Articles

Free zone development differs from one country to another. Different countries use different types and concepts of free zones. In some countries, Free Zones are developed to stimulate incoming … trade, as in the case of the US Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZs), while in others, such as developing countries, they exist to stimulate export-oriented trade. In this article, we overview the various types of free zones and the benefits they provide for business. Editors' note: Mark Rowbotham, the author of this article, is the author of the book "Freeports and Free Zones: Operations and Regulation in the Global Economy".

Fertilisers, honey, car seat parts, inflatable couches, etc. These are just a few of the goods on the classification of which the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has recently ruled. … In the present case, the question was whether a cat scratching post could be classified as other furniture and parts thereof (heading 9403 of the Combined Nomenclature (CN)). Or is furniture understood to mean objects intended only for human use?

For the second year, students from the Department of Control and Analysis of Economic Activities at the D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics, Svishtov, Bulgaria worked in the Customs Control Club … formed at the Department. Participation in the club was voluntary, and in the second season 10 students actively participated. The work of the club was under the slogan "Customs in the digital world" and several issues were discussed such as what are the pros and cons of digitalization as a process, the level of digitalization in Customs control around the world, in the EU and Bulgaria, the opportunities for digitalization of import, export and transit processes, etc. As a result of the student's efforts, a summary essay on "Opportunities and Challenges in Customs Digitalization" was prepared.

The State of Israel is a member of the WTO and complies with the Valuation Agreement. However, with regard to discounts, the State imposes many conditions and obstacles for a discount to be accepted, … in a way that may deviate from the spirit of the Agreement.

With the increase in globalization and economic interdependence between countries, trade facilitation has become a critically important issue for the global economy. Consequently, trade facilitation … has been addressed in all its possible meanings, in all fields and scopes, and by all institutions that are somehow linked to international trade, composing a true Tradeweb of players with specific roles and common objectives.

Global trade based on preferential treatment offers benefits to its participants. The main one is a reduction in financial costs due to the application of reduced tariff rates when the goods … have a preferential origin. In other words, if a product originates in one country and is sold to another country with which there is a preferential trade agreement, the product may be subject to a reduced or even zero duty rate. However, the mere fact that the goods originate in a particular country is not enough to qualify for such benefits. The preferential origin of the goods must be proven, so that the customs authorities do not suspect any manipulation or fraud on the part of importers. Each specific preferential trade agreement sets out acceptable ways of proving the preferential origin of goods. A supplier's declaration is one of the means of proof. Let us find out what it is and when it can be used.

In a recent ruling, the Court of Justice (the Court) delivered its decision in the case of Zes Zollner Electronic, addressing the issue of amending customs declarations and the consequences of … failing to declare the correct quantity of goods. The case involved a Romanian company, Zes Zollner Electronic (ZZE), which declared only half of the actual quantity of goods received, resulting in a customs infringement.

Recently, in May 2023, the Israeli court upheld the customs manager's decision to suspend a customs agent for a few months. The agent appealed to court, but his petition was rejected.

The enforcement of international sanctions in Lithuania continues to tighten. The new strengthened national regime entered into force on 5 June 2023. In July 2023, an additional requirement will … come into force: manufacturer's declarations will be required for the transit by road through Russia or Belarus of non-dual-use goods with commodity codes corresponding to those included in the newly created national dual-use goods list. The new requirement will apply to all goods crossing Lithuanian borders, including those exported or re-exported from other EU countries.

The United States is strengthening the role of customs brokers as professionals by introducing a professional development requirement (which will come into force on 24 July 2023), stressing that … this will help improve trade compliance and revenue protection and allow brokers to act as an additional layer of security to prevent illicit goods from entering US commerce. In the meantime, EU customs brokers fear that the EU Customs Reform and the draft new Customs Code could signal the end of their profession.

Customs matters are complex and little known to the general public. This makes customs brokers an indispensable part of international trade, and with their knowledge they can greatly help their … clients. What key competencies should customs brokers have? What additional key skills should they have? And what can we do to improve the competencies of customs brokers? These three questions were dealt with in a workshop organised by Customs Knowledge Community (CKC). Let's have an overview of the results.

Digitalization has simplified Customs clearance in many areas, especially in the declaration of imports and exports. However, various data discontinuities and queries unnecessarily delay cross-border … process flows. A group of major logistics companies, software providers and researchers is driving an initiative which could change this. Called the “Open Customs Blockchain”, it focuses on developing and applying blockchain technology for the exchange of key Customs data in foreign trade.

A host of Finns imported goods from outside the European Union (EU) in 2022 for their private use. Of these individuals, 250,000 used the Customs Duty Calculator[1] when planning the cost of … importing goods. Planning with the Duty Calculator is an effective way of understanding the costs arising from value added tax (VAT) and Customs duties. Customers are also informed of how they will get their imported packages when they arrive across the border.

!!! Updated article with adjustments made to the UCC !!! On 24 March 2023, the EU and the United Kingdom (UK) agreed to settle their dispute over the Northern Ireland Protocol, in particular … by responding to some of the UK's requests to facilitate trade between Great Britain – GB (England, Wales, Scotland) on the one hand and Northern Ireland on the other (so-called East-West trade) and by accommodating the UK on some other issues. The relevant legal acts, recommendations and declarations were published in Official Journal No. L 102 of 17 April 2023. CCRM Journal for Practitioners in Europe has therefore asked Michael Lux, who advised the Government of Northern Ireland on the interpretation of the original version of the Northern Ireland Protocol, to outline the main aspects of the Windsor Framework with regard to trade in goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

To reduce carbon emissions in the EU and globally, the EU has put in place a legal framework - the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), set out in a recently published regulation. The CBAM … will apply to imports of certain goods such as fertilisers, screws, wires, hydrogen, etc., the range of which will be expanded. The obligation for importers of these goods or their indirect customs representatives to submit quarterly CBAM reports comes into force already this year.

From the point of view of many customs operators, especially those who conduct cross-member state customs activities, the developments in IT are rather sobering. Although the legal framework … for further standardization and harmonization has been established, isolated solutions and uncoordinated development statuses within the EU are delaying a real breakthrough. In this article, we provide an overview of the project status regarding the report of the European Commission.