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Home > Infos pratiques > Customs and formalities

Customs and formalities

International shipments must go through administrative procedures. The following information may be useful.

Reminder: Fret SNCF definitively ceased its activities as a customs broker on 1 March 2001.

Goods affected

Currently only exchanges of goods which take place with non-member countries of the European Union are subject to scrutiny by customs.

Clearing customs

All goods exchanged with third-party countries (outside the European Union) must clear customs.

Remittance of a customs declaration:
This is the exclusive responsibility of the client or his representative (customs broker).

These operations are carried out as follows:

for export shipments: declaration filed with the regional customs clearing house (CRD) with which the despatch station (departure station) is registered, before remittance of goods for carriage.

for import shipments: declaration filed with the regional customs clearing house (CRD) with which the destination station (arrival station) is registered.

Note: Exceptional procedure: customs clearance during transit, a special procedure, is possible subject to additional fees for interruption of the shipment.

These fees are always payable by the French client, unless otherwise stipulated by a contract of transport.

The amount of these fees is listed in heading n°433 of DP100 (General and Specific Sales Conditions).

Customs transit

The customs transit regime applies to goods which must be carried under customs supervision (circulation or goods “under customs”).

Import shipments:

All goods originating in a third-party country.

Export shipments:

Goods transported directly to an EFTA member country (European Free-Trade Association): Norway, Hungary, Iceland, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Switzerland,

Goods transported via an EFTA member country.

Examples :

shipment France/Switzerland shipment France/Czech Republic shipment France/Slovenia via Switzerland	These shipments circulate under the regime of dutiable transit

shipment France/United States via Belgium shipment France/Slovenia via Italy	These shipments do not circulate under the regime of dutiable transit

Procedures

A dutiable transit operation involves an agreement called a “transit declaration.”

A transit declaration consists of presenting the intact goods in a predetermined place, at a specified time as stipulated by the obligated principal who guarantees the proper completion of formalities.

2 possible procedures:

The simplified procedure via rail:
The transit declaration is established through the international consignment notes the railway company is the obligated principal vis-à-vis the customs authorities.
In this case SNCF receives the fees outlined in heading n°428 of DP100. These fees are indicated as duties in the international consignment notes.

Normal procedure:
The transit document consists of a T transit declaration, endorsed by the client. The latter is the obligated principal vis-à-vis the customs authorities.

For further information go to : http://www.douane.gouv.fr