A large part of the North-West region of Russia is covered with forests, and the timber industry is an important part of the industry of the North-West. The activities of enterprises and organizations manufacturing products of the forest industry with third countries, largely determines the structure of the foreign trade turnover, which ultimately affects the economy of the region.
More than half of the commodity structure of export in the region of St. Petersburg customs, in which in addition to St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region consists of the Vologda, the Novgorod region and Komi Republic, is products 44 groups of the Commodity nomenclature of foreign economic activity of the Eurasian economic Union. Last year, the customs posts of St. Petersburg customs has been issued over 96 thousand export declarations for goods in which the goods were of timber and other products of timber processing complex. The total cost of displaced timber amounted to 1.3 billion U.S. dollars.
The export of timber products is among the most crime in the sphere of foreign economic activity. By the end of 2019 St. Petersburg customs office opened 11 criminal cases on signs of crimes under part 1 of article 226.1 of the Criminal code of Russian Federation “Contraband of strategically important goods and resources.” In January-February 2020 has already initiated 3 criminal cases for illegal transfer across the customs border of the EAEU of such goods.
The staff of the St. Petersburg customs, carrying out verification activities in the framework of the customs control of movement across the customs border of the timber, often reveal administrative offences committed by unscrupulous traders. In 2019, Saint-Petersburg customs brought 85 cases of administrative offences, the subject of the offences which were products of the lumber industry in 2020 – 17 such cases. Typically, the traders provide false information when declaring the exported products, for which bear administrative liability with fines.
Another category of cases on administrative offenses connected with presentation to customs on invalid documents constituting the basis for non-compliance established by international treaties States – members of the Union, decisions of the Eurasian economic Commission, the regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation of prohibitions and restrictions.
For example, in February in relation to one of participants of foreign trade activities of the court appointed administrative punishment in the form of a fine for an offense under part 3 of article 16.2 of the administrative code. The court supported the position of St. Petersburg customs to attract traders to administrative responsibility for noncompliance with the prohibitions and restrictions on the export outside the EEU forestry.
Of the detected diagram to the offences when moving across the customs border of the EAEU goods of the forest industry has told the chief of Department of trade restrictions and export control of St. Petersburg customs Anna Kupyansk:
– Participant of foreign trade activities directed on export of “balance of pine”. The timber of coniferous breeds belong to the category of strategically important resources, in respect of which the prohibitions and restrictions on the export of member States of the Eurasian economic Union in trade with third countries. In this case the exporting company said the export of timber under license. The customs Declaration was submitted goods with a reduced rate of export customs duties in the amount of 15 % of the customs value. Such rate applies to the export of logs of pine with a license issued by the Ministry of industry and trade of the Russian Federation.
In accordance with applicable law subject to a one-time license may be the product of the corresponding code FEACN of the cu, produced or purchased by the applicant. However, a trader exporting “pulpwood pine”, in fact, was neither the manufacturer nor the owner of the goods, but provided mediation for the sale (he was the broker).
In this regard submitted by the participant of foreign economic activity during Declaration of the license had nothing to exported timber because it did not contain information about the Commission agreement.
– The company had violated the prohibitions and restrictions related to the presentation of invalid document, and the timber needs to be applied, the rate of export customs duties in the amount of 80% of the customs value but not less than EUR 55,2 1 cu. m. That is, a trader had the right to export timber within the framework of tariff quotas only that the goods in respect of which was not a mediator, – explained Anna Kupyansk.
The example is not an isolated incident detection reporting and movement of goods across the customs border without compliance with the prohibitions and restrictions. St. Petersburg customs will continue to prevent offences and crimes in the sphere of export of forest products and to attract unscrupulous traders to administrative and criminal liability for failure to comply with customs legislation.
The press service of the St. Petersburg customs