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Law Approving The Agreement Bilateral Mutual Administrative Assistance In Customs Matters Between The Government Of The Kingdom Of Belgium And The Cabinet Of Ministers Of The Ukraine, Signed In Brussels On 1 July 2002 (1) (2)

Original Language Title: Loi portant assentiment à l'Accord bilatéral d'assistance administrative mutuelle en matière douanière entre le Gouvernement du Royaume de Belgique et le Cabinet des Ministres de l'Ukraine, signé à Bruxelles le 1er juillet 2002 (1) (2)

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21 AVRIL 2007. - An Act to approve the Bilateral Agreement on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, signed in Brussels on 1er July 2002 (1) (2)



ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Bilateral Agreement on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, signed in Brussels on 1er July 2002 will come out of full effect.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 21 April 2007.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
K. DE GUCHT
Minister of Finance,
D. REYNDERS
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
____
Notes
(1) 2006-2007 session.
Senate.
Documents. - Bill tabled on 17 November 2006, No. 3-1927/1. Report, no. 3-1927/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion and voting. Session of February 8, 2007.
House of Representatives.
Documents. - Project transmitted by the Senate, No. 51-2911/1. - Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. 51-2911/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion and voting. Session of 1er March 2007.
(2) This Agreement comes into force on 1er August 2007, pursuant to Article 20.

