The Memorandum of Understanding between the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the Superintendency of Tax Administration of the Republic of Guatemala for Technical Cooperation in Customs Matters was signed by the Director General of Customs Administration, Ministry of Finance, Ying-Wei Peng and Superintendent of Tax Administration of the Republic of Guatemala (SAT), Marco Livio Díaz Reyes, synchronously via virtual conference in Taipei on October 31st, 2023 (Taipei Time) and in Guatemala City on October 30th, 2023 (Guatemala Time). The signing ceremony was witnessed by Ambassador Oscar Adolfo Padilla Lam; Intendant of Customs of the Intendency of Customs of Guatemala, Werner Ovalle Ramírez; Ambassador Miguel Li-Jey Tsao; Director General of the Dept. of International Fiscal Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Pi-Lien Ding; Deputy Director General of the Dept. of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Francisco T. H. Chang; and other important customs officers of both sides.
The Ministry of Finance stated Guatemala is an important partner of Taiwan in Central America. The two sides signed a free trade agreement and the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) mutual recognition arrangement in 2005 and 2021, respectively. In August this year, the Superintendent of SAT of Guatemala, Marco Livio Díaz Reyes led a delegation to visit Taiwan and signed the letter of intent regarding customs matters, declaring both willingness to jointly promote customs modernization and capacity building. Therefore, leading the signing of this MoU for establishing the customs cooperation mechanism between both sides was another fruitful achievement of further cooperative partnership.
The Ministry of Finance pointed out that according to this MoU, both Customs may establish institutional cooperation and the provision of technical assistance in customs matters for creating communication channels that facilitate the safe and fast exchange of information in accordance with the domestic legislation and provisions; exchange the knowledge and experiences to build capacity for Customs personnels; and take joint action for better border controls that allow for the facilitation of international trade and deepen our bilateral customs cooperation tie.
The Ministry of Finance stated Taiwan has more than 20 customs mutual assistance agreements (arrangements), customs cooperation, and information exchange agreements (MoUs) signed with important trading partners such as the United States, the Philippines, India, New Zealand, Japan, the European Union, as well as some EU member states. This MoU helps to link up a wide range of customs cooperation between Taiwan and Guatemala, being a major development in the customs cooperation in Central America. In the future, we will continue to promote customs cooperation with our allies, economic and trade partner countries and through mutual cooperation in customs matters, protect legitimate businesses, and enhance cross-border facilitation and safety.
Contact person: Ms. Grace Tsui -Fen Lin, Section Chief
Contact Number: +886-2-23228000 #8189