International Customs Day, 2022

Every year the International Customs Day is celebrated on January 26. The day is celebrated by the United Nations and several other international organizations. The day is celebrated to acknowledge the role of custom officials in the flow of goods.

Theme of International Customs Day, 2022

Scaling up Customs Digital Transformation by embracing a data culture and building a data ecosystem

Inception

The celebration of International Customs Day dates back to 1953. The day was announced by Custom Cooperation Council. It was announced in Brussels, Belgium. The customs council was attended by more than 17 European countries. The council was renamed to World Customs Organization in 1994. Today more than 182 countries are part of the organization.

Objective

The main objective of celebrating the day is to boost guidance, leadership and support to customs administrations. Customs play major role in connecting countries when they are divided by geographical borders. Also, customs collect taxes and monitor the flow of hazardous materials in and out of the country. In India, this role is played by the Central Boards of Excise and Customs.

Role of WCO in the day

The WCO exhibits its activities involved in customs during this day. The WCO maintains the HS system. HS is International Harmonised System of goods. It provides unique numbers to traded products. India also follows this system. WCO plays a major role in determining the international custom practices. It mainly works to enhance the efficiency of its member countries.

Customs in India

The customs duty in India is governed by the Customs Tariff Act of 1975 and Customs Act 1962. India imposes basic customs duty, additional duty, special additional duty, education cess and other state level taxes. Customs duty is levied under customs act, 1962 on all the imported items. These items are included in Section 12 of the act. The additional custom duty goods are included in Section 3 of the act.

Month: Current Affairs - January, 2022

Category: Important Days & Events Current Affairs