• a) on the part of the speaker A;

• b) on the part of the speaker B;

• c) on your own part.

• Vocabulary and Speech Exercises

• 5. Read and translate the following dialogue. Report it as close to the text as possible.

• Paying Customs Duties and Taxes

• A. What kind of taxes must be paid to the Customs Authorities before the goods are handed over to legal entities and individuals?

• В. Well, the taxes that must be paid on importation include as a rule customs duties, value-added tax and some special import taxes.

• A. How can I know the rates of customs duties?

• B. Customs duties for all types of goods are printed in the Customs Tariff which is available in bookshops.

• A. What is ad valorem duty and how is it calculated?

• В. Ad valorem duty is a tax charged as a percentage of the value of the goods, as distinguished from a fixed duty or tax. Calculation of ad valorem duty is based on the GIF value of goods, that is on cost, insurance and freight charges. Note, that freight charges should always be included in the customs value.

• A. I see. And are all imported goods liable to VAT?

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• В. Most of them, there is only a small number of exemptions. The tax rate is a fixed percentage of the customs value plus any customs duties and taxes collected by the Customs on importation.

• A What does a special tax mean?

• B. This is a kind of tax to which only certain types of goods are subject.

• A How are tax rates settled?

• B. Tax rates are decided by the Government Authorities, each year in connection with the passing of the Budget. Tax rates can be changed from year to year.

• 6. Explain the meaning of the following terms in English:

• ad valorem duty; GIF; a tax rate; a cost; freight charge; to be liable; a special tax; the Customs; a fixed duty

• 7. Make up sentences of your own to illustrate the meaning of the following terms:

• ad valorem duties; value-added tax; special import taxes; freight charges; the Customs Tariff

• 8. Give a free translation of the following text in English in the form of a dialogue between a customs official and an interviewer. Work in pairs:

• Вести из Пулковской таможни

• Относительно новостей из Пулковской таможни следует отметить, что с 1-го июля были введены новые ставки таможенных пошлин. Теперь пошлины взимаются за ввоз отдельных видов продуктов питания. Сейчас много говорят о том, что ставки этих пошлин слишком высокие, что они остановят импорт в Россию, и люди будут испытывать голод. Это, конечно, не так. Если вы помните, около месяца назад уже были введены пошлины на некоторые продукты питания. За то время, пока они действовали, цены на продовольственные товары даже упали. Совершенно очевидно, что цены на внутреннем рынке нашей страны, как и в любой другой, определяются прежде всего покупательной способностью населения (consumer demand). Так всегда было и будет. Прибыль, получаемая компаниями, торгующими продовольственными товарами, достаточно велика, чтобы уплачивать пошлины из доходов этих компаний, а не из карманов потребителей.

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• Одновременно с введением новых ставок таможенных пошлин на продукты питания отменен НДС на ввоз многих видов технологического оборудования. Список довольно внушительный.

• Есть изменения и для частных лиц, причем достаточно серьезные. Если вы помните, у нас разрешен беспошлинный ввоз (duty free import) товаров на сумму до $ 20 000. Все, что ввозилось сверх этой суммы облагалось единым таможенным платежем в 60%. Сейчас эта сумма снижена до 30%. Эта мера разумна и вполне в духе либерализации. Растет средняя заработная плата, растет и количество товаров, которые может ввозить частное лицо. Также снижен единый таможенный платеж при вывозе товаров.

• Таковы новости Пулковской таможни. В заключение хотелось бы приезжающим пожелать спокойного пребывания в нашем прекрасном городе, тем же, кто уезжает - чувствовать себя на таможне спокойно. Главное - не пытаться обмануть таможню, тогда никогда никаких проблем не возникнет.

• WRITING PRACTICE

• Despatch of Goods: Packing and Marking

• Nothing is more infuriating to a buyer than to find his goods damaged or partly lost on arrival. The buyer has a right to expect his goods to reach him in a perfect condition and the seller has to organize the despatch of goods in such a way that the problems which might occur during the transit should be as less serious as possible. The important assets¹ of export distribution are packing and marking.

• Packing is intended to protect goods from all types of different hazards. Cargo in transit² may be threatened by natural phenomena or by man-made problems which include pilferage. The damage to a consignment of goods may also be caused by its proximity to another shipment. So the general aim in all packing is not only to make the goods secure during the journey, but at the same time to make the package as small and light as possible. Transport costs on land usually depend on the weight but on the sea the size of the package is also significant.

• To handle the problems that face export despatches, in many large export firms special departments for export packing have been

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• established and the whole problem is under regular control. They also may employ a forwarding agent³ to do packing for them.

