The European Commission will organise a high-level seminar on the modernized Customs Code from 9 to 11 March 2005 in Budapest. EU Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Union Mr. László Kovács will be one of the keynote speakers. Participants will consist of stakeholders from the business circles concerned (notably those who have been actively involved in the elaboration of the draft modernized Customs Code) as well as customs experts and officials from Member States’ customs administrations.

The objective of the seminar is to clarify and discuss the modernisation of the Community’s Customs Code as outlined in the Commission’s Communication on a simple and paperless environment for customs and trade (see COM(2003) 452).

Statistics just published by the European Commission show a significant increase in the amount of counterfeit and pirated articles seized at the EU’s external borders in 2003. Customs officials seized almost 100 million of such articles in 2003 compared with 85 million in 2002, of an estimated value of one billion euros. Of particular concern in terms of consumer health and safety is the increase in the number of seizures of games and children’s toys, with 12 million seizures representing a 996% increase over 2002. Seizures of food products and medicines increased in the same period by 77%. The trend in recent years of a move from smuggling luxury goods to smuggling more everyday products continued in 2003. While the compilation of statistics for 2004 has not yet been completed, the results so far demonstrate that the customs authorities of the new Member States have intercepted a significant amount of counterfeit goods.

The European Commission has launched an open consultation for views from the public on possible improvements to the EU Value Added Tax (VAT) rules that apply when services are supplied to private consumers. The Commission will, on the basis of the reactions, decide whether to present a proposal to modify the current rules. The current basic rule in such cases is that the VAT rate that applies is that of the place of establishment of the service provider. However, with the increasing provision of services across borders, this rule no longer always ensures that the tax accrues to the Member State where consumption takes place. In addition, it can cause a competitive handicap for EU suppliers compared to non-EU suppliers. The paper that forms the basis of the consultation therefore seeks reactions to suggestions for possible modifications of the basic rule in the case of services provided at a distance. Similar changes have been made to the rules to cope with international trends in the supply of digital services and the Commission proposed changes to the rules governing the supply of services where the customer is a trader in December 2003.