Bilateral Agreement on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine
The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium
and
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine,
designated as the "Contracting Parties"
Considering that violations of customs laws affect the economic, commercial interests of their respective countries,
Considering that it is important to ensure the fair collection of customs duties and other taxes and to ensure that restrictions, prohibitions and controls are applied correctly,
Recognizing the need to cooperate at the international level on issues related to the application of their customs legislation,
Considering the relevant instruments of the Customs Cooperation Council, including the Recommendation of 5 December 1953 on mutual administrative assistance,
Considering also the International Conventions, providing for specific prohibitions, restrictions and control measures in respect of certain goods,
The following agreed:
Definitions
Article 1er. For the purposes of this Agreement:
1. Customs Administrations:
For the Kingdom of Belgium: Customs and Access Administration, Ministry of Finance,
For Ukraine: the State Customs Service of Ukraine.
2. "Customs laws": all legal and regulatory requirements applied by Customs authorities with respect to the import, export and transit of goods, that these requirements relate to customs duties, or to all other duties and taxes, or to prohibition, restriction and control measures,
3. “Custom infringement”: any violation or attempted violation of customs legislation,
4. "Person": any natural or legal person,
5. "Personal Data": data concerning a duly identified or identifiable natural person,
6. "Information": any data, document, report, certified copy of the data or other communication,
7. "Information": the information processed or analyzed to provide details regarding a customs offence,
8. "Applicant Administration": Customs Administration that makes an application for assistance,
9. "Required administration": the customs administration to which a request for assistance is addressed.
Scope of assistance
Art. 2. 1. The Contracting Parties agree to assist each other in accordance with the terms of this Agreement through their customs administrations in order to prevent, investigate and punish any violation of customs laws.
2. The assistance provided by this Agreement shall also include, at the request of one of the customs administrations, any information that would ensure the fair collection of customs duties and other taxes by customs administrations.
3. Any assistance shall be provided by each Contracting Party in accordance with their national legislation and within the available resources of its Customs administrations.
Art. 3. 1. Upon request, the required administration shall provide all information on national customs legislation and procedures relevant to the investigation of a violation of customs laws.
2. Each Customs administration shall, upon request or on its own initiative, communicate all the information available to it on the following matters:
(a) new techniques to combat customs fraud that have proven effectiveness,
(b) new trends in customs offences, and the means or methods used to commit them.
Special assistance cases
Art. 4. Upon request, the requested administration shall provide the requesting administration with information on the following points:
(a) the regularity of the export, from the customs territory of the required Contracting Party, of the goods imported into the customs territory of the requesting Contracting Party,
(b) the regularity of the import, in the customs territory of the required Contracting Party, of the goods exported from the customs territory of the requesting Contracting Party, and the customs regime under which the goods were eventually placed.
Art. 5. Upon request, the requested administration provides information and information and exercises special monitoring on:
(a) persons in respect of whom the requesting Party has reason to believe that they commit or are liable to commit offences under customs laws,
(b) the goods designated by the requesting Party as being trafficked or suspected of being irregular, to or from its territory,
(c) means of transport suspected of being used to commit violations of customs laws in the customs territory of the requesting Party.
Art. 6. 1. Customs administrations shall, upon request or on their own initiative, communicate information and information on completed or planned transactions that constitute or appear to constitute an offence to customs laws.
2. In serious cases that may seriously affect the economy, public health, public safety or other vital interests of a Contracting Party, the customs administration of the other Contracting Party shall, without delay, provide information and information on its own initiative.
Information and intelligence
Art. 7. 1. The originals of records, documents and other data are requested only in cases where copies are not sufficient. In such cases, where the originals cannot be supplied, certified true copies are sent to the requesting Party.
2. The transmission of the originals of the records, documents and other data is carried out without prejudice to the rights that the requested Contracting Party or third parties would have acquired on these documents.
3. The originals of the files, documents and other data transmitted must be returned as soon as possible.
4. The information and information to be exchanged in accordance with this Agreement shall be accompanied by all relevant indications for interpretation or exploitation.
Experts and witnesses
Art. 8. Customs administrations of each Contracting Party may, at the request of the customs administration of the other Contracting Party, authorize their agents to appear as witnesses before the courts or administrative authorities in the territory of the other Party, and to produce records, documents or other data, or copies of those certified in conformity, which may be deemed essential for prosecution. These officers file within the limits set by the authorization, on the findings made by them during the performance of their duties. In particular, the application must specify in which case and in what capacity the agent will be questioned.
Application implementation
Art. 9. Where the requested administration does not have the requested information, it shall, subject to its national legislation:
(a) undertake research to obtain such information, or
(b) promptly forward the application to the competent authority, or
(c) indicate which authorities are competent in this regard.
Art. 10. 1. Upon written request, for the purpose of investigating a violation of customs laws, officials specially designated by the requesting administration may, with the authorization of the required administration, and subject to the conditions imposed by the requesting administration as appropriate:
(a) consult the relevant documents, records and other data held in these offices in the required administration offices to extract information relating to the offence,
(b) take copies of such documents, records and other relevant data relating to the offence in question,
(c) assist in any investigation carried out by the required administration in the customs territory of the required Contracting Party and useful to the requesting administration.
2. When, under the conditions specified in paragraph 1er of this Article, officials of the requesting administration shall be present in the territory of the other Contracting Party, at any time shall be in a position to provide proof that they have officially quality to act.
3. They shall be provided with the same protection and assistance as provided to Customs officials of the other Contracting Party by the legislation in force in the territory of the latter and shall be liable for any offence committed if any.
Protection of information
Art. 11. 1. The information or information received in the context of administrative assistance in accordance with this Agreement shall be used exclusively for the purposes of this Agreement and by Customs administrations, except where the Contracting Party which provided this information authorizes in writing their use for other purposes or by other authorities.
2. The information or information received pursuant to this Agreement shall be considered confidential and shall be protected at least equivalent to that provided for information or information of the same nature by the national legislation of the Contracting Party that receives it.
Derogations
Art. 12. 1. The assistance provided by this Agreement may be denied where it is likely to infringe upon the sovereignty, security, public order or other essential national interests of one of the two Contracting Parties, if it involves the violation of an industrial, commercial or professional secret, or is incompatible with the legal and administrative provisions applied by that Contracting Party.
2. When the requesting administration is not in a position to satisfy an application of the same nature that would be submitted by the requested administration, it shall report the fact in the statement of its application. In such a case, the required administration has full discretion to determine the follow-up to this application.
3. Assistance may be postponed by the required administration when it disrupts investigations, prosecutions or ongoing proceedings. In this case, the requested administration shall consult with the requesting administration to determine whether the assistance may be provided subject to any conditions imposed by the required administration.
4. In cases where a request for assistance cannot be made, the applicant administration shall be immediately notified of the request, with a statement of the reasons and circumstances that may be important to the case.
Form and content of requests for assistance
Art. 13. 1. Requests made under this Agreement shall be submitted in writing. The documents necessary for the execution of these requests must be attached. If required, verbal requests may also be accepted, but must be confirmed in writing.
2. Requests made in accordance with paragraph 1er of this section shall include the following information:
(a) the authority to which the request arises;
(b) the nature of the proceedings in question;
(c) the object and purpose of the application;
(d) the names and addresses of the parties involved in the proceedings if known;
(e) a brief description of the case in question and the mention of the legal provisions at issue.
Costs
Art. 14. 1. Customs administrations waive any claim for reimbursement of costs arising from the application of this Agreement, except for witness expenses, as well as fees paid to experts and interpreters other than administrative agents. The costs will only be incurred with the prior agreement of the requesting Party.
2. If high and unusual costs are to or should be incurred in response to the application, Contracting Parties shall consult to determine the conditions under which the application will be met, as well as how these costs will be borne.
3. Expenses incurred by applying articles 8 and 10, paragraph 1er, shall be the responsibility of the requesting Contracting Party.
Implementation
Art. 15. 1. This Agreement shall apply to the customs territories of the two Contracting Parties as defined by their national legislation.
2. Any information of interest to the European Union in respect of customs fraud and irregularity that would be communicated by the customs administrations of Ukraine to the customs administration of the Kingdom of Belgium can be transferred immediately by the latter to the European Commission.
3. This communication may be automatically made without prior authorization from the Contracting Party which provided the information.
Art. 16. 1. Customs administrations of both Contracting Parties shall make arrangements for the agents of their services responsible for preventing, investigating or prosecuting customs offences to be in personal and direct relations with a view to exchanging information.
2. The list of specially designated agents for this purpose is notified to the customs administration of the other Party.
Settlement of disputes
Art. 17. 1. The terms and conditions for the application of this Agreement shall be set by the Customs administrations of the two Contracting Parties to the Agreement.
2. Any dispute arising from the interpretation or application of this Agreement shall be resolved by diplomatic means.
Entry into force
Art. 18. This Agreement shall take effect on the first day of the third month following the date of receipt of the last notification of a Contracting Party concerning the performance of the procedures required by its national legislation.
Amendments
Art. 19. After five years from the date of the entry into force of this Agreement and at the request of one of the Contracting Parties, representatives of customs administrations shall meet to review this Agreement.
Denunciation
Art. 20. 1. This Agreement shall be concluded for an unlimited period of time, but each Contracting Party may denounce it at any time by diplomatic notification.
2. The denunciation shall take effect six months from the date of notification of the denunciation to the other Contracting Party. The procedures at the time of denunciation must nevertheless be completed in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.
In faith, the undersigned, duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.
Done in Brussels, 1er July 2002, in double copy each in French, Dutch and Ukrainian languages, the three texts being equally authentic.