Customs protects society
Customs protects society by securing the transport chains, by ensuring product-safety and by combating cross-border criminality. Customs prevents the threats to citizens’ health, safety and the environment as well as combats the smuggling of narcotics and other dangerous substances and the shadow economy. Customs implements diverse control tasks for different ministries and administrative sectors.
Customs is a competent authority who controls the cross-border traffic and cooperates closely with other authorities both nationally and internationally. Finnish Customs also has a strong role in the World Customs Organization and in the European Union. Through the development of strong teamwork competence, risk analysis and analysis activities, as well as through the development of operational models of enforcement, Customs is able to swiftly and in a coordinated way react to changes in the operating environment.
Customs control is aimed at the flow of traffic
Customs controls the traffic of goods, vehicles and passengers at EU’s internal and external borders. The customs controls are targeted through target selection and risk analysis. Customs’ task is to e.g. prohibit the spreading of narcotics, endangered animal and plant species and derived products as well as the spreading of animal and plant diseases, the export of cultural artefacts and money laundering or the import or export of cash connected to other criminal activity. Customs also has an important role in preventing the spreading of weapons, weapons of mass destruction and materials connected to them.
The crime prevention focuses on preventing cross-border crime
Customs protects society by combating cross-border crime through efficient enforcement methods as well as modern technological tools and data systems. Customs Investigation Service especially prevents serious crime, which takes advantage of international trade structures, logistics and payment transactions. Customs’ means of combating customs crime are e.g. intelligence activities, international customs connections and national cooperation between authorities.
Customs investigates all customs offences, such as crime connected with the import and export of narcotics and economic offences. Customs concentrates especially on combating and preventing international professional and organised crime.
Combating the shadow economy
Customs implements a nationwide strategy to combat the shadow economy and economic crime. The aim of the strategy is, among other things, to enhance the tracing of proceeds of crime and by removing the gain as well as by minimising the benefits criminal activity brings and increasing the risk of being caught. The strategy is more than just a way of minimising the tax losses and proceeds of crime; with it customs is a part of tackling regulation breaches in international trade and enforcing both UN and EU sanctions. Furthermore, Customs supervises the payment of taxes and conducts tax deficit assessment on behalf of the Tax Administration.
Customs’ Corporate Audit secures correct customs transactions through tax reassessment as well as the fulfilment of equal competitive conditions for the customers.
Combating health threats
Customs protects the consumer by controlling the importation of food and consumer goods. As a result of the globalisation of production and the growing range of products, more and more products that are questionable and even dangerous to health and safety, as well as counterfeit products, are entering the market. Customs’ food and consumer goods control focuses on product groups and products, which through risk assessment are suspected of being potentially problematic.
