Origin laundering by professional fraud facilitators, challenges and opportunities for Customs

Origin laundering is not new – it is one of the three classic Customs fraud techniques which have been utilized since time immemorial, the others being misdescription of goods and undervaluation. In the past, origin fraud was primarily detected in relation to invalid claims for preferential tariff treatment where goods were falsely declared on importation as originating in beneficiary countries. However, as the introduction of high rates of anti-dumping duty becomes ever more universal, there has been a massive move towards the use of origin fraud to evade such duties.