Expert support of customs affairs and foreign economic activity (customs formalities for taking samples of goods under Ukraine and EU customs legislation)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the issues of legal regulation of expert support for customs affairs and foreign economic activity under the customs legislation of the European Union and Ukraine in the context of European integration. The purpose of the study is to analyze the state of legal support for expert assistance in customs affairs during the adaptation of customs legislation to european standards, to outline the main directions of expert support in customs affairs, to define the object and the direct object of customs and forensic examinations (expert studies), and to provide a comparative analysis of the composition of subjects performing customs formalities for sampling of goods under the customs legislation of the EU and Ukraine, as well as the conditions and grounds for their conduct. The methodological basis of the research consists of general scientific and special research methods, including methods of analysis and synthesis, systematic-structural, formal-legal, comparative-legal, and other scientific research methods. The use of the aforementioned research methods allowed for the investigation of the state of legal regulation of expert support for customs affairs and foreign economic activity, specifically regarding the performance of customs formalities for sampling goods under customs control. Scientific novelty lies in a comprehensive approach to researching the norms of national customs legislation and the customs legislation of the European Union governing legal relations related to the expert support of customs affairs, in particular, the sampling of goods under customs control for further customs and forensic examinations, and in analyzing the norms of prospective customs legislation of Ukraine developed for adaptation to EU standards. The novelty also includes: defining the fundamental criteria for classifying customs examinations; distinguishing between customs examinations (studies) carried out to support various areas of activity of customs authorities; defining the objects of customs and forensic examination (expert studies) of goods under customs con- trol, as well as the object of specific customs examinations (studies). The research defines the range of subjects authorized to carry out the sampling of goods under the customs legislation of the EU and Ukraine, as well as the conditions and grounds for conducting the aforementioned customs formalities, including those in accordance with the norms ofprospective Euro-integration customs legislation. The conclusions emphasize that in the context of Ukraine’s European integration, the adaptation of national customs legislation to european standards - particularly in the field of expert support for customs affairs and foreign economic activity - is of crucial importance for further law enforcement. It influences both the efficiency of customs authorities in fulfilling their core tasks and the protection of the rights of foreign economic activity entities entering into customs legal relations. Proposals for improving the legal regulation of organizational and legal principles of expert support for customs affairs within the framework of prospective European integration legislation have been formulated. Directions for further scientific research in the field of legal regulation of expert support in customs affairs and foreign economic activity have been outlined.