Obtaining licenses and quotas in Ukraine, licensing and quota allocation for import and export of goods in Ukraine

Licensing - foreign trade activity regulation allowing export or import of the goods in certain quantities within certain time.

Licensing and quota allocation in foreign trade activities in Ukraine are regulated by the following legislative acts:
• The law of Ukraine dated 16.04.91 N 959-XII "On foreign trade activities", as amended (hereinafter - Law N 959);
• The decision of the Cabinet of Ukraine "On goods, export and which import is subject quota allocation and licensing";
• Position about licensing of import of the goods, the confirmed by order of Ministry of Economy of Ukraine.

According to item 16 of Law N of 959 licensing and quota allocation export and import it is entered in Ukraine independently under the following circumstances:
• In case of sharp deterioration of settlement balance of Ukraine if its negative balance exceeds for corresponding date of 25 percent from a total sum of currency requirements of Ukraine;
• In case of achievement level of external debts, established by parliament of Ukraine ;
• In case of considerable infringement of balance on the certain goods in home market of Ukraine, especially on agricultural production, products of fishery, production of the food-processing industry and the industrial consumer goods of the first necessity;
• If necessary to provide certain proportions between import and domestic raw materials to manufacture;
• If necessary acceptance of measures in reply to discrimination actions of other states;
• At infringement by the subject of foreign trade activities of rules of law of this activity established by Law N 959 (in this case the licensing mode is entered as the sanction);
• According to the international commodity agreements which concludes or which Ukraine (is entered the mode quota allocation) joins.


TYPES OF EXPORT (IMPORT) LICENSES.

According to the legislation on foreign trade activities in Ukraine following types of export (import) licenses can be issued:

• Antidumping - the right to import to Ukraine during a target date of the certain goods (goods) which is object of antidumping investigation and-or antidumping actions is properly issued;
• Countervailing - the right to import to Ukraine during a target date of the certain goods (goods) which is object antisubsidy investigations and-or compensatory actions is properly issued;
• Special - the right to import to Ukraine during a target date of the certain goods (goods) which is object of special investigation and-or special actions is properly issued;
• Open (individual) - the permission to export (import) of the goods during the certain period of time (but not less than one month) with definition of its total amount;
• General - the open permission to export (import) operations on the certain goods (goods) and-or with the certain country (group of the countries) during the period of action of a mode of licensing on these goods (goods);
• Export (import) - the right to export (import) during a target date of the certain goods or currency means for the purpose of investments and crediting is properly issued;
• Single (individual) - the single permission which has nominal character and stands out for realisation of each separate operation to concrete subjects of foreign trade activities for the period not smaller than that is necessary for realisation of export (import) operation.

The individual mode of licensing is applied to concrete subjects of foreign trade activities and foreign subjects of economic activities in infringement cases by such subjects of positions of the Law "About foreign trade activities" which establish certain interdictions, restrictions or modes of realisation of the external economic operations under the state permission.


ISSUANCE OF LICENSES.

Issuance of licenses to subjects of enterprise activity which are registered in territory of Ukraine, irrespective of patterns of ownership, is carried out by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine or, within the powers given to it, the Autonomous republic Crimea Ministry of Economy, corresponding division of regional, Kiev and Sevastopol city state administrations.

Issuance of licenses established by article 16 of the Law of Ukraine "About foreign trade activities" and Position N 39. For Issuance of licenses the businesses should provide required set of documents.

The license should contain such requisites: number, the official name of the subject of foreign trade activities and number of the certificate of the participant of foreign trade activities, the name and goods (goods) code, the manufacturer, the goods consumer, the code number and the country (countries) name to which (which) the goods are exported or from which (which) it is imported, period of validity, quantity or goods cost (in a case quota allocation export and import and delivery of the open individual license), customs office, a full name and the address of the seller and the buyer, an agreement, payment currency, goods unit of measure, the price of the goods, the coordination, a name of the bearer, body which has granted the license, special conditions of the license. If at the moment of statement receipt the established quota it is settled, acceptance and registration of statements are not carried out. About the fact of exhaustion of a quota should within seven working days from the moment of its exhaustion be officially informed the subject of foreign trade activities who has shown the corresponding statement.

