News in brief: tariff notices; preparation for upcoming changes under the Windsor Framework; trade remedies notices; end of the Modernising Authorisations project; Russian sanctions evasion; … safety and security declaration requirements for importing goods from the EU; first Customs Technical Handbooks have been published.

The 25th Authors' Meeting brought together customs experts from different countries to discuss challenges and trends in Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) and equivalent programmes. This article … deals with the main findings of the meeting participants, covering both general and country-specific contributions to the topic, with an emphasis on the EU context.

News at a glance: revised PEM Convention entered into force; lists of goods subject to licensing and quotas approved for 2025; rules for importing goods subject to official controls updated; … state control of non-food products resumed; Import duty exemptions for defence-related goods; gradual annual increases in excise duties on fuels; priority border crossing for AEOs.

News in week 5: the US launches a trade war by imposing tariffs on Mexican, Canadian and Chinese goods, and Canada announces tariffs of 25% on US goods; EU plans to impose additional tariffs … on agricultural products and fertilisers from Russia and Belarus; imports of screws without heads subject to registration; amendments to the anti-dumping exemptions for certain bicycle parts; changes to tariff quotas following the EU-Chile ITA; amendment of the Convention on a common transit procedure; Georgia accedes to two Conventions; amendments to the Explanatory notes to the Combined Nomenclature; CJEU on classification of a four-wheel vehicle with an electric motor, which has one seat; and more updates!

It is no secret that non-preferential origin can actually be more difficult to determine than preferential origin. The importance of non-preferential origin, in the age of new trade wars and … border-applied sustainability policies is increasing. For that reason, the recent judgement by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the Harley-Davidson Europe and Neovia Logistics Services International v. Commission case is particularly interesting.

The use of sanctions and export controls as a strategic tool to ensure global security has gained prominence in the face of geopolitical shifts. Recent developments highlight the European Union’s … (EU) efforts to tighten restrictions on dual-use goods and advanced technology items through its anti-circumvention legal tools. This was particularly in response to China's and other third countries' alleged support for Russia's military-industrial base. This article outlines the key focus areas in the EU's evolving export controls and other measures in light of the 15th sanctions package adopted in December 2024.

In the US, the law allows an importer to contest adverse decisions on their customs entries for a number of reasons including differences in appraised value, classification and rate of duty, … exclusion from entry and refusal to pay a drawback claim. Anyone who either advises importers or directly pursues what they believe have been incorrect trade decisions made by U.S. Customs and Protection (CBP) knows that the processes can not only be frustrating but also prohibitively expensive.

This article deals with legal changes in relation to the criterion of financial solvency that were introduced in 2018 but have not yet been noticed by many traders and taken into account by some … customs authorities. These changes allow for a more flexible approach to the assessment of economic operators' financial solvency when authorisations for a reduction or waiver of a comprehensive guarantee are requested or to be maintained.

The American export control authority, the Bureau of Industry and Security, has published an updated version of “Don't let this happen to you!” - an introduction to the consequences of violating … US export control law. As a European company, you may wonder why this should concern you. This is due to the unique nature of US export control laws, which apply extraterritorially. In this overview, we provide a brief summary of some important aspects and practical examples of infringements.

Whenever the topic of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) review comes up, the Pan-European Mediterranean (PEM) origin cumulation zone is one of the topics mentioned as potentially in scope. … Recently, several reports and organizations have included rejoining PEM as one of the recommendations for the new Government. Rejoining PEM is indeed one of the steps that could improve market access for products from all industries that could be done within the current format of the TCA. It could also be done without changing the essential character of the relationships, i.e. one based on a simple and fairly basic trade agreement.

Nobody likes to be penalised - whether you are an importer, a customs broker, or just a driver taking goods across the border. The penalty is a negative consequence for any person who has committed … the offence. It is clear when a person deliberately does something illegal to benefit from it. But what about those who do not intend to break the law but do so inadvertently? Do the negative consequences only affect the person who directly committed the offence? This article seeks to answer these and other questions about the penalties for customs offences in the EU.

"Happy New Year!" I started a conversation with an AI assistant on the Customs website. "Happy New Year! If you have any questions about customs rules or procedures, I will be happy to help" … it replied. On the last day of 2024, Lithuanian Customs in cooperation with CustomsClear, deployed the AI assistant solution for public use. It is now available to visitors of the Lithuanian Customs website at www.lrmuitine.lt. So far, it covers one topic relevant to the festive period: e-commerce. The number of topics will increase in the future.

News in brief: UK joins CPTPP; the General Product Safety Regulation and impact on Northern Ireland; Geographical indications for 39 British food and drink products in Japan; UK Tariff 2025; … countries eligible for approved exporter status; the Customs (Tariff and Miscellaneous Amendments) No. 3 and No. 4; preparations for the end of the safety and security declarations waiver; notice to exporters 2024/30; Belarus sanctions; trade remedies notices and tariff notices.

News in weeks 51 and 52: 15th package of restrictive measures against Russia and Belarus; Interim Agreement on trade between the EU and Chile; Georgia to join the Common Transit Convention; preparation … for the entry into force of the Revised PEM Convention on 1 January 2025; CBAM upcoming changes at the beginning of 2025; EUDR application postponed by 12 months; new EU rules on sustainable packaging; CJEU on the interpretation of the Article 15 and Article 42(1) and (2) of the UCC; classification of facial wipes packaged for retail sale, unfilled seating bag (so-called beanbag) and hard metal sticks made of cermets; suspension of the Common Customs Tariff duties on certain products; amendments to autonomous tariff quotas; review of steel safeguard to protect EU steel industry; safeguard investigation into imports of alloys; anti-dumping duty on seamless pipes and tubes; definitive anti-dumping duty on optical fibre cables; and more news!

In their recent report, the World Customs Organization (WCO) proposed a new methodology for classifying and comparing product-specific rules of origin between agreements. This new conceptual … tool: the "drafting complexity index" (DCI) was used to provide insights into rules for automotive and textile sectors.

Overpayment of customs duties or other import duties can be a major burden for importers. There can be various reasons for overpayments, e.g. disputes over classification, valuation, origin, … etc. Reclaiming these duties from customs authority can be a lengthy and expensive process. The outcome is, of course, unpredictable. In Israel, there is an additional obstacle between the importer and the refund, the so-called ‘passing-on’ condition. This is not unique to Israel, but does not exist in the EU.