1. The dutiable value of imported goods shall be the transaction price adjusted by the price paid or to be paid actually by a buyer;

(Article 30(1) of the Customs Act. Therefore, the customs value should, in principle, be determined based on the import price paid by the importer to an overseas exporter.

However, if an importer is merely a domestic sales agent of an overseas exporter and there is a special circumstance to view that the domestic buyer is the same as the imported goods directly from an overseas exporter, the price paid by the domestic buyer to the importer can be the basis for determining the dutiable value.

At this time, whether an importer is an independent seller for a domestic buyer or only a simple assistant as a sales agent for an exporter should be determined reasonably in accordance with the transaction concept and social norms by comprehensively taking into account the following factors: the contracting party to the import contract for goods and the sales contract for a domestic buyer; the import price and the method of determining the domestic sales price; the process of supplying goods to a domestic buyer; the legal subject to the risk-bearing on imported goods; and

However, when conducting economic activities, taxpayers can arbitrarily choose to take any legal form to achieve a specific economic objective, and the tax authorities should respect the legal relationship in accordance with the legal form chosen by the taxpayer, unless there are special circumstances, such as where the tax authority is the most active act or the purpose of tax avoidance.

(see, e.g., Supreme Court Decisions 90Nu3027, May 14, 1991; 2007Du26629, Apr. 9, 2009). Therefore, an importer is a domestic subsidiary of an exporter and complies with the parent company’s instructions in the course of import and supply transaction of goods, or is the parent company and the parent company.