From July 1st to December 25th, the Customs Administration (CA) of Montenegro collected a total of €678.5 million, which represents an increase of €74.4 million, or 12.3% more than in the same period last year, according to the acting director Maja Vučinić at a press conference yesterday.
In total, from the beginning of the year until December 25th, €1.27 billion has been collected, which is €113.9 million more than last year.
Seized cigarettes
Vučinić, responding to questions from Pobjeda, mentioned that in collaboration with the Police Directorate and the UK Revenue and Customs, they completed an inventory of seized cigarettes in the Port of Bar, in containers, trucks and the Zetatrans customs warehouse. A tender will be announced to select the company that will handle the destruction of the cigarettes. She said the European Union provided a grant of up to €1.5 million for this purpose, although the actual cost has not yet been assessed.
“This time, the cigarettes will not be burned, they will be destroyed in a different way,” said Vučinić, adding that she could not disclose further details, as the decision is being made by the Coordinating Body set up by the Government.
Excise tax on “quiet wines”
When asked about the procedure for collecting excise tax on “quiet wines,” Vučinić explained that winemakers are required to register as excise goods producers and submit an excise declaration by the 15th of each month for the previous month’s sales.
“Wine is not marked with excise stamps, but winemakers must calculate the excise tax for all sales made in the previous month and pay it by the 15th of the month,” she said.
Results
Vučinić highlighted that in October, the national application of the new computerized transit system (NCTS) began, which includes the electronic submission of transit declarations and the electronic exchange of data. A system for targeting shipments in maritime traffic has been in use since August, enabling the electronic announcement of manifests, which will, according to Vučinić, contribute to more efficient control of goods arriving at the Port of Bar through the use of a risk analysis system.
From mid-July to the end of December, 32,799 detailed controls of vehicles and goods were carried out, according to Aleksandar Savković, head of the Customs Control Department. During these controls, 234 irregularities were found, and fines amounting to €222,700 were imposed. Smuggled goods worth €427,400 were seized, while over €1 million, £76,700, and $7,000 were temporarily confiscated.
Additionally, 15 cryptocurrency mining devices were seized at the Ranče Border Crossing, 8,500 cigarettes were confiscated at the Podgorica airport, and approximately 20 kilograms of marijuana were prevented from being smuggled at the Dračenovac border crossing, Savković reported.
Excise revenue growth
Jelena Đukić, head of the Excise Declarations Department, stated that the most significant revenue growth came from excise duties, which amounted to €371.8 million, an increase of 15% compared to last year. VAT on imports totaled €873.2 million, a 7% increase, while customs duties collected €59.5 million.
