The Belgian customs sanctioning system is hard and can feel oppressive since nearly all violations of customs (and excise) legislation are criminally sanctioned, rather severe (prison) sanctions can be imposed and offenders can be sanctioned for the mere violation of the law even if such violation only was caused by negligence without the intention to be non-compliant. A full harmonization of customs sanctions on the EU level could tone this down. Although EU Directive 2017/1371 will install an ‘approximation’ of the customs sanctioning systems of the EU Member States, the question remains whether the political will is present for full harmonization.
Global Trade and Customs Journal