With a large attendance of officials from Customs, the National Tax Court, the Judiciary and private consultants, the opening of the XIII International Conference on Customs Law, organized by the Argentine Association of Fiscal Studies (AAEF), in the City of Buenos Aires.
The main objective of the two-day meeting (August 10 and 11, 2023) was to create an environment for debate to promote the improvement of tax legislation at a time when the country is facing a sensitive economy and serious material problems.
In the views of the closure, the President of the Scientific Committee, Catalina García Vizcaíno, highlighted the important topics of the conference, such as the current treatment in customs matters of the general principles of taxation and the guiding principles of administrative procedure, as well as the powers of customs inspection in relation to constitutional principles. In this regard, she said that "the special balance between constitutional rights and guarantees, on the one hand, and the powers of customs, on the other, make the considerations that were presented necessary for the improvement of customs law and tax law in general."
In this regard, he recalled that the Round Table had addressed the issue of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and its current implications, among others, from the technological perspective, the principles of the GATT and the legal nature of prior import authorizations.
Along these lines, the Vice President of the Board of Directors, Alejandro Messineo, stated that the treatment of the "principle of legality and legal certainty" was included in most of the in-depth presentations. "They are fundamental pillars of our legal system if we want to have a serious country and promote good international trade," he stressed.
As a result of the agreement reached in the day's panels, the Vice President of the Executive Committee, Lorena Bartomioli, took advantage of the closing to present recommendations regarding regulatory issues of intense concern in the country and in MERCOSUR, and of enormous relevance in relation to customs issues.
Participants
The scientific conferences were attended by: highest authorities of the General Directorate of Customs (Guillermo Michel) and the National Tax Court (Miguel Licht).
Additionally, the interventions were given by renowned specialists in Customs Law from Argentina and abroad. In detail, Panel I: Harry Schurig (President), Juan M. Sanz (Rapporteur) and Ana Pampin (Secretary). Speakers: Bastiana Locurscio, Flavia Figueredo, Andrés Galíndez, Christian González Palazzo. In the Panel ii: Carolina Robiglio (President), German Martin Quiran (Rapporteur) and Juan Patricio Sanchez Benitez (Secretary). Speakers: Raquel Segalla Reis, Pablo Borgna, Rufino Beccar Varela, Noel Lascano. Meanwhile, the Round table It was chaired by Catalina García Vizcaíno and included Andrés Rohde Ponce (Mexico), Pablo Labandera (Uruguay) and Enrique C. Barreira (Argentina).
And last but not least, Ofelia Seoane, President of AAEF, closed the scientific event with the annual award 2021-Article Category- highlighting the academic merit and doctrinal contribution of the young author.
In this way, the Argentine Association of Fiscal Studies concluded the XIII International Conference on Customs Law, committing to hold the next one in 2025 in Buenos Aires -with transmission to the interior and exterior of the country-, as well as to continue an activity that began fifteen years ago.
One more detail: the activity had the financial from prominent publishers such as TARIFAR (María Cristina Peteira); Mercojuris (Marcelo Gottifredi) and Aduana News (Guillermo Felipe Coronel), as well as important private studies linked to the AAEF.
One last summary of topics. I leave the recommendations and conclusions of the meeting.
Panel 1: “General principles of taxation and customs duties”
- It is necessary to reinforce the value of 'legal certainty' and the principle of legitimate trust with respect to customs legislation, its entry into force, and the actions of the Administration.
- It is advisable that at the community level a clear system of validity of Mercosur standards be established, which does not depend on the express incorporation of the member States; and at the local level, that there be uniformity in the criteria for determining the date of entry into force of derived standards.
- It is also recommended to establish a system that makes transparent the system of general interpretations made by the Treasury and their possible questioning by third-party operators.
- It is strongly recommended that the strict principle of legal reserve in tax-customs matters be respected, following, for cases of delegation, the parameters outlined by the doctrine of the “Camaronera Patagónica” ruling of the SCJN. Likewise, the authorities are urged to ensure that these types of regulations are not mere appendices to omnibus laws or budgetary laws.
- Legal practitioners are advised to avoid taking a priori positions when analyzing the various issues brought to their attention.
- Likewise, with regard to the interpretation of the rules, it is also recommended to take into account the context and its purpose, but always within the framework of respect for the principle of legality and the guarantees of the administered party.
- In the area of royalties and fees, it is especially urged to respect the principle of legality and the regulatory framework provided by the GATT value agreement for this type of adjustment, with special attention to the case law, the grounds on which the text of the agreement's standard was arrived at and the principle of freedom by which foreign trade operators carry out their legal transactions underlying the existence of these royalties and fees.
- The Panel's general recommendation is to promote greater legal certainty, both from the regulatory and technical perspective, through to the operators of the multiple Latin American customs administrations, and from those who exercise jurisdictional powers in customs matters.
Panel II: “The guiding principles of administrative procedures and customs procedures.”
- To analyze the application of the principle of the dynamic burden of proof to non-infringement customs procedures in search of objective legal truth, respecting at all times the full validity of the constitutional rights of individuals.
- Urge those who exercise jurisdictional functions and all parties to the procedure to strictly comply with the deadlines and legally established requirements for the fulfillment of procedural acts, in order to contribute to the speed in the processing of customs procedures and avoid procedural nullities.
- Please note that customs acts and/or prerequisites for a customs operation issued through electronic channels and their processing - such as import licenses, various required certificates, prior interventions, etc. - as well as systemic controls - such as risk profiles, selectivity channels, preventive indicators such as Financial Economic Capacity, among others - constitute administrative acts and manifestations of customs police power, and as such are subject to the legal provisions in force, particularly as regards their requirements and the possibility of judicial review. In this sense, the arbitrariness in the issuance of such acts and/or the delay in their issuance violates the constitutional rights of those subject to administration. For their part, such acts must necessarily be subject to the principles of equality, legality, transparency, security and respect for the constitutional guarantees of individuals.
- Remember that strict compliance with the formalities prescribed by law in the customs procedure and the requirements provided for each procedural act depend on respect for the fundamental rights of the citizens and compliance with the purpose of the procedure.
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
