Calculation and payment of duties and taxes

Goods brought into the customs territory of the European Union from third countries may only be placed on the market once they have been released for free circulation. This means that duties and taxes are calculated and become payable before the goods are placed on the EU market.

When the customs procedure for release for free circulation is being completed:

• the prohibitions and restrictions applicable to the goods are applied
• the import duties and taxes applicable to the goods (excise duties and VAT) are calculated
• upon completion of the procedure, the goods acquire Union goods customs status and may be freely placed on the EU market

The duties and taxes payable upon the release of goods for free circulation are determined in accordance with the Common Customs Tariff and national legislation (the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Excise Duties and the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Value Added Tax).

Information on the import duties and taxes payable is available in the Integrated Tariff of the Republic of Lithuania – the LITAR portal → https://litarweb.lrmuitine.lt/portal/.

In the LITAR portal you can:

• find the code for the goods you are importing or exporting
• find out the duties, taxes, prohibitions and restrictions applicable to the goods
• calculate the duties and taxes payable using wizard-based calculators
• obtain detailed information on quotas
• find other information related to the importation of goods (links to EU international trade requirements and a number of data code lists related to duty and tax calculation modelling and goods declaration are provided)

• Import duty is calculated on the basis of:
  • the customs value (the price of the goods, to which the costs of transport, insurance and other costs incurred outside the EU are added (Article 71 UCC))
  • the quantity of goods, expressed in the unit of measurement, where the duty rate is set as a monetary amount per unit of quantity (e.g. EUR X per tonne)
• Excise duty is calculated in accordance with the rates set out in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Excise Duties
• Import VAT is calculated on the basis of:
  • the customs value of the goods
  • transport and other additional costs incurred within the EU territory
  • the amounts of duty payable and, where applicable, excise duty (Article 15(15) of the VAT Law)

Under the "Calculators" section (https://litarweb.lrmuitine.lt/portal/) you will find the following tools:

• "Duty and tax calculation modelling"
• "Low-value consignment duty and tax calculation modelling"
• "Small or postal consignment duty and tax calculation modelling"
• "Transit guarantee calculation modelling"

The calculators are wizard-based. Depending on the goods code and other parameters entered, classifier lists and related data entry fields are selected and suggested. The calculated duties and taxes payable are shown in the "Result" sections of the calculators. Detailed information on how to use the calculators is available in the "Help" section of the LITAR portal → https://litarweb.lrmuitine.lt/portal/help.

Goods are declared for the release for free circulation procedure by submitting a customs declaration by electronic means. The duties and taxes payable are determined on the date on which the customs declaration for the release for free circulation procedure is accepted (the date on which the customs debt is incurred).

The deadline for paying duties and taxes depends on whether you have the right to defer payment.

Where there is no right to defer payment

Duties and taxes must be paid at the time of customs clearance:

• in cash
• by payment card (where available)
• or in advance by bank transfer

Right to defer payment of duties and taxes

The right to defer payment is granted upon the provision of a guarantee to customs (a bank or insurance guarantee).

In that case:

• all duties and taxes calculated during a calendar month are paid by the 16th day of the following month by bank transfer
• duties and taxes may also be paid at the time of clearance (in cash, by card or by bank transfer)

Payment accounts

Duties and taxes are paid by bank transfer to one of the Customs Department accounts.

• Union Customs Code (EU) No 952/2013 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02013R0952-20221212&qid=1774862290814
• Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Excise Duties https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.B9E1D301256F/asr
• Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Value Added Tax https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.ED68997709F5/asr