• For correspondence, the following specialized terms of packing containers are useful to know:

  bag (пакет),	crate (решетчатая тара),
  bale (тюк, кипа),	container (контейнер),
  barrel (бочонок, деревянная бочка),	drum (цилиндрический
  box (ящик из дерева или металла),	контейнер),
  bundle (связка, пачка),	sack (мешок),
  carboy (бутыль, баллон),	tin/амер. саn (маленький
  carton (картонная коробка),	металлический контейнер,
  case (прочный ящик, скрепленный	консервная банка).
  рейками)

• The marking of goods is very important because an unmarked consignment⁴ may be mislaid at some stage. Even worse, the unmarked goods become practically untraceable⁵. At the same time, marking should not reveal any excess information about the contents of the goods in order to avoid the risk of theft.

• There are three principle types of marking, which are usually done by paint or ink through a metal stencil⁶ on export packages:

• (a) The consignee’s own distinctive marks, which are registered and play the role of identification. These marks, including the name of place of destination, serve as the address on an envelope.

• (b) Any official mark required by authorities of the country of export or import. Some countries require the name of the country of origin of the goods to be marked on each package, others - weights and dimensions⁷ or both.

• (c) Special directions or warnings. Here you will find some special instructions regarding manner of handling, loading, lifting and various warnings both for the owner’s and the carrier’s benifit⁸.

• Below are the most widespread examples:

  Handle with care	Осторожно!
  Glass - with care	Осторожно, стекло!
  Acid - with care	Осторожно, кислота!
  Fragile	Осторожно, хрупкий груз!
  To be kept cool	Хранить в прохладном месте
  Use no hooks	Не пользоваться крюками
  Stow away from heat	Держать вдали от нагревательных приборов
  Keep dry	Беречь от влаги
  Do not drop	Не бросать
  Do not stow on deck	Не складывать на палубе
  This side up	Верхняя часть

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  Open this end	Открывать здесь
  Lift here	Поднимать с этого конца
  Perishable	Скоропортящийся продукт
  Inflammable	Огнеопасно

• Warnings and directions may be also represented by stencilling symbols that are understood by speakers of any language. For example:

• Vocabulary Notes on the Text

• ¹ an important asset - важная особенность.

• ² in transit - в пути.

• ³ a forwarding agent - экспедитор.

• ⁴ an unmarked consignment - немаркированный груз.

• ⁵ the goods become practically untraceable - товары практически невозможно отследить.

• ⁶ through a metal stencil - по металлическому трафарету.

• ⁷ weights and dimensions - размеры и вес.

• ⁸ both for the owner’s and the carrier’s benifit - в интересах как владельца груза, так и перевозчика.

Exercises

1. Read and translate the text.

2. Translate the following words and learn their pronunciation:

carrier; cargo; assets; hazards; dimensions; transit; pilferage; theft; consignment; consignee; phenomena; acid; proximity; crate; stencil; infuriating; untraceable; forwarding; inflammable; perishable; regular; official; mislaid; distinctive; required

3. Translate the following English collocations:

to make something secure; to handle a problem; to be under regular control; to play the role of identification; to be mislaid; to become untraceable; to reveal excess information about something; to avoid the risk of theft; through a metal stencil; for somebody’s benifit

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4. Use the collocations of the previous exercise in sentences of your own.

5. Explain the meaning of the following terms in English:

transport costs; a forwarding agent; destination; export distribution; an unmarked consignment; to give an excess information; a metal stencil; the manner of handling; stencilling symbols

6. Give English equivalents of the following Russian words and expressions:

a) содержимое; природные явления; близость; баллон; решетчатая тара; связка (пачка); цилиндрический контейнер; осторожно, хрупкий груз; скоропортящийся продукт; трафарет; размеры; вес; партия товара; не бросать; огнеопасно

b) груз; упаковка; маркировка; отправка; отправитель; получатель; экспедитор; место назначения; созданные человеком проблемы; в отличном состоянии; при перевозке; перевозка по морю/воздуху; безопасность

7. Answer these questions:

• 1 ) What are the important assets of export distribution?

• 2) What can happen to cargo in transit?

• 3) Why is it important to keep the package as small and light as possible?

• 4) What are the functions of a forwarding agent?

• 5) What kinds of packing containers can you name?

• 6) Why is it important to mark the goods in a proper way?

• 7) What are the three principal types of marking?

• 8) How can warnings and directions be represented?

8. Insert appropriate words from the box given below and translate the letter:

Dear Sirs,

We are thankful to you for your letter of 23 June, and can … that we are still offering our range of peripherals at the prices quoted in our ...

We understand your ... with packing and can assure you that we shall take every possible ... to ensure that our products would reach you in perfect condition.

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For your information, ... is packed as follows: each device is ... in ... and packed in cartons, ten to a carton, separated from each other by corrugated paper ... ; we put on each carton symbols representing the following ... and directions: USE NO HOOKS, STOW AWAY FROM HEAT, DO NOT DROP.

We hope this has answered all your questions and we ... to receiving orders from you.

to look forward to, tissue paper, confirm, to wrap, concern, initial offer, cargo, dividers, precaution, warnings