Importing Vitamins

I am looking at starting a vitamins business here in Taiwan. Does anyone have any information/experience regarding the laws that govern the importation of such items…

What other legal frameworks would need to be followed to allow the set up of such a business?

And lastly, are there any differences between having a physical store as opposed to selling online, in a legal sense…

Cheers!

Daryl

Be prepared, it’s not easy.

Food supplements need governement approval since a few years back.

I guess they also levy high import duties.

Like BP said it’s not easy, I am doing it, in a smaller scale.
If you are looking at opening a business the tax for Vits or natural supplements import is about 50%, Tax for Medical drugs is if I recal well something around 6%. Go figure.

does anyone have any weblinks to anything regarding the actual numbers? 50% sounds absolutely horrendous!!!

Cheers!

Daryl

This is curious to me!!

Wouldn’t Taiwan’s status in the World Trade Organization prohibit such high tariffs?

(I have always wondered why Taiwan’s vitamin prices have not gone down considerably since our entry into the WTO. If anyone has a coherent explanation, I would be interested in hearing it … )

This is curious to me!!

Wouldn’t Taiwan’s status in the World Trade Organization prohibit such high tariffs?

(I have always wondered why Taiwan’s vitamin prices have not gone down considerably since our entry into the WTO. If anyone has a coherent explanation, I would be interested in hearing it … )[/quote]

Well last year for my imported satellite gear it was 5% VAT 10% import Tax… :s

01 Jan 2005 5% VAT, 10% Import Tax and 13% commodity tax… 28% :fume:

I had read somewhere that currenlty vitamins are lumped in with medicines currently… in terms of product classifications…

Wouldn’t this lead to the same tariffs???

Who s the governmental body regulating vitamins and supplements?

If it is 50% then that would pretty much make my current profit model totally unviable…

Cheers!

Daryl

That is correct. However, there are, IIRC, some differences in regard to obtaining certification for vitamins and nutritional supplements (not as rigorous a standard as for actual meds).

Department of Health.

Was anyone able to fin anything about the import duties on vitamins?

Cheers!

Daryl

Try this:

Go to the BOFT site.

Click on the link for Commodity Classification.

Then click on the link for Tariffs Database Search.

Input the term “Vitamins” (where the English description is requested) and click for search and you should get a chart showing seven (7) types of commodities identified as “vitamins” (as shown below). You will need to click where appropriate on this chart for the tariff rates:

[quote]Found 7 Tariff for " English Goods Name:vitamins " (1 - 7)


  1. Tariff NO.: 2309.90.90.50.5
    Content: Tariff Valid Date:2005/5/23 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:含維生素、胺基酸或礦物質之調製品(但不含動物性產品),供動物飼料用 English Goods Name:Preparations, containing vitamins, amino acids or minerals(but not containing animal components), for animal feed use
  • File size : 3186 Bytes - 2005/7/13 下午 01:12:59

    1. Tariff NO.: 2936.10.00.00.3
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:未混合之維生素原 English Goods Name:Provitamins, unmixed
  • File size : 2996 Bytes - 2005/7/11 下午 12:33:31

    1. Tariff NO.: 2936.21.00.00.0
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:維生素A及其衍生物 English Goods Name:Vitamins A and their derivatives
  • File size : 3096 Bytes - 2005/7/11 下午 12:33:31

    1. Tariff NO.: 2936.29.90.00.3
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:其他未混合維生素及其衍生物 English Goods Name:Other vitamins and their derivatives, unmixed
  • File size : 3117 Bytes - 2005/7/12 上午 10:12:47

    1. Tariff NO.: 2936.90.90.00.7
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:其他天然或以合成方法再製之維生素原及維生素(包括天然濃縮體)、其主要用作維生素之衍生物之互混物,不論加入溶劑與否 English Goods Name:Other intermixtures of provitamins and vitamins, natural orreproduced by synthesis (including natural concentrates),derivatives thereof used primarily as vitamins, whether ornot in any solvent
  • File size : 3350 Bytes - 2005/7/11 下午 12:33:32

    1. Tariff NO.: 3003.90.10.00.0
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:含有維他命或第2936節產品之其他醫藥製劑 English Goods Name:Other medicaments, containing vitamins or other products ofheading No.2936
  • File size : 3199 Bytes - 2005/7/12 上午 10:10:54

    1. Tariff NO.: 3004.50.00.00.9
      Content: Tariff Valid Date:2004/1/1 Tariff Expire Date: Chinese Goods Name:含有維他命或第2936節產品之其他醫藥製劑 English Goods Name:Other medicaments containing vitamins or other products ofheading No.29.36
  • File size : 3199 Bytes - 2005/7/13 上午 11:42:38
    [/quote]

Hope that works for you.

Thank you very much. It’s extremely nice when posting here leads to a helpful solution…

Cheers Tigerman!

Daryl