Organisation and working of the service.
1. In order to avoid congestion at certain
frontier Customs Offices, it is desirable that the practice of
clearing goods at inland offices or warehouses should be encouraged
whenever domestic regulations, transport conditions and the nature
of the goods permit of this being done.
2. It is desirable that, unless abuse is suspected,
and subject to the rights of States under their own legislation,
the lead or other Customs seals affixed by a State to goods which
are in transit or on their way to warehouses should be recognised
and respected by other States, apart from the right of the latter
affix new Customs marks in addition to the lead or other seals.
Passage of goods through the Customs.
3. It is desirable that the States should,
as far as is possible, but without prejudice to their right to
levy special charges:
(a) facilitate the clearing of perishable goods
outside ordinary office hours and on days other than working days;
(b) authorise, as far as their legislation
permits, the lading and unlading of vessels and boats outside
the ordinary Customs-House working days and office hours.
Facilities granted to persons declaring goods.
4. It is desirable that the cons signee should
always be free, except in so far as otherwise provided by Article
10 of the Berne Convention of October 14th, 1890, regarding the
Carriage of Goods by Rail, which was amended by the Berne Convention
of September 19th, - 1906, to declare, in person, goods in a Customs
Office, or to cause this declaration to be male by some person
designated by him.
5. It is desirable, wherever it is considered
that such a system could usefully be employed, to adopt a printed
form, including the Customs declaration, to be filled in by the
party concerned, the certificate of verification, and, if the
country in question regards it as advisable, the receipt for the
payment of the import duties.
6. It is desirable that States should refrain,
so far as possible, from inflicting severe penalties for trifling
infractions of Customs procedure or regulations. In particular,
if an act of omission or an error has been committed which is
obviously devoid of any fraudulent intent and which can easily
be put right, in respect of cases in which the production of documents
is required for the clearing of goods through the Customs, any
fine which may be imposed should be as small as possible so as
to be as little burdensome as possible and to have no character
other than that of a formal penalty, i. e. of a simple
warning.
7. Consideration should be given to the possibility
of using postal money-orders or cheques, against security of a
permanent character, for the payment or guarantee of Customs duties.
8. It is desirable that the Customs authorities
should as far as possible be authorised, when the identity of
the goods can be established to their satisfaction, to refund
on re-exportation of goods the duties paid on their importation,
provided that they have remained continuously under the supervision
of the Customs authorities. It is also desirable that no export
duties should be imposed when such goods are re-exported.
9. Suitable measures should be taken to avoid
all delay in the passage through the Customs of commercial catalogues
and other printed matter of the same kind intended for advertisement
when they are sent by post or packed with the goods to which they
refer.
10. It is desirable, in cases in which certain
documents necessary for purposes of Customs formalities must bear
the visa of a consulate or other authority, that the office which
grants the visa should endeavour so far as possible to keep the
hours of business which are habitual in the commercial circles
of the locality in which such office is situated; it is also desirable
that charges for attendances out of office hours, when levied,
should be fixed at as reasonable a figure as possible.
11. It is desirable that the practice of examining
hand baggage in trains consisting entirely of corridor stock,
either en route or when the train stops at a frontier station,
should if possible be generally applied.
12. It is desirable that the practice recommended
in paragraph 11 above as regards the examination of travellers'
baggage should, as far as possible, be extended to journeys by
sea and on rivers. The examination should, as far as practicable,
be carried out on board ship, either during the voyage, when the
crossing is not long, or on the ship's arrival in port.
13. It is desirable that notices should de
posted on the Customs-House premises and, as far as possible,
in railway carriages and on boats, stating the charges and duties
payable on the chief articles which travellers usually carry,
and also a list. of the articles the importation of which is prohibited.
14. It is desirable that States in which such
institutions do not already exist should establish or approve
the establishment of so called "constructive" and "special"
warehouses, which might be used for goods requiring special care
on account of their peculiar character.
15. It is desirable that warehouse charges
should be drawn up on a reasonable basis so as to be as a rule
no more than sufficient to cover general expenses and interest
on the capital laid out.
