Product Customs Classification
Legal assistance in obtaining a decision on the classification of goods
Customs classification of goods is a necessary tool when conducting foreign economic activity. When crossing state borders, goods undergo customs clearance, for which classification of goods is used.
The classification of goods is provided for by the Customs Code of the EAEU and the Federal Law of August 3, 2018 No. 289-FZ “On Customs Regulation in the Russian Federation and on Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation” (hereinafter referred to as “Law No. 289-FZ, Law on Customs Regulation”). In accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 15 of Law No. 289-FZ, the declaration for goods indicates the code of the goods according to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity (hereinafter referred to as the “TN FEACN”), approved by decision of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission dated September 14, 2021 No. 80. If detected by the customs authority both before the release of goods and after the release of goods of incorrect classification, the customs authority carries out the classification of the goods and makes a decision on the classification of the goods.
Decision on product customs classification
The decision on the classification of goods must contain:
- name of the customs authority that made the decision on the classification of the goods;
- name of the declarant;
- registration number of the decision on the classification of goods and the date of its adoption;
- name of product;
- information necessary for classification of goods;
- 10-digit classification code of the product according to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- justification for the decision on the classification of goods, including the reasons that served as the basis for making such a decision;
- product number, document number (customs declaration or other document used as a customs declaration), in which the customs authority identified an incorrect classification code of the product according to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- position, surname and initials of the official of the customs authority who made the decision on the classification of the goods, and his signature;
- other information necessary for customs purposes.
The decision on the classification of goods is prepared in the form of a document on paper or an electronic document signed with an enhanced qualified electronic signature of an authorized official of the customs authority.
The form and procedure for filling out the decision on the classification of goods are approved by Order of the Federal Customs Service of Russia dated October 25, 2021 No. 926 “On approval of the form of the decision on the classification of goods in accordance with the unified Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity of the Eurasian Economic Union, the form of the decision to change the decision on the classification of goods in accordance with the unified Commodity nomenclature of foreign economic activity of the Eurasian Economic Union, procedures for filling them out, as well as procedures and deadlines for making these decisions.”
Decisions on product classification are made:
- before the release of goods – by authorized officials of the customs post or customs office;
- after the release of goods – by authorized officials of the customs post, customs, regional customs department, Federal Customs Service of Russia.
The decision on the classification of goods is made for each name of the goods declared under one customs declaration (with the exception of a transit declaration) or another document used as a customs declaration in accordance with the international treaties of the Russian Federation governing customs legal relations and acts constituting the law of the EAEU, including a certain brand, model, article and modification. The decision on the classification of goods is valid only in relation to the goods, information about which is stated in the TD specified in the decision on the classification of goods.
In cases where goods have different brands, models, articles, modifications, but one name, and also have basic characteristics that allow the goods to be classified into one EAEU HS code, and the description allows them to be unambiguously identified for customs purposes, one decision on classification is made product, which indicates one name of the product indicating various brands, models, articles, modifications of the product.
When making a decision, the information declared in the TD and (or) contained in the documents submitted to the customs authority is checked, including by comparing the information contained in one document with each other, with information contained in other documents, including with information obtained from information systems used by customs authorities.
When deciding on the classification of a product, various sources of information should be examined, including:
- texts of commodity items, sub-items, sub-items, notes to sections, groups, commodity items, sub-items, provisions of the basic rules of interpretation (hereinafter referred to as the “OPI”) of the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- alphabetical index of the Harmonized System of Description and Coding of Goods of the World Customs Organization;
- materials of sessions of the World Customs Organization on the classification of goods;
- explanations to the EAEU Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- international standards;
- national standards, regulations, technical specifications;
- agreements, including agreements on the industrial assembly of motor vehicles, their components and assemblies;
- documents confirming the intended use of the product;
- product description;
- description of a multi-component product to determine the material or component that, in accordance with the OPI of the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity, gives the product its main property, and to determine whether this criterion is applicable in the case under consideration;
- goods presented in sets to determine the component that, in accordance with the API of the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity, gives the product its main property, and to determine whether this criterion is applicable in the case under consideration;
- goods presented in incomplete or unfinished form or unassembled or disassembled form, to determine the possibility of classifying them in accordance with the OPI TN VED 2a;
- technological diagrams and their descriptions, including those for the industrial assembly of motor vehicles, according to which goods will be processed (processed) on the territory of the Russian Federation;
- photographs and drawings (if available);
- product characteristics;
- quantitative and qualitative composition of the goods (if available);
- drawings, technological diagrams (if available);
- scope of application of the product (if available);
- methods and types of packaging of goods (if available);
- conclusions of expert organizations (if any);
- electronic database of decisions of the World Customs Organization;
- preliminary decisions on the classification of goods, published on the official website of the Eurasian Economic Commission;
- decisions and clarifications on the classification of goods by the Federal Customs Service of Russia and the Eurasian Economic Commission.
