UKRAINE: CUSTOMS FINES FOR MISDECLARATION OF SHIP’S STORES

Published: 15 November 2018

We are grateful to Lex Marine in Odessa for providing a reminder of the situation in Ukraine if ship’s stores are misdeclared, particularly in the port of Nikolayev. In such cases, customs officers seize the misdeclared stores and the ship must pay a fine. In cases where fuel amounts are declared improperly, then owners must pay to customs a deposit equal to twice the value of the stores. In some cases, the amount has been more than USD200,000 and customs will not accept a club letter of undertaking nor a bank guarantee. The amount must be deposited before the ship can leave. The court will then consider each case and if the ship is found guilty, then the seized goods and the deposit go to the State. In many cases the case is found to be incorrect and so stores and deposits are returned, but this can take time. Members trading in the area are advised to contact local correspondents if there are any issues with the declaration of the ship’s stores.

# BACK TO KNOWLEDGE

Britannia