The ROCB Europe organizes the Virtual Intersessional Meeting of the WCO Europe Region National Contact Points for Capacity Building under the theme of “Situation Update and the Road Ahead” that will be held on 2 June 2020.

From 2019 On November 25, the Lithuanian Customs has a new Common User Management Portal (BAP), which replaces the Customs Electronic Services Portal (EPP) and seeks to improve the availability and quality of electronic services provided by the Customs of the Republic of Lithuania.

As the Covid-19 is shaping the current conditions in the world, trade and growth prospects for near future take a downturn. This is evident from the forecasts made by international organizations.The World Trade Organization estimates that the world merchandise trade will decrease in between 13% to 32% for 2020 depending on how bad or good the scenario will be.

The World Customs Organization, the World Trade Organization, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the Commonwealth Small States Office, the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, the International Air Transport Association and the International Trade Centre came together to bulid up the COVID19 Trade Facilitation Repository.

According to the National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary (NTCA), on 14 May 2020, the National Institute of Pharmacy and Food Health lifted the export restriction previously introduced for the protection against coronavirus, which affected propofol-containing medicines from 3 April 2020 and certain medicines used as antibiotics and sedatives from 9 April 2020.

Medical materials and medicine preparations were seized by Azerbaijan Customs in a truck entering Azerbaijan. It is reported that the mentioned goods had not been declared to the customs beforehand.

With the spread of the new coronavirus disease worldwide, international trade and supply lines unavoidably affected by means of raising tariff rates. Whether or not this increase would solely include medical and protective equipment used in the fight against Covid-19, there is no doubt that remaining sectors are not excluded from the increases.

On 5 May 2020, the Customs Service of the Republic of Moldova and the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure of the Republic of Moldova launched, with the support of the USAID Structural Reforms Program in Moldova, the Commercial Information Portal for national and international business community.

The WTO Secretariat has published a new information note looking at how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected e-commerce, including the implications for cross-border trade. It notes the increased use of e-commerce as consumers adapt to lockdowns and social distancing measures and draws attention to several challenges, such as the need to bridge the digital divide within and across countries.

UNCTAD proposes 10 policy measures to cover maritime transport, customs operations, transit, transparency and legal issues, as well as technology to enhance paperless trade processes.

Announcing an important notice on the proposed working arrangements for the meetings impacted by Covid-19, the World Customs Organization (WCO) stated that focus has been placed on exploring alternative arrangements that would allow the WCO to continue advancing its work as international travel will very likely remain restricted for the following months.

Croatia Customs warns that the Covid-19 pandemic has led to a greater influx of banned and non-compliant goods, especially face masks, into the European Union. In many cases, these are also infringements of intellectual property rights in relation to face masks.