Customs Legislation

A basic legal act determining the legal, economic and organizational basis for customs affairs in the Republic of Belarus and aimed at protection of economic sovereignty and economic safety of the Republic of Belarus, development of foreign economic relations of the Republic of Belarus, providing the protection of the rights of citizens, economic entities and other legal persons and observance of their duties in the sphere of customs affairs is the Customs Code of the Republic of Belarus adopted on January 4, 2007. This Code sets up basic principles for transfer of goods and vehicles across the customs border of the Republic of Belarus, establishes the customs regimes (release for free circulation, re-import, transit, customs warehouse, processing on the customs territory, export, re-export, destruction, etc.), the customs payments (customs duty, VAT, excises, customs dues for goods storage, etc.). The Customs Code also regulates the procedure of customs registration of goods when they are moved across the customs border of the Republic of Belarus and establishes the privileges for some categories of foreign persons.

In accordance with the Agreement on Customs Union and Single Economic Space signed in Moscow on February 26, 1999 the parties have established a free trade of goods regime, single system of tariff privileges and preferences in the trade with the third countries, single procedure for non-tariff regulation measures in the trade with the third countries, single system for collecting indirect taxes in trade, coordinated order of currency regulation in foreign trade transactions, etc.

The Law of the Republic of Belarus of February 3, 1993 “On Customs Tariff” establishes the procedure of formation and application of the Customs Tariff of the Republic of Belarus. The Law establishes basic methods for determining the customs cost of goods (under the price of the transaction with the imported goods, under the price of the transaction with identical goods, under the price of the transaction with similar goods, based on deduction of the cost, based of adding of the cost and reserve method), regulates the means and purposes for determining the country of origin of goods and establishes the tariff privileges. The rates of the import customs duties are approved by the Edict of the President of the Republic of Belarus of December 31, 2007 No. 699 “On Establishing the Import Customs Duty Rates”.

The Law of the Republic of Belarus of January 6, 1998 “On Export Control” determines the legal basis for activity of state bodies, legal and natural persons of the Republic of Belarus in the sphere of export control and regulates the relations arising in connection with moving of export control objects across the customs border of the Republic of Belarus and their use.