As one of the important institutions in which there is an awareness that a strong economy is based on economic strength and stability of the state, the Customs Administration seeks to build a partnership with the business community, listening to the needs and challenges faced by both domestic and foreign companies.
Slobodan Tomic, coordinator for the implementation of customs procedures in the Sector for Customs Procedures, says for eKapija that the new customs law, which started to be applied on July 17, was passed with the aim of enabling easier and more efficient operation of our economy.
Tomic said that the new law is a precondition for the modernization and rationalization of customs procedures, for providing greater legal security, predictability and uniformity of business, as well as for the transition to paperless business and electronic environment.
The new law stipulates that the data on the declaration (as in the case of the law from 2010) can be subsequently changed, and now such a thing is possible ex officio or at the request of the party, if all the conditions provided by law are met. The correction of the declaration and its subsequent control may be carried out within three years from the completion of customs clearance of the goods.
– The responsibility for the accuracy of the data on the basis of which the customs declaration is submitted is on the declarant, and the declaration is submitted in order to copy the condition of the goods that are placed in the procedure. The goal is for the procedure to be fast, efficient and accurate. In accordance with the risk analysis, which is also dealt with by the Customs Administration, in some cases controls of goods are not carried out. Therefore, there is no other possibility than to change the data in another procedure, which is called the customs administrative procedure – Tomic explained.
According to the new customs law, therefore, after accepting the declaration, the declarant is allowed to change or supplement certain data in the declaration at his own request and with the approval of the customs authority. Changes in the declaration may not apply to other goods, except those that the declaration originally implied. In exceptional cases, in situations prescribed by law, at the request of the declarant, it is possible to approve changes after the release of the goods, within three years from the date of acceptance of the declaration. This is done in order for the declarant to fulfill the obligations related to placing the goods in a certain customs procedure.
– It would always be better if the data used in the procedure are accurate and harmonized with the actual condition of the goods. If they are not, sometimes, even due to insignificant differences and deviations, a complete customs-administrative procedure must be carried out, which takes a long time. In order to avoid this, the goods can be inspected in several phases of the procedure (primarily after delivery), during the so-called “preliminary examination of the goods”, approved and attended by the customs authority. The customs authority provides the declarant with the opportunity to check all the data before declaring, in order to correctly declare the goods on that basis – says Slobodan Tomic.
Aleksandra Ilic, Head of the Department for TSO and Simplified Customs Procedures, emphasizes that one of the important goals of the new customs law is the transition to paperless business and electronic environment. This implies simplification, modernization and rationalization of customs procedures.
According to Aleksandra Ilic, the provisions related to acquiring the status of authorized economic entity (AEO) have been prescribed by the customs law since 2010, and as of September 1, 2014, companies have the opportunity to submit a request for obtaining such approval.
The criteria that companies must meet in order to obtain this status are the same as those prescribed by EU legislation. To date, the Customs Administration has awarded 24 AEO certificates to companies that are considered reliable, Kamatica reports.
