Publication date: 04.07.2024
Customs law: legal regulation of foreign economic activity
Customs law is one of the key branches of law that regulates the foreign economic activity of the state. It encompasses a set of legal rules that govern the procedure for moving goods, services and other objects across the customs border, establish customs control rules, determine customs payments and procedures, and regulate legal relations between foreign economic operators and customs authorities. In this article, we will look at the basics of Ukrainian customs law, its principles, key institutions and current issues.
Fundamentals of customs law
The customs law of Ukraine is regulated by the Constitution of Ukraine, the Customs Code of Ukraine (CCU), the Laws of Ukraine "On Foreign Economic Activity", "On Customs Tariff", "On Protection of National Producers from Subsidised Imports", international treaties ratified by Ukraine, as well as regulations issued on their basis.
The main objectives of customs law include:
- Ensuring the economic security of the state: Establishing rules and procedures to prevent the illegal movement of goods across the customs border, protecting the national market from unfair competition.
- Regulation of foreign economic activity: Establishing the conditions and procedure for the movement of goods, vehicles and other objects across the customs border, ensuring control over compliance with the law.
- Ensuring state budget revenues: Establishment of customs duties, taxes and fees payable when moving goods across the customs border, ensuring their timely and full receipt by the state budget.
- Facilitatinginternational trade: Creating favourable conditions for the development of international trade, ensuring effective interaction between customs authorities and foreign economic operators.
Principles of customs law
The main principles of customs law include:
- Theprinciple of legality: All customs procedures and legal relations between foreign economic operators and customs authorities must be carried out in accordance with the law.
- Theprinciple of equality: All subjects of foreign economic activity have equal rights and obligations when moving goods across the customs border, regardless of their form of ownership, citizenship or other characteristics.
- Theprinciple of transparency: Customs legislation, rules and procedures should be clear, understandable and accessible to all subjects of foreign economic activity.
- Theprinciple of efficiency: Customs authorities should ensure the effective performance of their functions, promote the development of international trade, and prevent the illegal movement of goods across the customs border.
- Theprinciple of cooperation: The customs authorities shall cooperate with other state authorities, international organisations and foreign economic operators to ensure effective control over the movement of goods across the customs border.
Key institutions of customs law
Customs law institutions include a set of legal norms and bodies that regulate and control foreign economic activity. The main institutions include:
- TheState Customs Service of Ukraine (SCSU): The SCSU is the central executive body that implements customs policy, monitors compliance with customs legislation, conducts customs control and clearance of goods, and combats smuggling and other offences.
- Customs: Customs are the territorial bodies of the SCSU that carry out customs control and clearance of goods, vehicles and other objects moving across the customs border.
- Subjects of foreign economic activity: Entities engaged in foreign economic activity include individuals and legal entities engaged in export, import, transit of goods and provision of international services.
- Customs brokers: Customs brokers are intermediaries between foreign economic operators and customs authorities, providing services in customs clearance of goods, consulting and representation of clients' interests.
- Other state authorities: Other government authorities involved in the regulation of foreign economic activity include the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, the National Bank of Ukraine and others.
Key provisions of customs law
- Customs control and clearance: Customs control includes a set of measures aimed at ensuring compliance with customs legislation when goods are moved across the customs border. Customs clearance includes procedures related to the declaration of goods, payment of customs duties, inspections and release of goods into free circulation.
- Customs regimes: Customs regimes determine the procedure for the movement of goods across the customs border and their further use. The main customs regimes include import, export, transit, temporary import and export, customs warehouse, processing within and outside the customs territory, re-import and re-export.
- Customs payments: Customs duties include customs duties, excise taxes, value added tax (VAT) and other payments that are paid when goods move across the customs border. The amount of customs payments depends on the value of the goods, their characteristics and the customs regime.
- Customs value: The customs value of goods is determined in accordance with their contractual price, taking into account the costs of transportation, insurance, loading and unloading, as well as other costs associated with the delivery of goods to the customs border.
- Tariff and non-tariff regulation: Tariff regulation includes the establishment of customs tariffs, duty rates and other customs charges. Non-tariff regulation includes quotas, licensing, standardisation, certification, sanitary and phytosanitary control, as well as other measures aimed at regulating foreign economic activity.
Application of customs law in Ukraine
The legal regulation of foreign economic activity in Ukraine covers a wide range of relations between foreign economic operators, customs authorities and other participants in international trade. The main areas of application of customs law include:
- Customs control and clearance of goods: The customs authorities control compliance with customs legislation, inspect goods, vehicles and other objects moving across the customs border, prepare customs declarations, and ensure payment of customs duties.
Protection of the national market: The customs authorities take measures to protect the national market from unfair competition, monitor compliance with quality and safety requirements, and prevent the importation of counterfeit and low-quality products.
Facilitatinginternational trade: The customs authorities interact with foreign economic operators, provide advice, ensure prompt and efficient clearance of goods, and facilitate the development of international trade and economic cooperation.
Combating smugglingand customs offences: The customs authorities take measures to prevent and combat smuggling, detect and prosecute customs offences, and cooperate with law enforcement agencies, international organisations and other government agencies.
Regulation of customs duties and tariffs: The customs authorities establish and control the payment of customs duties, monitor and analyse the customs value of goods, and ensure timely and full receipt of customs duties to the state budget.
Current issues of customs law in Ukraine
Ukrainian customs law is constantly evolving and improving. Among the current issues are the following:
Simplification of customs procedures: An important task is to simplify customs procedures, introduce electronic document management, reduce the time for customs clearance of goods, and reduce the administrative burden on foreign economic operators.
Protection of the national market: Increasing the effectiveness of measures to protect the national market from unfair competition, counterfeit and low-quality products, strengthening control over the quality and safety of goods, and introducing new mechanisms of tariff and non-tariff regulation.
Integration into the international system of customs regulation: Cooperation with international organisations, harmonisation of customs legislation with international standards, participation in international anti-crisis programmes and projects, ensuring effective cooperation with customs authorities of other countries.
Combatingcustoms offences: Strengthening measures to prevent and combat smuggling, detecting and prosecuting customs offences, developing cooperation with law enforcement agencies, international organisations and other government agencies.
Raisinglegal awareness of foreign economic operators: Conducting awareness-raising activities among foreign economic operators on customs legislation, rules and procedures for customs control and clearance of goods, and opportunities for protecting rights in case of customs offences.
Conclusion.
The customs law of Ukraine is an important branch of law that regulates the foreign economic activity of the state, protects the national market, promotes the development of international trade and ensures the receipt of customs payments to the state budget. The main objectives of customs law are to ensure the economic security of the state, regulate foreign economic activity, ensure revenues to the state budget, and facilitate international trade. The main principles of customs law include legality, equality, transparency, efficiency and cooperation. The key institutions of customs law include the State Customs Service of Ukraine, customs offices, foreign economic operators, customs brokers, and other government authorities. The main provisions of customs law include customs control and clearance, customs regimes, customs payments, customs value, tariff and non-tariff regulation. Topical issues of customs law include simplification of customs procedures, protection of the national market, integration into the international customs regulation system, combating customs offences, and raising legal awareness of foreign economic operators. The legal regulation of foreign economic activity contributes to ensuring the economic security of the state, developing international trade, protecting the national market, ensuring customs payments to the state budget and creating favourable conditions for the development of the Ukrainian economy.
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