16. It is desirable that alt persons having
goods in warehouses should be allowed to withdraw damaged goods;
the latter should be either destroyed in the presence of the Customs
officials or returned to the consignor without the payment of
any Customs duties.
17. It is desirable that the payment of import
duties should not be required in the case of goods which, although
they are shown on-the manifest, are not actually introduced into
the country, provided that sufficient evidence of the fact is
furnished either by the carrier or by the captain within a time-limit
fixed by the Customs authorities.
18. It is desirable to develop the system of
international railway stations and to obtain effective co-operation
among the various national organisations established therein.
It would also be advisable to establish the
closest possible concordance between the functions and office
hours of the corresponding offices of two contiguous countries,
whether in the case of roads, rivers or railways. The practice
of establishing the Customs offices of contiguous countries in
the same place, and, if feasible, even in the same building, should
if possible be made general.
With a view to carrying out the recommendations
contained in the present Section E, it is desirable that an international
conference should be convened, in which representatives of all
the administrations and organisations concerned should take part.
Article 15. Each of the Contracting States
undertakes, in return for adequate guarantees on the part of the
transport agents, and subject to legal penalties in case of fraud
or illegal importation, to allow baggage registered from the place
of despatch abroad to be forwarded as of right, and without a
Customs examination at the frontier, to a non-frontier Customs
office in its territory, if such office is qualified for this
purpose. The Contracting States shall publish lists of Customs
offices thus qualified. It is understood that the traveller will
have the choice of declaring his baggage at the first office of
entry.
Article 16. The: Contracting States, while
reserving all their rights in respect of their own system of law
regarding temporary importation and exportation, will be guided
as far as possible by the principles laid down in the Annex to
this Article as regards the regime to be applied to goods which
are imported or exported in order to undergo a manufacturing process,
to articles intended for exhibitions of a public character, whether
for industrial, commercial, artistic or scientific purposes, to
apparatus and articles employed for experiments or demonstrations,
to touring vehicles, or furniture vans, to samples, to packing
cases and wrappings, to goods exported subject to an undertaking
that they will be returned, and to other goods of a similar kind.
1. It is desirable that the provisions of laws
and regulations relating to temporary importation and exportation
shall be simplified as far as circumstances allow, and shall be
made public in the manner provided for in Articles 4 and 5 of
the present Convention.
2. It is desirable that the measures of application
should so far as possible form the subject of general regulations,
in order that the persons or firms concerned may be acquainted
with and able to take advantage of them.
3. It is desirable that the procedure adopted
for the identification of goods should be as simple as possible,
and that for this purpose:
(a) the guarantee afforded by the presence
on the articles of marks affixed by the Customs administrations
of other States should be taken into consideration;
(b) the system of identification by specimens
or samples, by drawings or by complete and detailed descriptions
should be instituted, especially in cases in which the affixing
of marks is impossible or offers disadvantages.
4. It is desirable that the formalities in
connection both with declaration and verification should be carried
out not only in the frontier offices but also in any offices situated
in the interior of the country concerned which possess the necessary
authority.
5. It is desirable that an adequate time-limit
should be allowed for the execution of undertakings which involve
temporary importation or exportation, and that due consideration
should be given to any unforeseen circumstances which may delay
their execution, and the time-limit prolonged in case of need.
6. It is desirable that guarantees should be
accepted in the form either of properly secured bonds or of payments
in cash.
7. It is desirable that the security given
should be refunded or released as soon as all the obligations
which had been contracted have been fulfilled.
Article 17. The present Convention does not
prejudice exceptional measures of a general or particular character
which a Contracting State may be obliged to take in the event
of an emergency affecting the safety or vital interests of the
country, fit being understood that the principle of the equitable
treatment of commerce must be observed to the utmost possible
extent. Nor does fit prejudice the measures which Contracting
States may take to ensure the health of human beings, animals
or plants.
Article 18. The present Convention does not
impose upon a Contracting State any obligations conflicting with
its rights and duties as a Member of the League of Nations.
Article 19. The coming into force of the present
Convention will not abrogate the obligations of Contracting States
in relation to Customs regulations under Treaties, Conventions
or Agreements concluded by them before November 3rd, 1923.
