Advance ruling on excise taxation

Customs can give an advance ruling on the excise duty on a goods item upon application (Act on Excise Duty, section 104), if the taxation is carried out according to customs regulations and if the excise duty is levied upon customs clearance. According to section 3 of the Act on Excise Duty, excise duty is levied upon customs clearance if the importer does not place the goods under a duty suspension arrangement in connection with the customs clearance, and if the importer is not granted a deferment of payment of duties in accordance with article 110 of the Union Customs Code.

Applications for advance rulings are processed urgently.

Appeals against advance rulings may be filed with Helsinki Administrative Court.

If Customs cannot give an advance ruling, you can appeal against the decision on taxation or tax refund by submitting a claim for correction to the authority that made the taxation or tax refund decision.

Cancelled advance ruling

If the advance ruling is cancelled, you may demand in writing that the advance ruling is observed for two months starting from the beginning of the month after you were informed of the cancellation.

Instructions for application

You can apply for an advance ruling with a free-form application. Be sure to state clearly, in which matter you would like an advance ruling. You must enclose a sufficiently detailed description of the product and its features. If needed, please also enclose a sample for the Customs Laboratory. Send the application to the registry office of Finnish Customs:  Contact information

Fees charged for advance rulings

Fees charged for Customs’ services