Classification
Classification of composite goods: which material decides?
Enrika Naujokė26 Aug 2026
Classification of composite goods: which material decides?
Which material decides the classification of composite goods? In a recent judgment, the EU General Court gave the newest answer: decorative paper impregnated with melamine resin - declared as paper, duty-free - is classified as plastics at 6.5%, because the resin, not the paper, gives the product its essential character....
Classification
Case law
Challenging a BTI decision: the route, the deadlines and the moneyEnrika Naujokė31 Jul 2019Updated 26 Aug 2026
Challenging a BTI decision: the route, the deadlines and the money
Customs has issued you a BTI with a code you disagree with. You cannot amend it, you cannot give it up, and applying again - in any member state - is prohibited. The only remedy is appeal. And while the appeal is pending, you keep declaring under the contested code...
Classification
Case law
Post-clearance value in Communication C/2026/3319: what the 76th HS Committee changes, and what to do about it
Virginija Dordzikienė12 Aug 2026
Post-clearance value in Communication C/2026/3319: what the 76th HS Committee changes, and what to do about it
If you have already opened Communication C/2026/3319 in the Official Journal, you have seen the list. Two Explanatory Note amendments, seventeen Classification Opinions, one deletion and one Classification Decision. Codes and reference numbers, nothing more. This overview does not repeat that list. It flags the few items that will move...
Classification
Topic spotlight
Why companies need to rethink how they manage tariff classification
Jakub Dobrzynski12 Jul 2026
Why companies need to rethink how they manage tariff classification
This article examines why tariff classification errors persist in many companies, revealing that the root cause is often not a lack of customs knowledge, but rather weak processes, poor product data, and ambiguous responsibilities. Based on a case study of an international manufacturer, it identifies where the greatest risks lie...
Classification
Topic spotlight
New, used, or neither? Why remanufactured goods get stuck at the borderEnrika Naujokė02 Jun 2026
New, used, or neither? Why remanufactured goods get stuck at the border
An article published in this issue concerning a Court ruling on the import of worn clothing from the United Kingdom revealed a problem: the CTH rule of origin for heading 6309 under the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement exists in theory but cannot be applied in practice, because the only...
Classification
Case law
Value of human accountability over algorithmic outputs
Elizabeth Davies14 Apr 2026
Value of human accountability over algorithmic outputs
HM Revenue & Customs has issued guidelines on the appropriate use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in commercial software products that assist customers in submitting information to HMRC. We consider this, along with several other documents, within the context of applying AI to customs classification, in order to examine its...
Classification
Digitalisation
Country update
HS 2028 revision: key changes and how to prepare
Eglė Pučkuvienė29 Mar 2026
HS 2028 revision: key changes and how to prepare
This article reviews the changes introduced in the HS 2028 revision. A total of 299 sets of amendments have been introduced, covering areas such as healthcare, epidemic control, emergency preparedness, environmental protection, green transition technologies, the circular economy, recycled goods and the fight against illicit trade. It also provides businesses...
Classification
Explainer
Electricity breakdown at Customs: 8502 or 8504 (0% or 10% duty?)
Omer Wagner10 Feb 2026
Electricity breakdown at Customs: 8502 or 8504 (0% or 10% duty?)
A recent Israeli court ruling highlights the decisive role of tariff classification in customs compliance and project economics. The importer had obtained advance approval to open a 'secretariat file' - a procedure enabling all components of a single project to be classified under a single HS code - yet the...
Classification
Duties & taxes
Case law
2026 CN amendments: a practical overview
Christopher Matt14 Dec 2025
2026 CN amendments: a practical overview
The publication of the Combined Nomenclature (CN) 2026 in the Official Journal of the European Union on 31 October marks the start of a transition period for EU importers and exporters, who now have until the end of the year to prepare their tariff classifications for 2026. The changes are...
Classification
Topic spotlight
AI and the future of customs tariff classification
Martin Pay28 Sep 2025
AI and the future of customs tariff classification
Artificial intelligence is not just a far-off idea; it is already changing the way that global trade is conducted. This is nowhere more apparent than in the tariff classification, where the intricacy of regulations, volume of data, and requirement for accuracy provide the ideal conditions for artificial intelligence to have...
Classification
Digitalisation
Perspective
Can an item be modified in a customs warehouse to change its classification?Omer Wagner22 Jun 2025
Can an item be modified in a customs warehouse to change its classification?
An individual imported a caravan from the USA to Israel as a personal import, with the intention of using it as a ‘bed and breakfast’, i.e. a guest house or zimmer. The Israeli Customs Authority and the Ministry of Transport refused to release the shipment on the grounds that it...
Classification
Procedures
Country update
Classification of electric scooters for seniors - 10% or 0% duty?
Ingrida Sakalienė16 Feb 2025
Classification of electric scooters for seniors - 10% or 0% duty?
A recent case before the Court of Justice of the European Union raises the issue of the classification of an electric four-wheel vehicle for seniors traveling at speeds of up to 16 km per hour. The classification as ‘other vehicles similar to golf carts’ and ‘wheelchairs/other vehicles designed for disabled...
Classification
Duties & taxes
Case law
The long and winding road: pursuing a bad trade decision by a customs officer in the United States
Ira Reese24 Jan 2025
The long and winding road: pursuing a bad trade decision by a customs officer in the United States
In the US, the law allows an importer to contest adverse decisions on their customs entries for a number of reasons including differences in appraised value, classification and rate of duty, exclusion from entry and refusal to pay a drawback claim. Anyone who either advises importers or directly pursues what...
Classification
Perspective
What is new in the Combined Nomenclature 2025?Eglė Pučkuvienė22 Dec 2024
What is new in the Combined Nomenclature 2025?
Editor's note (by Enrika Naujoke). Want to have fun? Try explaining various aspects of product classification to programmers who are to integrate it into software. For example, the latest update regarding tomatoes with “greatest diameter of less than 47 mm”. Yes, the tariff depends on classification based on “greatest of...
Classification
Explainer
What’s new in classification: the latest WCO updates on classification of goodsIngrida Sakalienė04 Dec 2024
What’s new in classification: the latest WCO updates on classification of goods
Article 34 (7)(ііі) of the Union Customs Code provides for that the customs authorities shall revoke BTI decisions where they are no longer compatible with the classification decisions, classification opinions or amendments of the HS nomenclature Explanatory Notes. In such cases, the European Commission issues a Communication and publishes it...
Classification
Topic spotlight
Legislative purpose: the unwritten criterion in classifying goodsOmer Wagner12 Nov 2024
Legislative purpose: the unwritten criterion in classifying goods
The use of the ‘legislative purpose’ criterion in the classification of goods (i.e. whether the product should be taxed or not) leads to a lack of uniformity and undermines the principle underlying the HS Convention. Therefore, it is proposed to minimize the use of the ‘legislative purpose’ criterion and to...
Classification
Topic spotlight