Case law

Alcohol turned into water in a customs warehouse: who pays the customs bill?

Jurgita Bartninkienė Head of Customs Brokerage and Customer Service, First Logistics UAB

Customs Compliance & Risk Management (CCRM) Journal, Issue 16, August / September 2022

August 28, 2022

en lt

Alcohol turned into water in a customs warehouse: who pays the customs bill?

Photo by Charles "Duck" Unitas on Unsplash

Topic: customs clearance duties, taxes violations
Tag: customs warehouse temporary storage

A customs warehouse stored bottled alcohol (vodka). Customs audited the warehouse, took a sample, and found that there was water instead of vodka in the bottles! Customs ordered the warehouse to pay €308,455 customs debt (import duties and taxes, fines and interest). A dispute arose regarding who must pay the customs debt, as the customs warehouse is not obliged to take samples of the goods. Let's look at the clarification of the Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (SACL) in this case.

Copyright of the journal: CC Learning, UAB

OR

Continue reading this article

Login

or

Sign up

Open for free

Comments ()

Similar content

Topic spotlight

New US tariffs on Europe compound challenges for the steel and aluminium sectors

09-04-2025

The recent decision by the United States to reintroduce tariffs on steel and aluminium imports has prompted significant concern among European industries. Announced in February 2025, the US government … has reinstated a 25% tariff on steel and increased the tariff on aluminium from 10% to 25%. This adds to the challenges already faced by companies in regulated sectors, with regulations such as international sanctions, export controls and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. We provide an overview of the current regulatory landscape and offer practical recommendations to help businesses deal with these developments.

Antonio Castagnini

€

duties, taxes

Topic spotlight

New US tariffs on Europe compound challenges for the steel and aluminium sectors

09-04-2025

The recent decision by the United States to reintroduce tariffs on steel and aluminium imports has prompted significant concern among European industries. Announced in February 2025, the US government has reinstated a 25% tariff on steel and increased the tariff on aluminium from 10% to 25%. This adds to the challenges already faced by companies in regulated sectors, with regulations such as international sanctions, export controls and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. We provide an overview of the current regulatory landscape and offer practical recommendations to help businesses deal with these developments.

Antonio Castagnini

€

duties, taxes

Topic spotlight

New US tariffs and origin of goods

06-04-2025

All products originating in the UK are now subject to a baseline US tariff of 10%. Compare this with the tariffs levied against the EU (20%) and China (54%) and it can be seen that the origin … of products exported to the US is crucial. The condition is that UK exporters must ensure that the products they export to the US originate in the UK (if they originate in the EU, even though they are exported from the UK, they will be subject to a 20% import duty in the US). We provide a brief overview of the new US tariffs and what ‘origin’ means in this context.

Mark Rowbotham

€

duties, taxes

Topic spotlight

New US tariffs and origin of goods

06-04-2025

All products originating in the UK are now subject to a baseline US tariff of 10%. Compare this with the tariffs levied against the EU (20%) and China (54%) and it can be seen that the origin of products exported to the US is crucial. The condition is that UK exporters must ensure that the products they export to the US originate in the UK (if they originate in the EU, even though they are exported from the UK, they will be subject to a 20% import duty in the US). We provide a brief overview of the new US tariffs and what ‘origin’ means in this context.

Mark Rowbotham

€

duties, taxes

Topic spotlight

Insights into the data in the customs declaration

01-04-2025

At the 26th Authors’ Meeting, experts from different countries discussed key challenges in customs declaration processes. They explored issues with digital systems, regulations, emphasising the … fragmented customs landscape in the EU. Some national customs practices were highlighted for creating inconsistencies in trade and customs throughout the EU. Speakers also addressed the growing conflict between making trade easier and meeting stricter EU compliance rules that require more detailed data. See the article below for a summary of the discussion.

customs clearance

Topic spotlight

Insights into the data in the customs declaration

01-04-2025

At the 26th Authors’ Meeting, experts from different countries discussed key challenges in customs declaration processes. They explored issues with digital systems, regulations, emphasising the fragmented customs landscape in the EU. Some national customs practices were highlighted for creating inconsistencies in trade and customs throughout the EU. Speakers also addressed the growing conflict between making trade easier and meeting stricter EU compliance rules that require more detailed data. See the article below for a summary of the discussion.

customs clearance

Topic spotlight

Criterion of financial solvency for the reduction or waiver of a comprehensive guarantee

14-01-2025

This article deals with legal changes in relation to the criterion of financial solvency that were introduced in 2018 but have not yet been noticed by many traders and taken into account by some … customs authorities. These changes allow for a more flexible approach to the assessment of economic operators' financial solvency when authorisations for a reduction or waiver of a comprehensive guarantee are requested or to be maintained.

Michael Lux

€

duties, taxes, law

Topic spotlight

Criterion of financial solvency for the reduction or waiver of a comprehensive guarantee

14-01-2025

This article deals with legal changes in relation to the criterion of financial solvency that were introduced in 2018 but have not yet been noticed by many traders and taken into account by some customs authorities. These changes allow for a more flexible approach to the assessment of economic operators' financial solvency when authorisations for a reduction or waiver of a comprehensive guarantee are requested or to be maintained.

Michael Lux

€

duties, taxes, law

Case law

Confiscation of third-party goods in case of unintentional customs infringement: CJEU interpretation

09-01-2025

Nobody likes to be penalised - whether you are an importer, a customs broker, or just a driver taking goods across the border. The penalty is a negative consequence for any person who has committed … the offence. It is clear when a person deliberately does something illegal to benefit from it. But what about those who do not intend to break the law but do so inadvertently? Do the negative consequences only affect the person who directly committed the offence? This article seeks to answer these and other questions about the penalties for customs offences in the EU.

Dr Ilona Mishchenko

€

violations, law

Case law

Confiscation of third-party goods in case of unintentional customs infringement: CJEU interpretation

09-01-2025

Nobody likes to be penalised - whether you are an importer, a customs broker, or just a driver taking goods across the border. The penalty is a negative consequence for any person who has committed the offence. It is clear when a person deliberately does something illegal to benefit from it. But what about those who do not intend to break the law but do so inadvertently? Do the negative consequences only affect the person who directly committed the offence? This article seeks to answer these and other questions about the penalties for customs offences in the EU.

Dr Ilona Mishchenko

€

violations, law

Contact us

Contact us

Thank you for report

Maximum file size 6mb

File is too large

Confirm selected Confirm all