Customs authorities as subjects involved in the movement of goods in international postal items and international express mail

Abstract

The article deals with the identifying the scope of powers of the main subjects of customs and legal relations, involved in the moving (sending) goods across the customs border of Ukraine in international postal items and express mail, which are the customs authorities. The customs authorities, taking part in moving (sending) goods across the customs border of Ukraine in international postal items and express mail can be divided into two main groups: subjects that organise and manage the processes of customs control and clearance (e.g. the State Customs Service of Ukraine) and those that directly perform the customs formalities within of customs control and clearance (e.g. customs offices and customs stations). The purpose of the article is to study the updated scope of powers of customs authorities of Ukraine in terms of fulfilling of customs formalities during customs control and clearance while movement goods across the customs border of Ukraine in international postal items and express mail. Methods of scientific knowledge and analysis are used to characterise the scope of powers of customs authorities in the context of customs formalities with respect to goods moving (sending) across the customs border of Ukraine in international postal items and express mail. Results. After the Order of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine “On Processing International Postal and Express Mail and Approval of Amendments to the Procedure for Filling in Customs Declarations in the Form of a Single Administrative Document” came in force, the customs authorities started to use a wider range of automated procedures and preliminary electronic information which is positive for the automation of customs formalities in the field of postal services. Conclusions. The analysis of the customs authorities updated powers gives an opportunity to conclude that customs control and clearance of goods in international postal items and express mail have improved with the use of automation and digitalization which speed up customs processes and minimise human involvement into the customs processes. However, customs automation remains one of the state’s top priorities today, especially in times of war in Ukraine.