Transit duty refers to customs charges imposed on goods that are shipped through a country en route to another destination for the purposes of exports or imports.
Key Types of Transit Duty:
- Temporary admission permits duty-free movement of goods through a country if they depart within a set period, often 6-12 months.
- Transit traffic involves bond guarantees ensuring duties are collected if cargo exits the customs territory rather than continuing transit.
- Warehousing regimes allow duty-free storage if merchandise remains under customs control in bonded areas.
Example:
By utilizing Romania’s transit procedures, a cargo of agricultural machinery from Germany avoided import duties on its journey by road through Eastern Europe to Ukraine.
Takeaways:
Transit duties balance facilitation of trade flows through regional hubs with protection of domestic markets. Improved coordination under transit conventions prevents compliance costs from thwarting logistical efficiencies.