Decisions of the Swiss Federal Administrative Court (CW 42 - 2022 )

Overview of tax law decisions of the Swiss Federal Administrative Court published between October 17 - 23, 2022:

Judgment of 28 September 2022 (A-6134/2019): Framework of the Generalized System of Preferences, request for remission of customs duties if an incorrect proof of origin was presented upon importation; For imports until 1 August 2016, the Customs Act 2005 is applicable and for the remission of customs duties Art. 86 ZG is to be examined. Extraordinary circumstances according to Art. 86 para. 1 lit. d ZG do not necessarily have to be related to the customs procedure. They may, for example, be due to the economic or financial situation of the applicant for remission. The complexity of customs regulations, in particular international regulations, may also constitute extraordinary reasons. However, the extraordinary reasons must not be attributable to the applicant for remission. In the present case, it would have been up to the complainant to check the proofs of origin for the formal legal requirements. The same also applies to imports as of August 2, 2016 and the applicable Art. 86 para. 2 lit. a ZG, which requires a lack of fault for a remission of duty. Dismissal of the appeal of the duty payer.
Judgment of 17 August 2022 (A-1680/2021): Subsequent levying of customs duties and import tax; the complainant had ordered goods of Italian origin from her supplier, a sole proprietorship registered in Switzerland. She had to at least assume that the goods could be found in Italy and therefore had to be imported in order to fulfill her order. It is therefore also considered to be a customs debtor and is therefore jointly and severally liable for the import duties claimed in arrears. Dismissal of the appeal.

Decisions in the area of administrative assistance (incl. republications / updates regarding further appeal):