The customs value of goods

The Court of Justice of the EU has updated the criteria for valuing imported goods where a provisional price has been applied. It is now possible to adjust the customs value when the final price is based on objective and verifiable factors. This facilitates transparency and compliance for businesses and customs authorities. 

According to Article 70 of the Union Customs Code, the primary basis for determining the customs value of goods is the transaction value — the actual price paid or payable when the goods are sold for export to the customs territory of the Union. This price shall include all payments made or to be made by the buyer to the seller or a third party on the seller’s behalf for the imported goods, including any payments made as a condition of the sale of those goods. 

Additionally, EU Implementing Regulation 2015/2477 states that if the sale or price of the imported goods is subject to a valued condition or consideration, this value is considered part of the actual price paid or payable. 

The criteria for determining the customs value of goods with a provisional price at the time of importation have recently been amended on this issue: 

In Case C-529/16 Hamamatsu (Judgment of 20 December 2017) relating to an intra-group purchase, the Court of Justice of the European Union prevented the modification of the customs value resulting from an adjustment to the price of the goods made after the sale, which was derived from the group’s transfer pricing policy. The Court rejected the idea that the customs value could be equated to the transaction value agreed between related parties, especially when these adjustments cannot be attributed to the specific goods being imported (as they depend on the distribution of profits among the group’s entities, rather than on a specific transaction). 

However, in a judgment on 15 May 2025 (Case C-782/23, Tauritus), the CJEU clarified its previous position by allowing the customs value to be modified based on subsequent circumstances in certain situations. 

In the Tauritus case, only the provisional price of the goods, as stated on a pro forma invoice, is known at the time of importation, while the final price is set subsequently on the basis of predetermined objective factors beyond the control of the parties. As these factors are determinable and easily verifiable by customs, however, the CJEU does allow the customs value to be fixed taking into account the final price of the goods. To achieve this, a supplementary declaration must be issued, stating the customs value corresponding to the final price indicated on the final invoice, along with the necessary supporting documents.