The draft proposal of Incoterms ® 2010 was unanimously approved at the ICC’s Commercial Law and Practice Commission (CLP) on May 6th. Before launching the new terms, this draft proposal has to be approved by the ICC Executive Board.  This meeting is scheduled for September 16 & 17.  If all goes as planned, Incoterms® 2010 will become a reality upon their approval. The new set of rules are expected to come into force on 1/1/2011.

ICC  foresees the launch of the Incoterms® 2010 rules with a Major Conference in Paris from 27^th till 29^th September 2010. 

For the time being, there is little information to share on the changes, although it is expected that:

• changes will be substantial;
• there will be fewer rules than the 13 Incoterms 2000;
• there are brand new rules;
• the new rules will be much more friendly.
• Incoterms will be calles ‘rules’.

The identification of foreign traders or logistics operators in connection with customs clearance within the European Union is based on the unique EORI number.  When registering for customs purposes in one Member State, an operator is assigned an EORI number, which shall be used in all Member States, when necessary, in connection with customs clearance.

According to the legislation the EORI number should have been provided in customs declarations from 1 July 2009.  As some Member States faced difficulties with the development of their customs declaration systems, the European Commission recommended that the Member States should be flexible with regard to the use of the number. So far, Finland had not required the EORI number as mandatory.

In its note of 25 May 2010, the European Commission announced that the flexibility measures should be withdrawn and that of 1 July 2010, the Member States shall require that the EORI number is to be provided in customs clearance declarations where it is a mandatory element according to the legislation.

Finnish customs will require, from 1 July 2010, that the EORI number is provided, before it accepts a declaration as received.  To avoid slow-downs if all operators simultaneously change over to the mandatory use of the EORI number, the National Board of Customs in Finland has decided to start using the EORI number in its customs clearance systems as of 15 June 2010.

From 15 June to 1 July 2010 will be a migration period.  If the EORI number is not provided in declarations, Finnish Customs will provide guidance to economic operators in using their already assigned EORI numbers, or in applying for an EORI number if the operator hasn’t been assigned one yet.  A company in the EU shall be registered in the Member State where the company is established.

Finnish companies that in the last two years have been registered customers of Finnish Customs or that have a license concerning customs clearance granted by Customs, have been automatically registered for EORI (number format FI1234567-8)

From 1 July, not providing the EORI number is considered negligence.  Customs can impose a surcharge for fault by virtue of section 32 of the Customs Act.

The EORI number shall be mandatory in  :

• - Entry summary declaration
• - Summary declaration for temporary storage
• - Arrival notification and presentation
• - Upon arrival, unloading reports on goods in temporary storage
• - Transit declaration
• - Exit summary declaration
• - Export declaration
• - “arrival at exit” notification
• - Exit manifest presentation
• - Exit notification

Statutory basis :

Commission Regulation (EC) n° 312/2009

National Customs Act of Finland, section 4 (1466/1994)

For more info : TH.eori@tulli.fi or kirmo@tulli.fi

On 1 April 2010, a new electronic system for monitoring and controlling the movement of excise goods (alcohol, tobacco and energy products) within the EU becomes operational. The Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) will make intra-EU trade in excise goods cheaper and simpler for operators, while also making it quicker and easier for Member States to tackle excise fraud.

For more information see the EMCS roadmap.

Source: Taxud News 31 March 2010
Photo: EMCS-online.com

The EU-Japan relations in the area of customs are based on the Agreement on Cooperation and Mutal Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters (CCMAAA) that entered into force on 1 Februari 2008.

This Agreement calls for the EU and Japan to make co-operative efforts in order to develop trade facilitations actions in the field of customs in accordance with international standards.

The EU-Japan Joint Customs Cooperation Committee (JCCC) was established by the CCMAAA in order to consult the interested parties and assess the impact of mutual recognition of EU and Japanese AEO programmes.

Mutual recognition of AEO programmes and security measures both enhances end-to-end supply chain security, and facilitates trade. It consolidates internationally the approach agreed in the WCO SAFE Framework of Standards. It also addresses the concern of the business community in Europe and around the world to avoid proliferation of requirements and to standardise customs security procedures.

At the first meeting of the JCCC on 11 February 2008, the EU and Japan confirmed that such mutual recognition between the EU and Japan is a priority.

The second meeting of the JCCC on 17 September 2009, confirmed that the AEO legislations in the EU and in Japan are equivalent and are implemented in a compatible manner. Therefore the JCCC invited the European Commission and Customs and Tariff Bureau of Japan to develop a proposal which achieves this mutual recognition and provides equivalent benefits to each other’s operators.

This proposal is ready for Council Decision. It is not yet know when the mutual recognition of AEO programmes in the EU and in Japan will be effective. The decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Incoterms or international commercial terms are a series of standard trade definitions, published by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and widely used in international commercial transactions. They are used to divide transaction costs and responsibilities between buyer and seller and reflect state-of-the-art transportation practices.

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), introduced the first version of Incoterms in 1936. There are currently 13 Incoterms. Among the best known Incoterms are EXW (Ex Works), FOB (Free on Board), CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight), DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid), and CPT (Carriage Paid To).

The Incoterms have been revised six times in order to reflect international trade developments. The last update of the Incoterms entered into force on 1 January 2000. As the guardian and originator of Incoterms rules, ICC has a responsibility to consult regularly all parties interested in international trade to keep Incoterms rules relevant, efficient and up-to-date. ICC is currently revising Incoterms 2000. This revision is expected to be major on the seller-buyer cargo security obligations, which are linked to respective Custom-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) cargo security regimes.

After receiving a large number of comments from the ICC National Committees, the Incoterms Drafting Group recently completed a third draft of the revised version of Incoterms. After comments on the third draft are submitted by the ICC National Committees, the Drafting Group will meet in March 2010 to prepare a fourth version of the draft revisions to Incoterms. It appears that the new version of Incoterms will be entitled “Incoterms 2010”. This new edition is expected to enter into force on 1 January 2011.