Similar content

The language of sustainable development legislation and the language of the legislation of origin are completely different; it is necessary to find a lingua franca for these areas to better understand … and implement the requirements. On the other hand, harmonisation of rules of origin at a global level is essential to address the challenges faced by importers - the need for harmonisation of these rules has never been greater. These and many other views were exchanged at the 20th Authors' Meeting. We invite you to read an overview.

The EU has concluded more than 40 free trade agreements (FTAs) with around 80 countries, which supposedly bring significant benefits for trade with partner countries. But is this really the case, … i.e. is the EU fully utilising these benefits? This article attempts to assess the application of EU FTAs by analysing the flow of goods in and out of the main trading partners. The author looks at how import and export volumes and geography depend on the existence of preferential agreements.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), approved in 2012 by the African Union’s (AU) 18th Ordinary Session of Assembly of Heads of State and Government, is one of the Flagship Projects … of the AU’s Agenda 2063. The Action Plan for Boosting intra-African trade has a strong focus on accelerating intra-African trade and boosting Africa’s trading position in the global market, in particular through implementation of trade facilitation standards and tools. We provide a brief overview of AfCFTA rules of origin.

Finding the right customs broker can be a huge problem for traders. One may seem to be "your" person, but they may misunderstand you or not listen to you. Another may not have the proper level … of knowledge and so on. This article is designed to help you with this search and selection process. You will find answers to the most important questions to ask when looking for a helpful broker.

In the European Union, customs penalties and their proportionality fall within the national competence of the Member States. In a recent judgment, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled … that the imposition of an administrative penalty of 50% of the amount of duty underpaid is justified "notwithstanding the good faith of and precautions taken by the operator concerned". What does this mean for EU importers who declare the non-preferential origin of goods on the basis of proofs issued by the authorities of third countries that turn out to be incorrect? We provide an overview of the case and consider what conclusions economic operators could draw from it.

The saying "Only those who don't work make no mistakes" aptly states that it is human to make mistakes and there is no way to change that - the mistakes will happen. But they need to be managed … - to be minimised and corrected as quickly as possible. The Union Customs Code provides for a three-year period during which it is possible to apply to the customs authorities for the correction of errors, the recovery of overpaid taxes or the payment of underpaid amounts. In Lithuania, however, the new national legislation no longer provides for the possibility of correcting certain data elements. Let's take a look at the challenges this poses for businesses, as well as practices in other countries and trends.

Siekiant gauti muitinės leidimus, naudotis supaprastinimais ir kitais muitinės formalumų tikslais, viena iš sąlygų yra įmonės finansinė „sveikata“. Antra vertus, ji visuomet svarbi siekiančiam … augti verslui. Tad atsakant į muitinės formalumų kontekste pateiktą skaitytojo klausimą (Kaip įvertinti savo verslo finansinę „sveikatą“?), kviečiame visų pirma pasigilinti į bendruosius principus ir kartu – į vieną dar pakankamai naują galimybę prireikus skolintis, ar skolinti. Pakalbinome sutelktinio finansavimo platformos „Savy“ vykdančiąją direktorę Silviją Kažukauskaitę.

Bahrain Customs Affairs (BCA) is constantly developing its systems and infrastructure to support and improve Customs operations, thereby helping to build a safe, advanced, investment-friendly … business environment in the Kingdom. Bahrain, an active Member of the WCO, regularly examines the standards, recommendations and tools developed by the Organization and wishes to act as a leader to the Customs community by demonstrating excellence and creativity in Customs practices.

A new version of the WCO Strategic Trade Control Enforcement Implementation Guide was published in December 2023.

The Study provides a comparative analysis of origin provisions in a region which has the most numerous and complex overlapping trade regimes of the entire African continent.

Performing due diligence can be challenging for SMEs, and regulators should take this into account when designing trade compliance programmes and initiatives.

Recognising the critical role that customs intermediaries play in enabling international trade for UK businesses, the government issued a consultation that sought feedback on the concept of introducing … a voluntary standard. The final phase of the consultation process concluded in August 2023. A significant consensus emerged among stakeholders on the idea of introducing a voluntary standard for customs intermediaries.

Case law tells us how importing and exporting SMEs, which do not have in-house customs expertise, understand their role and responsibilities, as well as those of a customs broker. Often, when … a dispute arises with customs over penalties imposed on an importer or exporter for an offence, the company claims that it was confident that it had properly fulfilled its obligations by entrusting customs clearance to a professional service provider - the customs broker. The company therefore learns the hard way about its customs-related responsibilities and obligations. What role does the customs broker play in preventing such situations? In this article, we argue that customs brokers need to take on the role of proactive educator and suggest a way to do this.

Customs brokers are an important part of the customs ecosystem. Both parties - traders and customs - can benefit greatly from working with these professional intermediaries. Customs brokers take … on the complex tasks related to customs clearance, protect and serve the interests of the parties involved while balancing their different needs (e.g. fast delivery vs. thorough control) and save them a lot of time so they can focus on their core activities. This topic is not new, and one might think that these areas of operation should already be established and standardised. However, discussions at the 19th Authors' Meeting showed that there are still more questions than answers in the countries of Europe and America.

The right to be heard is well known to practitioners from various customs decisions and the Art. 22(6) of the Union Customs Code: 'Before taking a decision which would adversely affect the applicant, … the customs authorities shall communicate the grounds on which they intend to base their decision to the applicant, who shall be given the opportunity to express his or her point of view'. This fundamental right of the EU legal order is not just a formality - the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) recently annulled a regulation because it found that the European Commission had violated the importer's right to be heard during the process of adopting that regulation. It is therefore worthwhile for importers, exporters and other parties involved to take a close look at the topic and be prepared to use the right to their own advantage at EU or national level if needed.

„Net ir vieno žmogaus įmonė, pavyzdžiui, teikianti muitinės tarpininko paslaugas, turi taikyti savo veiklos savikontrolės procedūras.“ - sako Žana Kraučenkienė, sertifikuota vidaus auditorė, … turinti daugiau nei 20 metų patirtį šioje srityje. Kokias veiklos sritis apima vidaus auditas? Kaip vidaus auditorius organizuoja savo veiklą? Kodėl apskritai tai svarbu kiekvienai įmonei? Atsakymus į šiuos ir kitus klausimus kviečiame sužinoti skaitant interviu.

Skaitytojo klausimas: Esame maža (20+ darbuotojų) keletą metų veikianti įmonė. Neturiu patirties atliekant vidinius įmonės muitinės formalumų patikrinimus. Ką patartumėte, nuo ko pradėti?

Customs administrations have a full array of tools and technologies at their disposal to test material and substances – both in the field and in their labs. These tools all have benefits and … limitations. This article introduces an innovation which enables field officers to analyse trace materials left on any items and obtain the specific name of a trace level substance. Not only can they confirm or allay their suspicions rapidly, but they can also proceed to physical inspection with all the precautions needed.