Problem solved for online shoppers from BiH

A meeting was held today at the Indirect Taxation Authority with representatives of postal operators in BiH, discussing the customs clearance of postal parcels that citizens of BiH order online from legal entities abroad.

At the meeting, it was presented that within the next ten days, a new module of the ASYCUDA WORLD customs IT application will be completed, which will enable postal operators to initiate customs procedures for packages that citizens of BiH order online from legal entities abroad. This way, there will be no need to engage customs intermediaries – customs brokers – or submit customs declarations, as the entire procedure will be initiated by the competent postal offices.

Customs clearance will be carried out in such a way that each individual type of goods in the customs process will be classified according to the valid Customs Tariff of BiH, and based on that, precise customs rates for each individual type of goods, the applicable VAT, and excise duty if it is an excise product will be determined. This will resolve the current problem regarding the customs clearance of parcels ordered online.

We remind you that if an individual from BiH receives a package from an individual abroad, the procedure of oral customs declaration via a postal-customs declaration with a uniform customs rate of 10% and the applicable VAT of 17% still applies, if the value of that package exceeds the amount of 50 KM, which is provided for exemption from import duties.

In analyses conducted by the Indirect Taxation Authority, it was observed that in the last few years, a large number of individuals from BiH have appeared who, completely contrary to legal regulations, engaged in the economic activity of advertising and selling various goods through social networks, without being registered anywhere to perform this economic activity. For this reason, the number and content of orders placed online from legal entities has increased to such an extent that such types of goods cannot be cleared through customs using the uniform customs rate of 10%, but rather, in accordance with legal and by-laws, customs clearance must be done in a way that for each individual type of goods, a tariff code is determined in accordance with the valid Customs Tariff of BiH, as well as the customs rate, VAT, and excise duty for excise products.

To clear such goods through customs, a single customs document (JCI), i.e., a customs declaration, must currently be submitted, and this can only be done by persons authorized to conduct customs procedures – customs brokers. This will be the practice until the new module of the ASYCUDA WORLD customs IT application is put into operation, which will enable postal operators to initiate customs procedures for packages that citizens of BiH order online from legal entities abroad.