Customs Management Rules and Regulations
Summary:This article details Belarus customs management. The Belarus Customs Committee (1991) oversees customs. Import VAT varies by goods (18%, 10%, 0%); some high-tech equipment is exempt. Since 2010, the Customs Union (Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan) has evolved. In 2015, the Eurasian Economic Union was established, aiming for economic integration and a common market, with a Supreme Council and a Commission handling affairs.
[Management Responsibilities]
The Belarus Customs Committee was established in 1991 and is responsible for guiding, coordinating and supervising customs activities. It has 9 customs offices and is responsible for inspecting goods and transport vehicles passing through the Belarusian border.
[Import VAT]
Generally, VAT is levied on imported goods, based on the declared value plus customs fees or consumption tax. The VAT rate depends on the type of imported goods. The standard tax rate is 18%, 10% and 0%. High-tech equipment imported by Belarusian companies as fixed asset investment is exempt from VAT.
[Eurasian Economic Union]
Since 2010, the Customs Union of Belarus, the Russian Federation and Kazakhstan (hereinafter referred to as the "Customs Union") has officially come into effect. The Customs Union is an international organization established by member states to achieve economic and trade integration, establish a unified customs border, and adopt unified trade control measures against third countries. On January 1, 2010, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan implemented a unified tariff rate, and on July 6 of the same year, the unified "Customs Code of the Customs Union" was implemented, marking the formal formation of the unified customs border of the three countries. In 2012, the unified economic space of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan was formed, with the goal of achieving the free flow of goods, services, capital, and labor. However, there are still some restrictions and exceptions. With the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union in 2015, these restrictions and exceptions will be gradually eliminated, and a common market will eventually be achieved.
The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is the highest authority of the Eurasian Economic Union, working at two levels - the level of heads of state and the level of heads of government. It has a permanent institution - the Eurasian Economic Commission. The Eurasian Economic Commission is an independent, professional, supranational permanent institution that is solely responsible for the implementation and management of Eurasian economic integration affairs. One of its main tasks is to formulate customs management, tariffs, and non-tariff regulation rules and urge their implementation.