In consideration of such agreements being kept
in forte, the Contracting States undertake, so soon as circumstances
permit, and in any case on the termination of the agreement, to
introduce into agreements so kept in force which contravene the
provisions of the present Convention the modifications required
to bring them into harmony with such provisions; fit being understood
that this obligation is not applicable to the provisions of the
treaties which terminated the war of 1914-1918, and which are
in no wise affected by the present Convention.
Article 20. In conformity with Article 23 (e)
of the Covenant of the League of Nations, any Contracting State
which can establish a good case against the application of any
provision of the present Convention in some or all of its territory
on the ground of the grave economic situation arising out of the
acts of devastation perpetrated on its soil during the war of
1914-1918, shall be deemed to be relieved temporarily of the obligations
arising from the application o such provision, it being understood
that the principle of the equitable treatment of commerce, which
is accepted as binding by the Contracting Mates, must be observed
to the utmost possible extent.
Article 21. It is understood that the present
Convention must not be interpreted as regulating in any way rights
and obligations inter se of territories forming part or
placed under the protection of the same sovereign State, whether
or not these territories are individually Contracting States.
Article 22. Should a dispute arise between
two or more contracting States as to the interpretation or application
of the Provisions of the present Convention, and should such dispute
not be settled either directly between the parties or by the employment
of any other means of reaching agreement, the parties to the dispute
may, before resorting to any arbitral or judicial procedure, submit
the dispute, with a view to an amicable settlement, to such technical
body as the Council of the League of Nations may appoint for this
purpose. This body will give an advisory opinion after hearing
the parties and effecting a meeting between them if necessary.
The advisory opinion given by the said body
will not be binding upon the parties to the dispute unless it
is accepted by ail of them, and they are free either after resort
to such procedure or in lieu thereof to have recourse to any arbitral
or judicial procedure which they may select, including reference
to the Permanent Court of International Justice as regards any
matters which are within the competence of that Court under its
Statute.
If a dispute of the nature referred to in the
first paragraph of this Article should arise with regard to the
interpretation or application of paragraphs 2 or 3 of Article
4, on Article 7, of the present Convention, the parties shall,
at the request of any of them, refer the matter to the decision
of the Permanent Court of International Justice, whether or not
there has previously been recourse to the procedure prescribed
in the first paragraph of this Article.
The adoption of the procedure before the body
referred to above or the opinion given by it will in no case involve
the suspension of the measures complained of the same will apply
in the event of proceedings being taken before the Permanent Court
of International Justice, unless the Court decides otherwise under
Article 41 of the Statute.
Article 23. The present Convention, of which
the French and English texts are both authentic, shall bear this
day's date, and shall be open for signature until October 31st,
1924, by any State represented at the Conference of Geneva, by
any Member of the League of Nations and by any States to which
the Council of the League of Nations shall have communicated a
copy of the Convention for this purpose.
Article 24. The present Convention is subject
to ratification. The instruments of ratification shall be deposited
with the Secretary-General of the League of Nations, who shall
notify their receipt to the Members of the League which are signatories
of the Convention and to the other signatory States.
Article 25. After October 31st, 1924, the present
Convention may be acceded to by any State represented at the Conference
referred to in Article 23 which has not signed the Convention,
by any Member of the League of Nations, or by any State to which
the Council of the League of Nations shall have communicated a
copy of the Convention for this purpose.
Accession shall be effected by an instrument
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
to be deposited in the archives of the Secretariat. The Secretary-General
shall at once notify such deposit to all the Members of the League
of Nations signatories of the Convention and to the other signatory
States.
Article 26. The present Convention will not
come into force until fit has been ratified by five Powers. The
date of its coming into force shall be the ninetieth day after
the receipt by the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
of the fifth ratification. Thereafter, the present Convention
will take effect in the case of each Party ninety days after the
receipt of its ratification or of the notification of its accession.
In compliance with the provisions of Article
18 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, the Secretary-General
will register the present Convention upon the day of its coming
into force.
Article 27. A special record shall be kept
by the Secretary-General of the League of Nations showing which
of the Parties have signed, ratified, acceded to or denounced
the present Convention. This record shall be open to the Members
of the League at all times; iit shall be published as often as
possible, in accordance with the directions of the Council.
