Kyoto Convention

ANNEX E.1.

Annex concerning Customs transit

Entered into force: 1 October 1977

April 1977

Introduction
Definitions
Principles (provisions 1-2)
Scope (provisions 3-6)
General provisions (provisions 7-10)

Formalities at the office of departure

	a)	Goods declaration for Customs transit (provisions 11-13)
	b)	Security (provisions 14-18)
	c)	Examination and identification of consignments (provisions 19-22)
	d)	Additional control measures (provisions 23-24)

Customs seals and identification marks (provisions 25-26)
Termination of Customs transit (provisions 27-30)
International agreements relating to Customs transit (provisions 31-32)
Information concerning Customs transit (provision 33)

Appendices:

Goods declaration for Customs transit (Appendix II)

Minimum requirements to be met by Customs seals and fastenings (Entry into force

Contracting Parties having accepted the Annex

III. Reservations

Contracting Parties having entered reservations
Reservations entered (in alphabetical order of Contracting Parties)

IV. Alphabetical index

V. Provisions studied in detail and reproduced in Volume IV

I.--Text and Commentary *

* Annex E.1. was adopted by the Permanent Technical Committee at its 87th/88th Sessions in March 1975. The Annex has been incorporated in the Kyoto Convention by decision of the Council, taken on 22 May 1975 at its 45th/46th Sessions held in Buenos Aires (Argentina). It entered into force on 1 October 1977.

The Council published a Comparative Study (No. 6) and an International Customs Norm on the Customs transit of imported goods.

Introduction

For a variety of reasons it is frequently necessary for goods which are potentially liable to import or export duties and taxes to move from one Customs office to another.

The legislation of most countries contains provisions under which such movements may take place without payment of the import or export duties and taxes, the goods being transported under Customs control to ensure compliance with the requirements laid down. The procedure under which such movements are made is termed Customs transit.

To facilitate the international transport of goods which have to pass through a number of Customs territories, arrangements have been made under international agreements for the States concerned to apply standard procedures for the treatment of goods carried in Customs transit through their territories.

This Annex relates to both national and international Customs transit. It does not apply to goods carried by post or in travellers' baggage.

Definitions

For the purposes of this Annex:

(a) the term "Customs transit" means the Customs procedure under which goods are transported under Customs control from one Customs office to another;

(b) the term "Customs transit operation" means the transport of goods from an office of departure to an office of destination under Customs transit;

(c) the term "office of loading" means any Customs office under whose authority certain preliminary measures are taken to facilitate commencement of a Customs transit operation at an office of departure;

(d) the term "office of departure" means any Customs office at which a Customs transit operation commences;

(e) the term "office en route" means any Customs office where goods are imported or exported in the course of a Customs transit operation;

(f) the term "office of destinations" means any Customs office at which a Customs transit operation is terminated;

(g) the term "Goods declaration" means a statement made in the form prescribed by the Customs by which the persons interested indicate the Customs procedure to be applied to the goods and furnish the particulars which the Customs require to be declared for the application of that procedure;

(h) the term "declarant" means the person who signs a Goods declaration or in whose name it is signed;

(ij) the term "transport-unit" means:

(i) containers (1) having an internal volume of one-cubic metre or more,

(ii) road vehicles, including trailers and semi-trailers,

(iii) railway wagons, and

(iv) lighters, barges and other vessels suitable for use on inland waterways;

(k) the term "import and export duties and taxes" means Customs duties and all other duties, taxes, fees or other charges which are collected on or in connection with the importation or exportation of goods but not including fees and charges which are limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered;

(l) the term "Customs control" means measures applied to ensure compliance with the laws and regulations which the Customs are responsible for enforcing;

(m) the term "security" means that which ensures to the satisfaction of the Customs, that an obligation to the Customs will be fulfilled. Security is described as "general" when it ensures that the obligations arising from several operations will be fulfilled;

(n) the term "person" means both natural and legal persons, unless the context otherwise requires.

Commentary

¹ Demountable bodies, i.e. load compartments which have no means of locomotion, are intended to be transported on a vehicle, the chassis of the vehicle and the base of the compartment being specially adapted for this purpose, are to be treated as containers.

Principles

1. Standard

Customs transit shall be governed by the provisions of this Annex¹.

Commentary

¹ There is no obligation on States to accept all the provisions of the Annex and reservations in respect of any Standards and Recommended Practices that they are not in a position to apply may be entered (see Article 5 of the Convention).
Customs authorities may grant facilities greater than those provided for in the Annex. The granting of such greater facilities is recommended in Article 2 of the Convention.

2. Standard

National legislation¹ shall specify the conditions to be fulfilled ² and the formalities to be accomplished for the purposes of Customs transit.

Commentary

¹ See commentary on Article 3 of the Convention.

