Customs fees and customs duties: types, description, calculation and accounting procedure

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

These payments are one of the sources of replenishment of the state budget. But is there a difference between them? Are customs fees and customs duties the same thing? Let's present the definitions of these concepts, their classifications and varieties, and determine the order of calculation.

What is this?

Let's give definitions of customs fees and customs duties. This will help you immediately understand the essence of the concepts.

Customs duties:

• One of the mandatory payments collected by the customs authorities in respect of goods transported across the border of the state. The payment of such a duty is a mandatory condition for the import/export of products, which is ensured by measures of state coercion.
• Deductions to the state budget, made without fail. Payments deducted by the owners of products shipped across the border.

Customs fees are another type of payment collected at customs. Their main difference from duties is that fees are charged not for the goods themselves, but for the provision of services associated with them. For example, in terms of storageescort, release abroad. What is important, the customs fee can be paid not only by the owner of the product, but also by a third party. Payments of fees for various customs operations are usually carried out simultaneously with the filing of a declaration for transport escort.

Now you see the difference between customs fees and customs duties. As for legislative regulation, Section 2 of the Customs Code, which is in force for the Customs Union, is devoted to it. Abbreviated as TK TS.

Import group

We continue to analyze the topic "Customs fees and customs duties". As for the latter, they are primarily divided into two large groups - import (import) and export (export).

Let's get acquainted in more detail with the content of the import category (part 1, article 70 of the Customs Code of the Customs Union):

• Actually, the customs import duty. According to the definition in the Customs Code, this is a mandatory payment that customs authorities are required to collect when transporting certain goods across the border.
• VAT. This is a value added tax that is levied when products are imported into the territory of the Customs Union. In essence, it is indirect. The procedure for its payment is regulated not only by the Labor Code, but also in the Russian Federation by the Tax Code.
• Excises. They are charged when goods of a certain category are imported into the territory of the Russian Federation. They are also classified as indirect taxes. Regulated by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and the Labor Code of the Customs Union.
• Customs fees. Mandatory payments that are collected by the customs structure for the fact of releasegoods from the customs territory, their further customs escort, other actions provided for by the Customs Code or legislative acts of the countries participating in the Customs Union.

Export Group

The export (export) category of these payments also applies to customs fees and duties. There are two components:

• Export customs duty. It should be noted that neither Russian regulatory legal acts nor the Labor Code contain its exact definition.
• Customs fees. According to the Customs Code, their amount cannot exceed the approximate cost of the customs structure for performing actions for which such a fee is due.

Also, all the above payments can, from an economic and legal point of view, be divided into two groups:

• Customs nature of formation. These are customs duties and fees.
• The tax nature of the formation. VAT and excises.

Let's also imagine other well-known classifications of customs payments.

By purpose of collection

Charges customs duties and fees, respectively, the customs system. There are two main goals here:

• Fiscal payments. The purpose of their collection is to replenish the state budget.
• Protectionist payments. Trade and economic goals are being pursued here. For example, stimulating domestic producers, protecting domestic markets, etc.

By objects of taxation

Let's consider the types of customs fees and duties from the standpoint of this classification:

• Imported. The most common both in Russia and around the world. Charged on imported goods. Targets can be fiscal or export promotion.
• Export. They are much rarer than imported ones. In the Russian Federation, for example, they are levied only on exported raw materials. The WTO insists on their complete abolition. Objectives: fiscal, regulation of monopolies, alignment of domestic prices with the price on the external market.
• Transit. They are extremely rare, since world states are interested in increasing transit, because it brings considerable revenues to the budget. Accordingly, transit duties are charged for the transport of products through any country. The purposes of collecting such payments are fiscal.

By method of calculation/collection

We examined the concepts of "customs duty" and "collection". The difference between them is in the subject of taxation. Now let's move on to a new classification - grading by payment method:

• Ad valorem. They are determined as a percentage of the customs value of the goods. Of course, they are more beneficial for the taxation of expensive products and less beneficial for a homogeneous cargo. For example, if PCs are imported, then it is appropriate to charge a fee for one piece of equipment, and not for 1 kg of computers.
• Specific. This refers to a specific amount of money for any unit of goods. Accordingly, such duties are more beneficial for taxing bulk, low-cost goods. For example, raw materials. Here, a fee is charged for eacha unit of mass, volume, in some cases - a piece.
• Mixed. Or a combination type. Here, both types of rates are used to calculate customs fees and duties - ad valorem and specific. As a rule, the larger of them will be payable. This is a flexible but less used way. It is used, for example, in relation to cars: the duty is calculated both on the basis of the cost of vehicles and on the basis of the power of its engine.

By nature of origin

This classification distinguishes two groups of customs payments:

• Autonomous. Those duties that are established by the government without conducting bilateral or multilateral international negotiations. In world practice, they are quite high. Therefore, they become the subject of discussion. The consequence is the emergence of conventional customs payments.
• Conventional. Contractual - are established during the negotiations of the parties, which are world states. Unilaterally, the state authorities of a certain country cannot increase such a payment. The most popular example here is the GATT multilateral agreement, which covers more than 150 NATO member countries.

By country of origin

The following groups are distinguished in this classification:

• General (maximum, general). These are duties imposed on all or most countries in the world.
• Minimum. Such tax payments will be established in accordance with the regimes of the highestfavored.
• Preferential. This implies special, preferential rates of customs payments. They are provided either to individual states or groups of countries. For example, this applies to developing countries. Sometimes even zero rates apply to them.

Special Group

Let's also list the components of the special group of customs payments:

• Special protective. Based on the name, they are used to protect against the importation into the country of certain goods in quantities that cause (threatening to cause) damage to local, domestic producers of similar or similar goods. Also used as a way to counteract unfair competition. In the light of recent events, they are used as a response to the discriminatory actions of individual countries or unions of states.
• Anti-dumping. They are used to protect domestic markets from imported products at a dumping cost. Dumping here refers to the sale of products on the importer's markets at a price exceeding the cost of the same goods on the exporter's markets. This duty is introduced, respectively, upon discovery of the fact of dumping and upon the provision of official confirming information by the competent authorities.
• Compensatory. These are duties that are imposed on those imported goods for which subsidies are established in the producing state in order to stimulate exports or replace imports. This type of duties is recognized to compensate, neutralize losses due to subsidiesimporting companies. Such duty does not exceed the amount of the subsidy.
• Punitive. Differ in the high size - exceed usual in 3-5 times. Applies to individual states. The goals are mostly political.
• Seasonal. They are introduced in relation to those products, the volumes of import, production and sales of which fluctuate sharply during the year. As a rule, these are agricultural goods.

Calculation features

Accounting for customs duties and fees is the prerogative of state customs services. And in order to calculate these payments, it is important to know the following up-to-date information:

• Tariff quotas.
• Customs preferences.
• Specific tariff concessions.

To calculate the specific amount of the customs payment, you need to have the following information:

• Basic rates of customs payments - fees, duties, excises, VAT.
• Terms of special rates - seasonal, anti-dumping, punitive, countervailing, protective, preferential and so on.
• Rules and methods for determining the export and import customs price of goods.
• Formulas for calculating the total amount of customs payments.
• Up-to-date regulatory framework.

We traced the difference between customs duties and fees, which are often referred to as one group. According to the main classification, they are divided into import and export categories. There are other classifications as well. To calculate the valuecustoms payment, you need to know the current legislation, be aware of the current basic, special rates, the conditions for their application.