Article 28. The present Convention may be denounced
by an instrument in writing addressed to the Secretary-General
of the League of Nations. The denunciation shall become effective
one year after the date of the receipt of the instrument of denunciation
by the Secretary-General, and shall operate only in respect of
the Member of the League of Nations or State which makes it.
The Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall notify the receipt of any such denunciations to all the
Member s of the League of Nations signatories of or adherents
to the Convention and to the other signatories or adherent States.
Article 29. Any State signing or adhering to
the present Convention may declare, at the moment either of its
signature, ratification or accession, that its acceptance of the
present Convention does not include any or all of its colonies,
overseas possessions, protectorates, or overseas territories under
its sovereignty or authority and may subsequently adhere, in conformity
with the provisions of Article 25, on behalf of any such colony,
overseas possession, protectorate or territory excluded by such
declaration.
Denunciation may also be made separately in
respect of any such colony, overseas possession, protectorate
or territory, and the provisions of Article 28 shall apply to
any such denunciation.
Article 30. The Council of the League of Nations
is requested to consider the desirability of summoning a Conference
for the purpose of revising the present Convention if requested
by one third of the Contracting States.
In faith whereof the above named Plenipotentiaries
have signed the present Convention.
DONE at Geneva, the third day of November one
thousand nine hundred and twenty-three, in a single copy, which
will remain deposited in the archives of the Secretariat of the
League of Nations; certified copies will be transmitted to all
the States represented at the Conference.
Germany: Willy Ernst.
Austria E. Pflügl.
Belgium: J. Brunet, A. Janssen.
Brazil: J. A. Barboza Carneiro.
British Empire: H. Llewellyn Smith.
Union of South Africa: H. Llewellyn Smith.
Australia: C. A. B. Campion.
New Zealand:
J. Allen.
I hereby declare that my signature includes
the Mandated Territory of Western Samoa.*)
India: Hardinge of Penshurst.
Bulgaria: D. Mikoff.
Chile: Jorge Buchanan.
China: J. R. Loutsengtsiang.
Denmark: A. Oldenburg.
Egypt: T. C. Macaulay, A. Abdel Khalek.
Spain: Emilio de Palacios.
Finland: Niilo A. Mannio, Urho Toivola.
France: E. Bolley.
Greece: V. Colocotronis, D. Capsali.
Hungary: F. de Parcher
Italy: Carlo Pugliesi.
Japan: Y. Sugimura.
Lithuania: Dobkevicius, Dr. P. Karvelis.
Luxemburg: Ch. Vermaire.
French Protectorate of Morocco: P. Serra.
Norway: Fridtjof Nansen.
Paraguay: R. V. Caballero.
The Netherlands:
E. Menten.
W. Doude van Trooatwijk.
Poland: J. Modzelewski.
Portugal: A. M. Bartholomeo Ferreira,
Roumania: N. P. Comnene.
Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes:
Radmilo Bouyditch,
Dr. Valdemar Lounatchek.
Siam: Phya Sanpakitch Preecha.
Sweden: Hj. Branting.
Switzerland: Häusermann, E. Leute.
Czechoslovakia: J. Dvořáček, Dr. Schönbach.
Regency of Tunis (French Protectorate): Ode.
Uruguay: E.
Buero.
At the moment of signing the Convention of
to-day's date relating to the simplification of Customs formalities,
the undersigned, duly authorised, have agreed as follows:
1. It is understood that the obligations of
the Contracting States under the Convention referred to above
do not in any way affect those which they have contracted or may
in future contract under international treaties or agreements
relating to the preservation of the health of human beings, animals
or plants (particularly the International Opium Convention), the
protection of public morals or international security.
2. As regards the application of Article 3,
the obligation accepted by Canada binds only the Federal Government
and not the Provincial Governments, which, under the Constitution,
possess the power of prohibiting or restricting the importation
of certain products into their territories.
3. As regards the application of Articles 4
and 5, the acceptance of these Articles by Brazil and Canada only
involves, in the case of these States, the responsibility of the
Federal Government to the extent to which the measures relating
to tariffs or regulations referred to in those Articles are taken
by itself, and without its assuming any responsibility as regards
such measures taken by the States or Provinces under rights conferred
on them by the Constitution of the country.
