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Technology is changing at what seems like an ever-increasing pace, raising discussion about autonomous cars and the future of employment, as well as the future of trade. Whilst cars are not quite … driving themselves yet, global trade has seen a dramatic shift in the way that we shop. I am talking, of course, about e-commerce.

Australia and New Zealand have been working together to test a new border clearance process to help address the huge increase in e-commerce related international mail volumes between the two … countries. Undertaken as a trial, this article explains its objectives, how it was conducted, the results, lessons learned, and the next steps.

Engaging with stakeholders and implementing open communication, effective collaboration and meaningful consultation is essential in building “a secure business environment for economic development.” … In this article, the Secretary General of TIACA explains how similar the concerns of the air cargo industry and Customs administrations are, and shares his vision of a future where collaboration and the concept of “co-creation” achieve the recognition they deserve.

E-commerce – the trade in goods and services via the Internet – has become a growing component of the global economy, and cross-border e-commerce a major topic of discussion for Customs authorities. … Accordingly, the WCO has placed this subject high on its agenda, including: creating a dedicated Working Group on E-commerce (WGEC) as a forum for WCO Members and the private sector to discuss strategies for the facilitation and control of cross-border e-commerce transactions; undertaking fieldwork and research to collect and analyse the experiences of WCO Members in this domain.

With the diffusion of user-friendly technologies and increasing penetration of the Internet globally, e-commerce is witnessing exponential growth: the global online retail market now topping … 1 trillion US dollars a year, and is set to double within four years.

Many countries have seen a significant and rapid growth in the volume of low-value imports of physical goods on which duties and taxes are not collected. There are growing concerns about matters … related to potential revenue loss, fraud, and the disadvantages experienced by domestic retailers. Therefore, it is appropriate to provide an overview of the traditional collection model, current developments aimed at improving it, and new, alternate models for collecting duties and taxes on these consignments.

Cross-border e-commerce is increasing sharply in Korea. This is not surprising given that the country ranked No.1 in the world in terms of Internet connection speed at the beginning of 2015, … and that the Korean economy is extremely dependent on foreign trade. However, the increase poses a number of challenges to the Korea Customs Service (KCS) which has, since 2014, been taking various e-commerce measures accordingly. This article gives an overview of the scale of e-commerce in Korea, its impact on tax revenue, and how the KCS is promoting e-commerce and managing the risks around this growing form of trade.

The rapid growth in e-commerce has facilitated Australia’s increasing domestic appetite for Internet-based trading and online shopping. Although recent online growth has been more subdued than … the 20-30% annual growth rates recorded in earlier years, it is expected that growth will continue and volumes will remain high in the coming months and years.

E-commerce – broadly defined as the use of the Internet as a platform for sales, sourcing, and the exchange of market information – will play an increasingly important role in supporting global … economic growth. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, e-commerce’s share of total goods trade grew from 3% in 2005 to 12.1% in 2012 [Global flows in a digital age: How trade, finance, people, and data connect the world economy, McKinsey Global Institute, April 2014].

Thanks to the Universal Postal Union’s Customs Declaration System, a higher level of cooperation between Posts and Customs is taking shape at the international level, as they confront the challenges … of a rapidly changing world. This comes as Customs and Posts both need faster and safer ways to deal with the rising tide of items generated by international e-commerce.

Digital techology is reinventing how people live and work. The change is rapid and far reaching. The prevalence of digital goods and services means that Customs agencies are challenged to make … policy, process and technology changes to address digital’s disruptive impact on national and fiscal security.

Thanks to its speed, expediency and anonymity, Internet-based technology has become one of the key facilitators for a vast range of criminal activities, many falling within the remit of Customs … enforcement actions, including the trade in counterfeit products, goods subject to prohibitions and restrictions and the smuggling of excisable goods, such as cigarettes and alcohol.

Counterfeit and pirated goods being sold over the internet, which are mainly delivered via the post, do not appear to have been affected by the economic downturn according to the 2009 Report … on EU Customs Actions to Enforce Intellectual Property Rights published by the European Commission. Increasing sales of these goods to European consumers are frustrating attempts to stem this illegal trade the Report further suggests.

In an era of virtual worlds where everything is just one click away, the flow of postal packages is intensifying with the development of internet sales, and this is not making the task of Customs … services any easier, particularly when it comes to combating counterfeiting and piracy.