Day of a presentation of the documents on the license considered day of its registration in the Ministry of Economy that proves to be true a corresponding log entry of registration. In case of wrong registration of the documents on the license or failure to present the complete set of documents, documents are not accepted. The license is issued for period of validity according to conditions of the contract and is valid for customs registration of the goods during this period, but not later than December, 31st.

The license is issued in one copy in the presence of the document which confirms payment of the state fee for licensing in the amount established by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. Licenses are not subject to transfer to other persons.

On a number of the import goods, such as pharmaceutical products and materials, cosmetics and means of personal hygiene, veterinary preparations, chemical protection of plants, the basis for the import license is the corresponding allowing document - the body which assures conformity of technical, pharmacological, sanitary characteristics of the goods to the requirements established by the legislation of Ukraine.

The copy of the license which was received by the subject of foreign trade activities is added to the cargo customs declaration and is the basis for the admission through customs of cargoes which fall under a mode of licensing and quota allocation.

The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine has the right to reject the applicant in licensing only under following circumstances:
• Granting of an incomplete package of the documents necessary for issuance of the licence;
• Discrepancies of the presented documents to the current legislation of Ukraine;
• Use of the established quota on corresponding production;
• Application of the special sanction in the form of a suspension of foreign trade activities;
• If actions of the applicant lead to infringement of the international obligations taken by Ukraine;
• Occurrence of the circumstances to initiate application by competent bodies of the country of the importer of antidumping measures and other protective measures concerning export of production by an origin from Ukraine.

The decision on delivery or refusal in licensing is accepted not later than 15 working days from the date of registration of the statement by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine or the Autonomous republic Crimea Ministry of Economy, corresponding division of regional, Kiev and Sevastopol city state administrations.

The decision of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine or the Ministry of Economy of the Autonomous republic Crimea, corresponding division of regional, Kiev and Sevastopol city state administrations on refusal in licensing can be appealed against the subject of enterprise activity in a judicial order.


QUOTA ALLOCATION.

Quota allocation in foreign trade activities in Ukraine is regulated by following acts:
• The law of Ukraine dd 16.04.91 N 959-XII "On foreign trade activities", as amended (hereinafter - Law N 959);
• The decision of the Cabinet of Ukraine "On goods, export and which import is subject quota allocation and licensing".

Quota allocation is an establishment of a mode of delivery of individual licenses for export (import) of the goods (goods) within the established quota.

Quota - a quantitative not tariff way of restriction of export or goods import by certain quantity or the sum on a certain time.


TYPES OF EXPORT (IMPORT) QUOTAS.

In Ukraine following types of the quotas can be established:
• Global - it is established on the goods (goods) without definition of the concrete countries (group of the countries) where the goods are exported or from which it (they) are imported;
• Group - it is established on the goods (goods) with instructions of group of the countries where the goods (goods) are exported or from which it (they) is imported;
• Individual - it is established on the goods (goods) with definition of the concrete country where the goods (goods) can be exported or from which it (they) can be imported;
• Antidumping - boundary volume of import to Ukraine certain goods (goods) which is object of antidumping investigation and-or antidumping actions which is authorised for importing to Ukraine during a target date and which is defined in natural and-or cost units of measure;
• Countervailing - boundary volume of import to Ukraine certain goods (goods) which is object antisubsidy investigations and-or compensatory actions which are authorised for importing to Ukraine during a target date and which is defined in natural and-or cost units of measure;
• Special - boundary volume of import to Ukraine certain goods which is object of special investigation and-or special actions which is authorised for importing to Ukraine during a target date and which is defined in natural and-or cost units of measure.

According to item 16 of Law N 959 to each type of goods only one type of the license and a quota can be established.

The decision on an establishment of a mode of licensing and quota allocation export (import) annually accepted by the Cabinet of Ukraine with definition of the list of the goods which subject to licensing and quota allocation. The decision confirmed for a year:

• Total amounts of quotas of the goods, which export are subject to licensing;
• The goods, which import is subject to licensing;
• The inventory, which export to the USA, to member countries of the European Union and Indonesia subject to licensing (with quota allocation to the USA and Indonesia);
• The list of ozone depleting substances, export and import of which is subject to licensing;
• The list of substances, which may contain ozone depleting substances, export and import of which is subject to licensing;
• The list of member countries of the Organization of economic cooperation and development.