- The EU Commission has proposed a regulation, the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, to enhance customs risk management and support effective controls by Member States.
- The proposal aims to develop and implement a fully-fledged analysis and coordination capacity at EU level.
- The proposal introduces new provisions such as the concept of ‘importer’, ‘deemed importer’, and ‘Trust and Check Traders’.
- The ‘importer’ is defined as a person who has the power to determine that goods from a third country are to be brought into the customs territory of the Union.
- A ‘deemed importer’ is a person who is involved in the ‘distance sales’ regime for B2C transactions for VAT purposes.
- The use of the IOSS will be mandatory for all distance sales irrespective of their value.
- The proposal does envisage certain simplifications such as the use of a 5-bucket system when bringing goods into free circulation. These bucket rates are higher than the rates that would normally apply to such goods.
- Although the HS-codes must be provided in the Advance Cargo Information, for bringing the goods into free circulation, the deemed importer that opted for the use of the bucket system does not have to classify the products on an 8 or more digit-level.
Source Deloitte
