Goods released, declaration closed, papers filed away. Customs keeps the right to come back to them.
Release is not the final stage
The World Customs Organization calls it audit-based control. In Azerbaijan it is the customs audit: it follows release, conditional release included, and covers importers, exporters, goods owners, declarants, others with authority over the goods and their representatives.
- desk audit — no visit; the declaration is matched with commercial, financial and transport documents
- field audit — at the person's premises, scheduled or unscheduled; a desk audit can be its grounds
What the audit examines
The question is not whether a document exists, but whether your declaration is backed by documents. In consultancy we prepare these areas:
- customs value — documents behind every component of the declared value; methods are a separate article
- tariff classification — technical documents and written reasoning behind the code
- origin — a preferential origin document may be checked with the exporting country's authority, but the documents and explanations come from you
- compliance with relief, temporary admission, processing and warehousing terms
What must stay in the archive
The retention period is set by legislation and runs from when the goods leave customs control. The set collected at import stays, certificates and permits included; its list is a separate article. If a document is missing, customs may rely on the data it holds.
- why the code and value were chosen; correspondence with the seller
- access to documents, copies and answers; a reader for electronic data
When a discrepancy is found
- a notice requesting further information
- written explanations and additional documents
- assessment, a decision and a demand
- objection and complaint against the decision as legislation provides
A field audit does not start before registration in the Unified Information Register of Inspections. A complaint goes first to the authority that took the decision, then to the higher customs authority; repeat complaints from businesses go to the Appeal Council under the State Customs Committee. Court stays open regardless.
Why self-checking pays off
Finding the error first costs less than explaining it after an audit begins. The “green corridor” and the Trusted Partner Concept rest on compliance and self-assessment.
- a sample re-check of earlier declarations
- written justification of code and value decisions
We check your declaration archive and prepare the reasoning. Declaration numbers and the contract will do.
Our service on this topic
- Consulting Professional advice on customs law, duty calculation and risk management.
Still have a question?
Get in touch to discuss your specific customs clearance situation — our team will explain it within the framework of the law.
