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Again doubts about the customs treatment of post-entry upward and downward price adjustments: the Court of Justice of European Union has to provide with a ruling
The customs value is one of the most complex for the compliance with the customs obligation. More aspects should be still fully clarified. At this regard it is interesting to share some considerations about the “request for a preliminary ruling” Case C-782/23 dated 19 Dicembrer 2023: the Cort of Justice of the European Union has to rule about the customs treatment of post-entry upward and downward price adjustments; in particular, an importer declared a provisional prices for imported goods, then later adjusted these values based on market conditions and exchange rates. Although the final price was not unknown at the moment of the acceptance of import declaration, in the customs…
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Free trade agreement, European Union and New Zealand
European Council as stated in the decision n. 2023/1323 of 27 June 2023 and published on 30 June 2023is authorized to sign the free trade agreement with the New Zealand. It is stated that “…The signing, on behalf of the Union, of the Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and New Zealand (‘the Agreement’) is hereby authorised, subject to the conclusion of the said Agreement…”. The compliance with the protocol of origin of the mentioned FTA is required to both claim for the preferential origin (preferential treatment) and prevent the AEO authorization from any infringiment of the required standards (article n.39 UCC). Finally, it is important to recall that…
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Customs declaration, judgment, excess of goods and European Court of justice judgment
The ECJ in this judgment (Fifth Chamber) 8 June 2023 C‑640/21 established that articles 173 [Amendment of a customs declaration] and 174 [Invalidation of a customs declaration] of Union Customs Code “UCC”, after both the lodgment of customs declaration and the release of goods, are not applicable when the declarant reports a quantity of goods in excess. In other words, if the quantity of imported goods is greater than that set out in the customs declaration, the declarant is required to make a new declaration in respect of that excess quantity. At their turn, the national customs authorities are are led to apply national legislation providing for penalties in accordance…
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EU Customs reform, AEO and trusted operators scheme
The Commission working document “ Accompanying the document Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, and repealing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013…” finds out the need to implement the scheme of the AEO (trusted and checked operators) by following the following areas: ‒ AEO traders can operate under a trust and check approach if they have their electronic system interacting with the customs’ systems on a constant basis and thereby allowing customs to have access to all relevant data directly from the operators’ systems. They can self-monitor the compliance of their goods and calculate and…
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The next Union Customs code and the customs action plan
The new Union Customs Code is the answer to CAP (Customs Action Plan) by which the EU reacts to this problem: the current customs system is burdensome for legitimate trade. And customs authorities struggle in their mission to protect the EU, its financial interests, citizens, enterprises, the Single Market, and the environment. In particular, there are the points highlighted: Customs authorities struggle in their mission to protect the EU; Compliance with customs formalities is burdensome for legitimate trade; The customs model is not fit for e-commerce; Limited data quality, access, and analysis; Member States diverge significantly in the application of the customs rules. In particular, the working document reports that:…
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The context of the new Union Customs Code: the next challenges of the customs
The Commission staff working document impact assesment report “Accompanying the document Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, and repealing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013” has been published on 22.05.2023 and defines the context where the new Union Customs Code will be placed. This context is the Custom Union founded in 1968 which manages the external border of the EU by enforcing the rules governing the cross-border movement of goods, including by imposing a common tariff on goods imported from third countries. Customs traditionally collect customs duties and other taxes on imports and are…
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Commissione UE, sanzioni doganali e AEO
La Commissione europea con la relazione COM(2023) 5 final del 6 gennaio 2023 “sulla valutazione delle infrazioni e sanzioni doganali negli Stati membri Codice doganale dell’Unione” ha pubblicato i seguenti risultati. Attualmente, in assenza di una normativa dell’UE armonizzata in materia di sanzioni doganali, gli Stati membri hanno il potere discrezionale di scegliere le sanzioni che ritengono più appropriate, nel rispetto dei principi di proporzionalità, efficacia e capacità dissuasiva. Il quadro è arricchito dalla direttiva sulla tutela degli interessi finanziari dell’Unione (la “direttiva PIF“) contempla una serie di reati ai danni del bilancio dell’UE, tra cui l’evasione dei dazi doganali. Ciò ha determinato diversità di trattamento sanzionatorio. Infatti, vi sono…