4. In regard to the application of Article
4 and of the second paragraph of Article 5, the undertaking entered
into by Germany does not email any obligation on her part to publish
certain trifling taxes which she collects or certain special formalities
which she applies, but which are not imposed by her but by Federal
States or by local authorities.
5. As regards the application of Article 11,
the Contracting States recognise that the rules which they have
established constitute the minimum guarantees which all the Contracting
States may claim, and do not exclude the voluntary extension or
adaptation of such rules by bilateral or other agreements voluntarily
concluded between the said States.
6. In view of the special circumstances in
which they are placed, the Governments of Spain, Finland, Poland
and Portugal have stated that they reserve the right of excepting
Article 10 at the time of ratification and that they will not
be bound to apply the said Article until after a period of five
years from this day.
A similar declaration has been made by the
Governments of Spain, Greece and Portugal in respect of paragraph
8 of Article 11 of the Convention, and by the Governments of Spain
and Portugal in respect of paragraph 3 of the same Article. The
Government of Poland has made a similar declaration in respect
of the application of the whole of the same Article, with the
exception of paragraphs 1, 2, 4, 5, 7 and 9, which fit agrees
to apply as from the coming into force in its own case of the
said Convention.
The other Contracting States, while stating
their acceptance of the reserves so formulated, declare that they
will not be bound, in regard to the States which have made the
said reserves, as regards the matters to which they relate, until
the provisions in question are applied by the said States.
Any exceptions which may subsequently be formulated
by other Governments, at the time of their ratification or accession,
with reference to Article 10, Article 11, or any particular provisions
of those Articles, shall be accepted, for the period referred
to in the first paragraph above, and subject to the conditions
laid down in the third paragraph, if the Council of the League
of Nations so decides after consulting the technical body mentioned
in Article 22 of the Convention. The present Protocol will have
the same forte, effect and duration as the Convention of to-day's
date, of which it is to be considered as an integral part.
In faith whereof the above named Plenipotentiaries
have signed the present Convention.
DONE at Geneva, the third day of November one
thousand nine hundred and twenty-three, in a single copy, which
will remain deposited in the archives of the Secretariat of the
League of Nations; certified copies will be transmitted to all
the States represented at the Conference.
Germany: Willy Ernst.
Austria E. Pflügl.
Belgium: J. Brunet, A. Janssen.
Brazil: J. A. Barboza Carneiro.
British Empire: H. Llewellyn Smith.
Union of South Africa: H. Llewellyn Smith.
Australia: C. A. B. Campion.
New Zealand:
J. Allen.
I hereby declare that my signature includes
the Mandated Territory of Western Samoa.*)
India: Hardinge of Penshurst.
Bulgaria: D. Mikoff.
Chile: Jorge Buchanan.
China: J. R. Loutsengtsiang.
Denmark: A. Oldenburg.
Egypt: T. C. Macaulay, A. Abdel Khalek.
Spain: Emilio de Palacios.
Finland: Niilo A. Mannio, Urho Toivola.
France: E. Bolley.
Greece: V. Colocotronis, D. Capsali.
Hungary: F. de Parcher
Italy: Carlo Pugliesi.
Japan: Y. Sugimura.
Lithuania: Dobkevicius, Dr. P. Karvelis.
Luxemburg: Ch. Vermaire.
French Protectorate of Morocco: P. Serra.
Norway: Fridtjof Nansen.
Paraguay: R. V. Caballero.
The Netherlands:
E. Menten.
W. Doude van Trooatwijk.
Poland: J. Modzelewski.
Portugal: A. M. Bartholomeo Ferreira,
Roumania: N. P. Comnene.
Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes:
Radmilo Bouyditch,
Dr. Valdemar Lounatchek.
Siam: Phya Sanpakitch Preecha.
Sweden: Hj. Branting.
Switzerland: Häusermann, E. Leute.
Czechoslovakia: J. Dvořáček, Dr. Schönbach.
Regency of Tunis (French Protectorate): Ode.