AguxhoOct.24,2002TTFSE/Customs Administration

EU Integration and Challenges of the Albanian Customs

General Director of Customs has presented on October 16, 2002, meeting of the working group Albania – EU, the objectives of customs administration: Fight against corruption and modernization of the customs system. We will bring more revenues to the State Budget

Modern Albanian Customs have been established in 1991. From this year to date, Albanian Customs Service has had consecutive organization, technical, and legal transformations, with the aim its modernization in compliance with European Community standards. Primarily for Customs Administration has been and still is, realization of customs revenues, which are the potential source of financing for the Albanian state budget. Main sources and energies of our administration are focused specifically in this direction: Maximum Revenue collection and limitation of fiscal evasion. In support of this objective, but still applying and following social policies of the Government, and recommendations given by international organizations on modernization of customs service, Customs Administration has been very much dedicated in its work to reach as soon as possible the necessary standards for Albania to be associated with EU. Through the strong assistance of EU and its CAM-A, started the work of establishing the new Customs Legislation and restructuring of this service. This intensive work was finalized in May 1999, when the new Customs Code and its related sub laws, were approved, accompanied with the application of the Combined Nomenclature of Goods with eight digits. The new legislation brought a series of radical and positive changes in hiring experts, training, carrier development, rewards, etc. This part of legislation which required sustain application, had a visible impact not only on ensuring the continuity of organization structure but also in great improvement of Customs Administration image as a professional, stabile, and transparent administration.

Today, hiring of staff in Customs Administration is regulated by a law, which clearly defines methods of testing and hiring the experts. Testing mechanism ensures the objectivity in selection, and the only criteria for the selection is the professional capability, which at the same time avoids any kind of outside interference. The most sensitive and delicate issue during the implementation of Customs Code, was the application of the chapter ‘custom clearance assessment’. Removal of ‘floor price” as a contradiction to the Albania aspiration of accessing to WTO, enabled a favorable environment for false declarations, sometimes even ridiculous, of the real value of the transactions. This phenomenon became typical and excessive, and it resulted in the level of revenue collections for 1999, below the planned figure. To prevent this phenomenon, in parallel with customs legislative improvements, and with the assistance of CAM-A, started the work for establishment of accessible data bank on the real value of the transactions of goods. The legal basis for establishment of this data bank is the Law No. 849, dated January 27, 1999, “Customs Code of the Republic of Albania”, Chapter III, “Goods Value for Customs Clearance purposes”, where six different methods of evaluation are defined. According to the sixth method, if the others can not be applied, the ‘value of goods for customs clearance purposes should be defined based on the available data bank in the Republic of Albania’. This data bank in the Republic of Albania have been established on CAM-A reports on the real value of goods exported from EU countries and other international organizations, from the Chamber of Commerce reports in other countries, data from customs authorities of those countries with whom Albania has bilateral agreements and from stock exchange markets which give quotations for different kind of goods. In relation to this process has been established a continuous data exchange with the Reuters Press Agency, by which are given exact quotations of goods, of great importance in Albania imports, listed in the stock exchange market (especially oil products). Now, reference prices, differently form floor prices, is based in customs legislation, and it is not obligatory, but gives to the customs administration only references, and it is applicable only when other methods can not be used and the traders are not able to justify the declared value.

The new customs legislation creates possibilities for great impact in economic development of the country through application of different customs regime, which will have greater social impacts in Albania. It enough to mention that, in 1992 in Albania were only 12 companies operating in an active regime, in 1997 there were 130 companies, and today there are 332. Even though the application of customs regime in several occasions was misused through false declarations of transit and cases of abuses by customs warehouses.

Actually, it considered as primary objective, the law enforcement and fight against deviations from the customs law, and in that a very important role is given to the Internal Control Department. There are organized series of technical meetings and communications with the media and specialized businesses to demonstrate the engagement of customs administration in the fair treatment, insisting in the rigorous application of customs legislation by giving priority to custom evaluation, customs procedures and customs regime, as well as by consolidation of interrelations with other institutions who are engaged and responsible in fighting fiscal evasion and economic organized crime like: Tax Office, General Prosecution Office, Ministry of Public Order, Intelligence Service, etc. Customs Administration now has clearer vision on the information of its system. Now has started the implementation of the installing the new information system ASYCUDA ++, from which Customs and business community will benefit very much, in the way that declarations will be presented, in quicker custom clearance procedures, resulting thus in better flow of goods transactions and passengers, in data processing, in the customs internal control procedures and in fighting corruption and fiscal evasion.

The main topic of the agenda of Customs Administration is rigorous application and enforcement of Ethic Code and good image presented to the public.

The performance indicators of the first 9 months of 2002, clearly show, that independently from other not very favorable factors, the figure of revenue collections is 96% of that planned. This demonstrate the ambition and dedication of Customs Administration in implementing Government Program.

Today Customs Administration has some difficulties in the field of evaluation of goods, which are as result of very low declaration value of the transaction, in the field of classification of goods, where there are cases of the same kind of good classified at the same time in different categories, in the field of transit shipping, where some false transit transportations have been identified.

Based on the internal analysis and reports on day to day basis, customs administration prepares and updates step by step its own Strategy for Technical Assistance. Albanian Customs Administration, following the Government MTEF 2002-2005, has defined the following objectives:

  • Short-term objectives : actual revenue collection figure to reach the planned one, minimization of fiscal evasion, continuous improvement of the image of its administration by implementing effective policies in respect to the relationship with the public
  • Mid-term objectives: information and modernization of technology in customs
  • Long-term objectives: restructuring customs services

Albanian Customs Administration does not pretend that it is perfect. It is every day looking for new fields of cooperation and getting experience from EU countries, to comply with the reality in Albania, and as during the past, insists on the European Community assistance in customs. ….

[Closing of the Speech]

From: ‘SHEKULLI’ Newspaper