Customs Compliance & Risk Management

Dear Readers,

As we approach a new year - 2023 - the most concerning questions worldwide are definitely related to the tariff classification questions and the implementation of transformations that are necessary for the renewed tariff classification nomenclatures. It is important to stress that in developing that theme, the authors of this CCRM issue paid a lot of attention to the new version of the EU’s Combined Nomenclature (2023), discussed the role of 'communications' as the special (and sometimes - forgotten) source of EU’s customs law and their importance. However, we also touch on issues important for the readers not only in the EU but the other countries, such as the introduction of the concept of 'attributes' in the classification of goods in Brazil, the adoption of a new tariff classification nomenclature (based on WCO’s Harmonized System 2022 version) in the Republic of Ukraine. Finally, those, who are interested in tariff classification of some particular products/ items, will be able to find commentaries about the classification of smartwatches or recommendations on how to optimize the classification process (what instruments should be included in the 'Tariff classification toolkit').

Another fairly widely covered topic worth paying special attention to is the interpretation of legal acts of customs and trade law, including the issues of liability for violations - this time thoughts of more than nine authors from different countries are summarized in the article 'Interpretation of customs law and related challenges for businesses'. Based on their expertise, the authors identified and presented many challenges, requiring the attention of all practitioners and starting from the challenge of wording or even punctuation used in customs laws and ending with the necessity to achieve the vision of the world’s most effective border.

Finally, this time and in this particular issue of CCRM Journal, we have decided to focus on the previously not-so-extensively researched but very important aspect - communication of businesses with customs lawyers. When do you need to start communicating with a customs lawyer or a consultant and what you should keep in mind while talking to them? As such questions naturally come to the mind of any practitioner from time to time, it is worth taking a look at the article by Dr Ilona Mishchenko 'Ask a customs lawyer about what and why can go wrong'?

I sincerely hope you will enjoy the content of this issue. As we are always interested in contributions from all customs compliance practitioners worldwide, if you would like to get involved and present your own ideas next time, please do not hesitate to reach out to us! (info@lcpa.lt)  

Best regards,
Dr Gediminas Valantiejus
Member of Editorial Board
Attorney-at-Law, Partner of the Law-Firm GVLEX, Lithuania
Senior Research Associate at the Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania