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In the EU Customs Valuation Compendium, we can find a Commentary on the customs valuation of waste. The need for regulation of this topic is growing together with an aim to meet the objectives … of the circular economy. The Commentary is one of the newest interpretative instruments that has been published, so let's take a look at the clarifications it provides, including a practical case study.

The German Federal Tax Court has ruled in a case referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for clarification. The main question put to the CJEU was: can the transaction value … be based on the initial price paid if a fixed adjustment is subsequently applied, calculated by means of a pro rata apportionment mechanism, despite the fact that at the end of the year, in the event of an adjustment, there will be a repayment of import duties or an additional payment? The CJEU has given a striking, albeit not entirely clear, ruling in a case that retrospective adjustments (upward or downward) to transfer pricing are not taken into account in determining the customs value of goods. Here is an overview of the case and the highlights of the German court's decision.

In CCRM Issue 14 we wrote about a case, where a company challenged a BTI ruling. There is news in this case, as the European Commission issued a classification regulation concerning such products. … We take this opportunity to update the article, which not only provides information on how to classify ‘a plastic basin with a plastic disposable liner to be used in clinical settings’ (9018, 3922, or 3924), but also provides an overview of the tools, procedures and possible pitfalls of the tariff classification of goods; and discusses what all the stakeholders can learn from this case.

Due to the need for more precise controls on foreign trade, the Brazilian government decided to adopt an additional methodology to performing the classification of goods in the HS/NCM, which … is the use of 'attributes'. Each position in the HS/NCM can have several attributes, and the importer must indicate which one or which ones apply to the goods. This new import process aims to optimise customs inspection and increase the application of fines due to incorrect classification.

The Combined Nomenclature (CN) is updated annually and businesses should check for changes relating to imported or exported goods. The version of the CN to be applied in 2023 has already been … published. Let's take a look at the more important changes, which are, in fact, not many - 42 new CN codes were introduced, 23 CN codes were abolished.

After the publication of a certain communication in the EU Official Journal, Binding Tariff Information (BTI) decisions must be revoked if they no longer correspond to the interpretation of the … customs nomenclature according to the specified international tariff measures. The latest communication was published at the end of October this year. Let's take a look at the current issues that are important for both business and customs. For example, how should household plastic clothes hangers be classified? Or what about digital smart pen classification?

Tariff classification is never simple. This is a complex process that has been always causing complications and misunderstandings. It may seem that persons over the years should have learned … to avoid problems when classifying goods. However, in practice the further it goes, the more complicated it becomes. In this article, we offer to get acquainted with one such example that confirms this statement.

The areas requiring customs compliance are of a very technical nature. To get it right, a systematic approach is required. In this article, we present the ‘Tariff classification toolkit’, developed … by the author. This is a generic version of a toolkit. It can be tailored to the requirements of any company by expanding them and making the requirements more specific.

Verslui gali tekti dirbti su keliomis klasifikavimo sistemomis, o nuo teisingo prekių klasifikavimo jose priklauso prekybos sąlygos. Tai nebūtų problema, jeigu kartą nustačius prekės kodą, būtų … užtikrintas tvirtas ir stabilus pagrindas tarptautinei prekybai. Deja, šis pagrindas labai nestabilus dėl daugelio priežasčių. Apžvelkime kai kurias jų, susijusias su prekių klasifikavimu Suderintoje sistemoje ir atitinkamose nacionalinėse sistemose.

Dažna situacija, kai lingvistiškai panašiais prekių pavadinimais vadinami dirbiniai, pavyzdžiui, lenta (gali būti lyginimo lenta, medinė pjaustymo lenta, grifelinė lentelė ir pan.), klasifikuojami … priskiriant juos ne tik Kombinuotosios prekių nomenklatūros skirtingiems skirsniams ar pozicijoms, bet ir skirtingiems skyriams. Šioje naujai paskelbtų reglamentų dėl prekių klasifikavimo apžvalgoje kviečiame pasigilinti, kas lėmė dviejų tekstilės paklotų – „iškylų kilimėlis“ ir „elektrinė paklodė“ - tarifinį klasifikavimą priskiriant juos skirtingoms pozicijoms.

What is the language of international trade? Who should learn it? Why it is important to learn? How to use this language for international trade? What are the international themes in the development … and application of this language? What are its advantages and disadvantages? How to develop the skill of using this language? This article finds answers to these important questions for the information and learning of the international trading community.

Reader's question: ‘We export certain devices to Ukraine. The product-specific rule is based on the value criterion. Can the value of expensive software, which was created and developed in the … EU, be counted as the value of originating materials?’ To answer this question, we review various aspects of the topic, which is becoming increasingly important, as more and more goods do not function without software.

On 13.06.2022, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a decision in the Baltic Master case (C-599/20) on two relatively unrelated issues. The first, whether customs must establish … an objective legal relationship between the buyer and the seller in order to consider them as related persons. The second, whether customs can rely on the value of a single comparable transaction found on the national customs valuation information system (IS), denying the acceptance of the declared value of the goods (air conditioning units). In this article, we discuss interpretations provided by the CJEU; and we look forward for the national verdict of the Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (SACL).

Malonu, kad buvau pakviesta pasidalinti savo asmenine ekspertine nuomone Baltic Master bylos klausimu. Esu tikra, kad bylos eigą akylai seka ne tik leidinio redakcinė kolegija, bet ir Lietuvos … bei ES ir ne ES šalių muitinių atstovai, teisininkai, tarptautinio verslo specialistai, t. y., visi muitinės praktika besidomintys profesionalai.

Customs administration shall exercise due care in analysing the facts, gathering information and evidence for the use of each of the alternative methods for determining the customs value. This … includes the duty of the customs authorities to consult all the information sources and databases available to them. Are customs authorities obliged to check information systems maintained by the EU? May identical or similar imports (which have not been challenged) of the same trader be excluded? What is the period, in which identical or similar imports are considered to be ‘made at the same or around the same time’? We look at the CJEU's answers to these questions.

Customs valuation is one of the largest challenges in international trade. That is why the rules of customs valuation are set out in an international treaty. On the one hand, this is aimed at … harmonizing the valuation rules, while on the other hand, it is aimed at protecting economic operators from the arbitrariness of the authorities and, ultimately, at helping traders. Does it really work in practice, and does it serve both public and private interests in international trade? In the article, the peculiarities of customs valuation are highlighted, which are especially important to consider for those who deal with developing and least-developed countries.