EC critical of Albania’s custom reference system

TIRANA, Oct 23ؔhe European Commission, EC, has criticized the reference prices system used by the Albanian Custom Administration to tax imported goods, saying that such system is not in line with EU standards.
In its last country progress report published last week, the EC said that some progress has been achieved in the area of customs, but that physical inspections are still at a high rate compared to EU standards.
“There has been some progress in the area of customs. Albania continued to take measures to ensure timely implementation of the SAA tariff reductions,” the report notes. “[But] the use of reference prices is not in line with EU standards,” the report added.
The EC, which supervises Albania’s effort to implement EU rules, says that Tirana has respected the time-line agenda to reduce trade tariffs as agreed in the Stabilization and Association Agreement, SAA, signed in 2006.
“The Combined Nomenclature 2009 for the classification of goods in trade with the EU was applied as from January 2009, computerization continued to progress and the migration to ASYCUDA World was completed in June 2009,” the report reads.
“Risk assessment criteria and profiles are being revised continuously and new profiles were prepared specifically for scanners and the physical inspections rate was reduced to approximately 20 per cent, but it is still high by EU standards; however, further developments are required to make the risk analysis system more effective and manageable and to enhance the use of the transaction value,” the report adds.
Albania introduced the reference price system for imported goods in 1998 to deal with false custom declaration and the inability of its officials to verify the bills of lading.