Customs duties (tariffs)

Dr. Gediminas Valantiejus Senior Associate, Attorney at Law, Professional Law Partnership „iLAW“
January 16, 2021
en lt ru
Customs duties (tariffs)

Photo on Pexels

Definition

"Customs duties“ ("tariffs“) - although at present the precise definition is not directly enshrined in EU law, on the basis of case law of the Court of Justice of the EU (see cases 2/62 and 3/62, Commission of the European Economic Community v Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and Kingdom of Belgium; cases 52 and 55/65, Federal Republic of Germany v Commission of the EEC; Case 7/68, Commission v. Italy), they are understood as taxes, calculated on the basis of the tariffs to be paid by the importer to the host country, which make the imported product more expensive than a competing domestic product.

The concept of "customs duties" is generally used separately from the broader concept of "tariff trade regulatory measures (methods)", which is broader and includes not only customs duties but also tariff quotas and suspensions from duties.

EU duty tariffs

EU duty tariffs are set out in the Combined Nomenclature (CN), which is an Annex to the Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff. CN shall be updated annually and published in the Official Journal of the European Union. In 2021, CN set out in the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1577 applies.

The Combined Nomenclature is used to calculate the amount of import/export duties and taxes and to compile the data on goods used in Community trade statistics.

  • Market: EU - European Union

Comments ()

Similar content
en, lt
Do we have time to prepare for the introduction of trade defence measures?
31-12-2021

Importers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, are often unaware of trade defence instruments (TDIs) and face the consequences of newly introduced measures unprepared, thus incurring … unforeseen costs. Is it possible to prepare for this and thus, albeit partially, manage the risks associated with the introduction of TDIs? One mean to manage such risks would be regular monitoring of the regulatory environment. Of course, this requires resources, but it is equally important to know the process and deadlines for setting the TDI, as well as why different sizes of measures apply to the same product imported from the same non-EU country and where to find the necessary information. Thus, this is to be discussed in the article.

Jovita Dobrovalskienė

€
taxes
en, lt
Do we have time to prepare for the introduction of trade defence measures?
31-12-2021

Importers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, are often unaware of trade defence instruments (TDIs) and face the consequences of newly introduced measures unprepared, thus incurring unforeseen costs. Is it possible to prepare for this and thus, albeit partially, manage the risks associated with the introduction of TDIs? One mean to manage such risks would be regular monitoring of the regulatory environment. Of course, this requires resources, but it is equally important to know the process and deadlines for setting the TDI, as well as why different sizes of measures apply to the same product imported from the same non-EU country and where to find the necessary information. Thus, this is to be discussed in the article.

Jovita Dobrovalskienė

€
taxes
lt
Ginčas dėl Muitinės laboratorijos išvados klasifikuojant trąšas
31-12-2021

Trąšos. Paskutiniu metu nuolat girdime: baltarusiškų trąšų tranzitas, rusiškų trąšų importas. Ši tema ne tik spaudoje nuolat gvildenama, ją nagrinėja ir teismai. Apžvelgsime aktualią Lietuvos … vyriausiojo administracinio teismo nutartį trąšų apmokestinimo importo mokesčiais (antidempingo muitu) byloje. Verslas ginčijo Muitinės laboratorijos išvadas dėl prekės klasifikavimo, tad prisiminsime ir žinias šia tema, kuriomis dalinosi pranešėjai š.m. gruodį vykusioje 5-oje Muitinės praktikų konferencijoje, kurią rengė Muitinės praktikų asociacija.

Ingrida Kemežienė

€
taxes
lt
Ginčas dėl Muitinės laboratorijos išvados klasifikuojant trąšas
31-12-2021

Trąšos. Paskutiniu metu nuolat girdime: baltarusiškų trąšų tranzitas, rusiškų trąšų importas. Ši tema ne tik spaudoje nuolat gvildenama, ją nagrinėja ir teismai. Apžvelgsime aktualią Lietuvos vyriausiojo administracinio teismo nutartį trąšų apmokestinimo importo mokesčiais (antidempingo muitu) byloje. Verslas ginčijo Muitinės laboratorijos išvadas dėl prekės klasifikavimo, tad prisiminsime ir žinias šia tema, kuriomis dalinosi pranešėjai š.m. gruodį vykusioje 5-oje Muitinės praktikų konferencijoje, kurią rengė Muitinės praktikų asociacija.

Ingrida Kemežienė

€
taxes
en, lt
Anti-dumping duties. Is the tariff classification of goods still important?
09-12-2021

In recent case-law, the Court of Justice of the European Union clarified what determines the application of anti-dumping duties on specific goods, such as tariff classification of goods or other … criteria. Although different criteria are preferred in practice, for the first time a step has been taken to separate the tariff classification from the characteristics of the product subject to trade regulation measures.

Jonas Sakalauskas

€
taxes
en, lt
Anti-dumping duties. Is the tariff classification of goods still important?
09-12-2021

In recent case-law, the Court of Justice of the European Union clarified what determines the application of anti-dumping duties on specific goods, such as tariff classification of goods or other criteria. Although different criteria are preferred in practice, for the first time a step has been taken to separate the tariff classification from the characteristics of the product subject to trade regulation measures.

Jonas Sakalauskas

€
taxes
en
Import taxes administered by customs: a short overview
24-11-2021

Collection of import taxes is one of the main tasks of customs. What are the import taxes in various countries? What is the basis of their calculation? In this article, we overview the taxes … in Brazil, the EU, and Ukraine. The provided examples of imported goods reveal that, in some cases, the amount of import taxes might exceed the value of the goods themselves. Therefore, the advice for importers is to check the amounts of import duties payable before purchasing goods abroad.

Thális Andrade

€
taxes
en
Import taxes administered by customs: a short overview
24-11-2021

Collection of import taxes is one of the main tasks of customs. What are the import taxes in various countries? What is the basis of their calculation? In this article, we overview the taxes in Brazil, the EU, and Ukraine. The provided examples of imported goods reveal that, in some cases, the amount of import taxes might exceed the value of the goods themselves. Therefore, the advice for importers is to check the amounts of import duties payable before purchasing goods abroad.

Thális Andrade

€
taxes
en, fr
SACU Members make progress in enhancing the uniform application of their Common External Tariff
20-11-2021

The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) consists of five Member States – Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa – with a combined population of over 63 million people and a combined … GDP in excess of 300 billion US dollars. It is the oldest functioning Customs Union in the world, dating back to 1910.

SACU and the WCO Secretariats

taxes
en, fr
SACU Members make progress in enhancing the uniform application of their Common External Tariff
20-11-2021

The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) consists of five Member States – Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa – with a combined population of over 63 million people and a combined GDP in excess of 300 billion US dollars. It is the oldest functioning Customs Union in the world, dating back to 1910.

SACU and the WCO Secretariats

taxes
info@customsclearance.net +37060177411 (EN, RU) 37066426393 (LT) +37064465553 (DE)
Login Sign up
Forgot password?

By signing up you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Password reset

Check your e-mail, we sent you a link to reset your password.
Continue with Google Login with LinkedIn
Contact us

Contact us

Thank you for report
Your email can be used only to contact you for problem details. It won't be used for advertising purposes
Maximum file size 6mb
File is too large