Shipping changes are happening: Customs will allow them to plead and liars will face a fine

The future tool for the declaration of shipments is called “Intelligent Customs Declaration Processing System” (iMDAS). The Customs Department ensures that iMDAS has already been developed and is in the final stages of testing.

“It will be presented next week to members of the Customs Advisory Committee, representatives of the Lithuanian Post, the Association of Express Parcel Carriers and others. We believe this will be a good alternative to the services provided by intermediaries and residents will be able to successfully declare up to 1 thousand in this system. Shipments worth EUR. The system will be open to consumers on July 1, “explains the Customs Department.

Delfi recalls that as of July 1, all purchases from China or other countries will have to be subject to import VAT; Until then, goods up to the value of 22 euros were exempt and this requirement did not apply. Shipments must be declared to customs for fees to be paid. And the declaration procedure is also changing: as of July 1, goods will be declared at customs by filing import declarations.

“The experience of neighboring Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Poland shows that (…) after the introduction of the self-service portal, around 50% started to fill out the declarations independently. population. Today, Lithuanian Customs residents also have the opportunity to declare freight shipments independently, but few people use it, ”estimates the department.

The procedure itself will require a code; can be fixed now

Residents purchasing third country products online are encouraged to register with the Common User Management Portal (BAP) and obtain an Economic Operator Identification Code (EORI). The EORI number will be required for self-declaration of merchandise. The BAP record is available here.

‘Once the BAP has been registered with the territorial customs, an application for a code (EORI) must be submitted. The code is provided within 1-2 business days. This service is free, the code is provided only once and is valid until the user requests its cancellation. The EORI number is valid throughout the EU ”, explains customs.

The details of the code assignment are available on the customs website.

Rates for intermediaries will be maintained

It is publicly announced that after July 1, there will be three ways to declare a shipment. The usual way for everyone at this time is for the shipment to be declared by a broker, for which a broker fee is paid. Self-declaration will be possible through the new customs system. Alternatively, at the time of purchase, outside sellers can arrange for the tax to be calculated and paid, and it is not yet clear whether they will be prepared.

“A resident has the right to choose the declaration method himself and must inform the carrier of the goods – Lithuania Post, the express carrier representative or the customs representative of the customs broker – in accordance with the established procedure. It goes without saying that if residents declare their goods themselves, they won’t have to pay a customs broker for this service. However, there will still be some taxes that must be clarified by the companies that transport the merchandise, ”explains the Customs Department.

Lietuvos Paštas has already announced that its brokerage fee will reach 3 euros, and if it decides to file, an administration fee of 2 euros will be paid.

“We remind you that if you decide to self-declare the merchandise, it is necessary to inform the carrier as soon as possible, only after receiving the shipment number. If you do not do it in time, the carriers will declare the shipments on behalf of the customer, but the service will be charged As a general rule, the majority of the population of the European Union uses the services of consignors and does not declare the goods themselves. Lithuanian customs, using the good practices of Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Poland, gave residents the opportunity to declare the goods purchased in the online stores of the third countries themselves, “said the comment.

Expect Chinese merchants to use a simpler solution

In order to facilitate and simplify the declaration and payment of VAT, a Special Regime for the taxation of distance sales of goods from third territories or third countries, also known as the One-Stop-Shop System (IOSS), will be operational throughout the territory. EU as of July 1.

“If a seller of an external electronic market applies this scheme, he will be responsible for paying VAT on the goods purchased by the buyer, that is, the buyer will pay VAT to the seller and the seller will have to transfer the tax to the Member State of the EU of dispatch. In Lithuania, once the postal operator or express parcel carrier has completed customs formalities, it will be possible to deliver the goods to the buyer, “explains customs.

So if merchants use IOSS, recipients of goods will no longer have to worry about declarations.

“When a good is acquired without using the IOSS, said purchase may be subject to a special procedure to declare and pay import VAT. In this case, all customs procedures, both the declaration of the merchandise and the payment of VAT, will be carried out by the postal service provider or the express carrier / courier. VAT will be collected in Lithuania upon presentation of an invoice to the recipient, which will indicate all taxes to be paid. It is important to note that iMDAS may self-declare those goods from third countries for which VAT will not be paid at the time of purchase. Only carriers purchased under the IOSS scheme will be able to declare such merchandise, “explains customs.

If the value of the merchandise exceeds 150 EUR, the self-declared merchandise must also be subject to customs duties.

“The goods will be subject to maximum customs duties (they can be controlled by LITAR). This decision was made in order to simplify the declaration process for people as much as possible,” explains the Customs Department.

Customs assures that, together with the companies, intensive preparations are being made for greater flows of declarations, for which joint working groups have been created.

“Currently, the declaration of shipments at the Postal Customs Post is in the usual mode and there are no disturbances. In general, for customs shipments unloaded by the population and sent to the Lithuanian post, customs formalities are carried out in 1-2 days, ”says the department.

The falsification of the value of the shipment will be subject to a fine.

The changes, which take effect on July 1, will leave fewer opportunities for Chinese senders to cheat by reporting lower-than-actual packet values.

“Changes have been initiated across the EU not only to ensure a level playing field for national and third country traders, but also to prevent such abuses. The mere fact that now all goods have to be declared when submitting declarations importation to customs will reduce the chances of data falsification ”, explains customs.

However, checks will also be carried out: customs authorities will select some shipments for physical checks according to the risk assessment system and will have the right to take certain actions if an irregularity is detected.

“Although we will be tolerant of minor infractions for some time, if it is determined that the infractions are intentional, the declarant will face administrative responsibility, a fine,” the department warned.

Approaching July 1. For these changes, the customs informs the company that due to minor infractions in the declaration of postal shipments, the declarants will not be administratively responsible for some time; Customs will limit itself to an oral comment, noting any errors or discrepancies.