When the customs authority makes a decision on the classification of goods or a decision to change the decision on the classification of goods, such a decision is brought to the attention of the declarant within the time frame for the release of goods. If the decision made to change the decision on the classification of goods does not entail the need to make changes (additions) to the information declared in the customs declaration, such a decision is brought to the attention of the declarant within the established time frame for the release of goods or no later than 3 working days from the date of its adoption, if such a decision is made after the release of goods.
Procedure for obtaining a classification decision on product customs classification
At the request of persons, customs authorities may classify goods before their customs declaration by accepting:
- preliminary decisions on the classification of goods in accordance with the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- decisions on the classification of goods transported across the customs border of the EAEU in unassembled or disassembled form, including incomplete or unfinished form.
The application for a decision is drawn up in Russian and includes:
1. Information about the Applicant:
- name of the organization, legal address, postal address to which the Decision should be sent, contact telephone number, including an email address to which, if necessary, a request for the need to provide additional information can be sent;
- OGRN or OGRNIP;
2. Product details:
- name of product,
- address of the place of actual assembly, installation, installation of goods (for imported goods).
3. Product delivery time.
4. Information about the customs procedure under which the goods will be placed.
5. The name of the customs authority where the customs declaration of the goods will be carried out, as well as its presentation to the customs authority.
The application for adoption of the Decision shall be accompanied by:
- documents confirming the completion of a foreign economic transaction in relation to goods;
- documents that can serve as the basis for confirming the quantity of components supplied (specified in the list of goods), containing the names, quantity/net weight of the components supplied;
- the constituent documents of the applicant or changes to such documents that have undergone state registration in the prescribed manner in the case of importing components of goods as a contribution to the authorized (share) capital of the recipient;
- the list of components of the goods is drawn up in the form approved by Order of the Federal Customs Service of Russia dated 02/06/2019 No. 194 “On approval of forms and procedures for filling out documents used when deciding on the classification of goods transported across the customs border of the Eurasian Economic Union in unassembled or disassembled form, including in incomplete or unfinished form, the import or export of which is expected in various consignments during a specified period of time, when changes are made to such a decision, when the application is refused and such a decision is made, as well as when such a decision is terminated”;
- information about the product.
A decision on amendments to the decision on the classification of goods transported across the customs border of the EAEU in an unassembled or disassembled form, including in an incomplete or unfinished form, the import or export of which is expected in different consignments within a specified period of time, as well as a decision on termination such a decision is made by the authorized customs authorities.
The authorized customs authorities make a decision to amend the decision on the classification of goods in the following cases:
- adoption by the Commission or the federal executive body exercising the functions of control and supervision in the field of customs affairs of a decision or explanation mandatory for execution by customs authorities on the classification of certain types of goods that affect the classification of goods in respect of which the decision on classification was made;
- making appropriate changes to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Economic Activity;
- detection of errors or typos made when making a decision or when preparing documents by the applicant;
- change of information about the applicant and (or) the customs authority where the customs declaration of goods will be carried out;
- change in the terms of a foreign economic transaction, if such a change relates to a product or its individual components in respect of which a decision on classification was made;
- submission by the declarant of an application to refuse further deliveries of components of the goods, if the conditionally released or exported components of the goods form a product classified according to the code specified in the decision on the classification of the goods;
- change in the customs procedure under which the goods will be placed.
It is important to note that the application submitted on paper and the documents attached to it of a legal entity or organization that is not a legal entity must be signed by the head indicating the position, surname and initials, certified by the seal of the organization.
The application and the documents attached to it must be numbered (except for the bound application), signed by the head of the organization, certified with the organization's seal or certified on each page.
An application sent electronically through the Personal Account, as well as the set of documents attached to it, are certified automatically by an enhanced qualified electronic signature of the applicant, which allows minimizing the receipt of a formal refusal to consider an application for a decision on the classification of goods if some documents are not certified in the prescribed manner.
Legal services
- Consultations on obtaining a classification decision
- Preparation of documents to obtain a classification decision
- Legal support on product customs classification
- Interaction with customs authorities on issues of obtaining a classification decision