² Customs transit through the Customs territory may be allowed in respect of goods which, under national legislation, are subject to import prohibitions or restrictions. In such cases the Customs may impose particular requirements, such as the issue of a licence and the production of evidence of the arrival of the goods in the country of destination, and may impose strict controls, such as requiring the goods to be transported under Customs escort.

Scope

3. Standard

The Customs authorities shall allow goods to be transported under Customs transit in their territory:

Note

1. Customs transit movements as described in (a)-(c) above are termed "international Customs transit" when they take place as part of a single Customs transit operation during which one or more frontiers are crossed in accordance with a bilateral or multilateral agreement².

2. The following expressions³ may be used to describe the Customs transit movements referred to above:

(a)	from an office of entry to an office of exit;
(b)	from an office of entry to an inland Customs office (1);
(c)	from an inland Customs office to an office of exit;
(d)	from one inland Customs office to another inland Customs office.

(a)	through transit (office of entry to office of exit);
(b)	inward transit (office of entry to inland Customs office);
(c)	outward transit (inland Customs office to office of exit);
(d)	interior transit (one inland Customs office to another).

Commentary

¹ The term " inland Customs office" is not used in this context in any geographical sense; an inland Customs office may be situated anywhere in the Customs territory (it might be on the coast for example). The term as used in this Standard denotes an office of departure or destination at which the goods do not enter or leave the Customs territory in a Customs transit operation.

² Such an agreement usually provides for both a Goods declaration form for Customs transit and security acceptable in each of the countries party to the agreement.

³ The expressions used are not official in the sense that they form part of internationally accepted Customs terminology. They are used here purely to facilitate the description of the various possible types of Customs transit movement.

4. Standard

Goods being carried under Customs transit shall not be subject to the payment of import or export¹ duties and taxes provided the conditions laid down by the Customs authorities are complied with.

Commentary

¹ The basic principle of this provision is that neither import nor export duties and taxes should be charged in respect of goods in Customs transit passing through a Customs territory. Of course it does not prevent the collection of export duties and taxes in countries of exportation when such duties and taxes remain due whether the goods are exported under Customs transit or under a national exportation procedure; nor of course does it prevent the collection of import duties and taxes in the country of destination when the Customs transit operation is terminated and, for example, the goods are cleared for home use.

5. Recommended Practice

Any person having the right to dispose of the goods, for example the owner, the carrier, the forwarding agent, the consignee or an authorised agent approved by the Customs should be entitled to declare the goods for Customs transit.

Note

The Customs authorities may require the declarant to establish his right to dispose of the goods.

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(a)	the term "Customs transit" means the Customs procedure under which goods are transported under Customs control from one Customs office to another;
(b)	the term "Customs transit operation" means the transport of goods from an office of departure to an office of destination under Customs transit;
(c)	the term "office of loading" means any Customs office under whose authority certain preliminary measures are taken to facilitate commencement of a Customs transit operation at an office of departure;
(d)	the term "office of departure" means any Customs office at which a Customs transit operation commences;
(e)	the term "office en route" means any Customs office where goods are imported or exported in the course of a Customs transit operation;
(f)	the term "office of destinations" means any Customs office at which a Customs transit operation is terminated;
(g)	the term "Goods declaration" means a statement made in the form prescribed by the Customs by which the persons interested indicate the Customs procedure to be applied to the goods and furnish the particulars which the Customs require to be declared for the application of that procedure;
(h)	the term "declarant" means the person who signs a Goods declaration or in whose name it is signed;
(ij)	the term "transport-unit" means:
	(i)	containers (1) having an internal volume of one-cubic metre or more,
	(ii)	road vehicles, including trailers and semi-trailers,
	(iii)	railway wagons, and
	(iv)	lighters, barges and other vessels suitable for use on inland waterways;
(k)	the term "import and export duties and taxes" means Customs duties and all other duties, taxes, fees or other charges which are collected on or in connection with the importation or exportation of goods but not including fees and charges which are limited in amount to the approximate cost of services rendered;
(l)	the term "Customs control" means measures applied to ensure compliance with the laws and regulations which the Customs are responsible for enforcing;
(m)	the term "security" means that which ensures to the satisfaction of the Customs, that an obligation to the Customs will be fulfilled. Security is described as "general" when it ensures that the obligations arising from several operations will be fulfilled;
(n)	the term "person" means both natural and legal persons, unless the context otherwise requires.

¹	The term " inland Customs office" is not used in this context in any geographical sense; an inland Customs office may be situated anywhere in the Customs territory (it might be on the coast for example). The term as used in this Standard denotes an office of departure or destination at which the goods do not enter or leave the Customs territory in a Customs transit operation.
²	Such an agreement usually provides for both a Goods declaration form for Customs transit and security acceptable in each of the countries party to the agreement.
³	The expressions used are not official in the sense that they form part of internationally accepted Customs terminology. They are used here purely to facilitate the description of the various possible types of Customs transit movement.