The unstoppable advance of globalisation and ensuing growth in international trade have reinforced the already important role played by the customs authorities. European Union and national customs regulations are becoming increasingly complex and are often poorly controlled by companies. Customs & international trade law covers a variety of areas : 

• Protecting national borders 
• Customs duty and VAT, indirect duties and quasi-taxes, antidumping duties 
• Enforcing health and environmental regulations
• Protecting industry against counterfeiting 
• Taxing products subject to excise duty (alcohol, tobacco and oil products). 
• Customs and environmental taxation

Although customs law is tending to become more accommodating, infringements can nonetheless lead to severe penalties.

Our Practice Areas

We advise and assist our clients in the following areas: 

• European Union commercial policies: antidumping regulations, tariff suspension, etc. 
• Trading with non-European Union countries: preferential relationships, ordinary law relationships 
• Calculating customs liability (origin of goods, customs value, tariff classification) 
• Intra-group liabilities (customs value based on transfer pricing) 
• Choice of suspensive regime for imports or exports 
• Handling customs disputes and settlements, proceedings with the customs authorities in France and other legal jurisdictions 
• Circulation of products subject to excise tax 
• Other taxes charged by the customs authorities (general tax on polluting activities, assay duty on precious metals, heavy goods vehicle import duty, etc.)

Our Approach

• Established expertise recognised as being authoritative
  Our team is recognised as being one of the leaders on the market by clients and ranking guides. 
• Wide-ranging services:
  We anticipate clients’ needs by providing them with advice on their policies in all areas covered by the Customs Authorities or by carrying out audits of their customs practices. We provide support to clients in the scope of their customs-related litigation, customs taxation (tax on polluting activities), indirect taxation at all stages of the proceedings (objections to collection notices, settlement agreements, court proceedings, specific commissions – Litigation Committee, Conciliation and Customs Expertise Commission, etc.). 
• Maximum availability
  We provide maximum availability and personalised monitoring of their project with a view to improving our ability to meet clients’ expectations.

Our Clients

We provide advice to all types of companies carrying on international commercial operations (imports, exports, etc.) ranging from SMEs to large groups in very varied business sectors including spirits, textiles, high technology products, waste or pharmaceutics.

Our Team

Senior Associate
Stéphane Chasseloup