other
669-P - Polypropylene Bags
669-T - Tents and Tarpaulins
669-O - Other
670-H - Handbags
670-L - Luggage
670-O - Other
Merged Categories
225/317/326
300/301/607
613/4/5/7
619/20
625/6/7/8/9
333/4/5
338/9
347/8
350/650
352/652
359-C/659-C
359-H/659-H
445/6
447/8
633/4/5
633/4
638/9
645/6
647/8
369-L/670-L/870

ANNEX II
EXEMPT PRODUCTS REQUIRING EXEMPT CERTIFICATION
1. Pincushions
2. Embroideries (needle work), of man-made fibers with designs
embroidered with wool thread.
3. Handmade carpets, i.e. in which the pile was inserted or kno-
tted by hand.
4. Christmas or Easter ornaments having a non-textile core or a
non-textile structural frame and man-made fiber textile cove-
ring.
5. Martial arts uniforms, such as kung fu, karate, and judo uni-
forms.
6. Toy (novelty) animals, birds or insects with a plastic wire,
or other non-textile core that are covered or decorated with
textile thread or fiber.
7. Traditional Chinese caps
8. Traditional Chinese garments:
Jackets-three-quarter length or shorter, of woven fabrics, u-
sually with Chinese figures in the weave but may be plain/wo-
ven otherwise figured or printed. They have a low Mandarin c-
ollar, long sleeves and full frontal openings, with "frog" t-
ype closures (looped fastenings made of braid, cording, etc.,
used with a matching knot or toggle of the same material.)
Fur or imitation fur-lined jackets-which may or may not be r-
eversible and are otherwise identical in appearance and cons-
truction with the jackets described above.
Vests-sleeveless garments extending from the neck area to wa-
ist with or without pockets at the waist. They are otherwise
identical in appearance and construction with the jackets de-
scribed above.

ED-8 0-04 17
May 1, 1991
Ambassador Natale H. Bellocchi
Chairman of the Board and Managing
Director
American Institute in Taiwan
1700 N. Moore Street, Suite 1700
Arlington, VA 22209
Dear Ambassador Bellocchi:
I wish to refer to your letter of April 18,1991, concerning the
administrative arrangement between our authorities regarding the
textile visa system effected by exchange of letters in Washingt-
on dated August 16 and September 20,1972, as amended. Your lett-
er proposes a comprehensive new text to clarify and consolidate
the various changes of the administrative arrangement.
I agree that this letter of acceptance together with your letter
of April,1991 shall constitute an administrative arrangement be-
tween the American Institute in Taiwan and the Coordination Cou-
ncil for North American Affairs.
Sincerely yours,
(Signed)
Mou-Shih Ding
Representative