Smuggling and Unlawful Possession of Goods Subject to Excise Duties in Lithuania: Analysis of Criminal Offences

Key words: smuggling, unlawful possession of goods subject to excise duties, criminal offences, socio-demographic portrait of offenders, characteristics of criminal offences, characteristics of criminal penalties

In Lithuanian legal liability for smuggling and unlawful possession of goods subject to excise duties is regulated by the Code of Administrative Offences and Criminal Code. Whether it will be criminal or administrative depends on the seriousness of the act. Criminal liability starts when the value of excise duties and smuggling items exceeds the amount of 250 MSLs (minimum standard of living). If the value is less than 250 MSLs responsibility will be administrative. A person who, transporting across the state border of the Republic of Lithuania the item which must be decelerated at the customs and fails to go through the customs control or otherwise avoids this control or transports across the state border of the Republic of Lithuania shall be punished by a fine or by imprisonment for term of up to eight years (Art. 199 CC). A person who, in violation of the established procedure, acquires, stores, transports, forwards, uses or handles the goods subject to excise duties shall be punished by a fine or imprisonment for a term of up to seven years (Art. 199(2) CC).

In accordance with judgments adopted in courts of first instance of the Republic of Lithuania during 2009-2013 this work presents sociological analysis of liability for crimes relating smuggling and unlawful possession of goods subject to excise duties.  Social demographic characteristics of convicts (age, education, sex, marital status, employment, previous convictions etc.), the charges submitted, articles under which penalties were imposed, and characteristics of imposed penalties were analyzed here. Relation between the social demographic characteristics of convicts with Articles of the Criminal Code under which penalties were imposed is presented. This work herewith discloses relation between the characteristics of convicts and penalties imposed upon them.

Literature:

  1.  Communication From The Commission To The Council And The European Parliament. Stepping up the fight against cigarette smuggling and other forms of illicit trade in tobacco products — A comprehensive EU Strategy. Brussels, 2013. Access through the internet: <http://ec.europa.eu/anti_fraud/documents/2013-cigarette-communication/communication_en.pdf>
  2. High taxes and low income seen as main engines of smuggling in Baltic countries, 2012. Access through the internet: < http://www.15min.lt/en/article/business/high-taxes-and-low-income-seen-as-main-engines-of-smuggling-in-baltic-countries-527-210766>
  3. KPMG LLP. A Study of the Illicit Cigarette Market in the European Union. 2013 Results, p. 1-362. Access through the internet: <http://www.pmi.com/eng/media_center/media_kit/Documents/SUN%20Report%202013.pdf>
  4. Lietuvos laisvosios rinkos institutas. Gyventojų požiūrio į kontrabandą ir nelegalių prekių vartojimą tyrimas 2013, p. 1-9. Access through the internet: <http://files.lrinka.lt/Tyrimas_kontrabanda/Kontrabanda_tyrimas_2013_02_26.pdf>  
  5. Lietuvos Respublikos Administracinių teisės pažeidimų kodeksas (Žin. 1985, Nr. 1-1)
  6. Lietuvos Respublikos Baudžiamasis kodeksas (Žin. 2000, Nr. 89-2741)
  7. Lietuvos Respublikos Seimo nutarimas „Dėl Lietuvos Respublikos Vyriausybės programos“ (2012 m. gruodžio 13 d. Nr. XII-51)
  8. Lithuanian Free Market Institute. Lithuanian Shadow Economy. 2012, No.1, p. 1-35.
  9. People in the Baltic Countries See the Same Causes of Smuggling – High Taxes and Low Income, 2012. Access through the internet: < http://4liberty.eu/people-in-the-baltic-countries-see-the-same-causes-of-smuggling-high-taxes-and-low-income/>
  10.  Seputyte M. Cigarette-Smuggling Gangs Sap Lithuania Budget, Spark Crackdown, 2010. Access through the internet: < http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2010-12-07/cigarette-smuggling-gangs-targeted-by-lithuania-in-struggle-to-cut-deficit >
  11.  Smuggling Via Lithuanian EU External Border. Current Situation, Trends, Counteractions. Brussels, 2013. Access through the internet: <http://www.europarl.europa.eu/document/activities/cont/201304/20130429ATT65438/20130429ATT65438EN.pdf>
  12.  Tobacco smuggling in the Baltic States increases, 2011. Access through the internet: <http://flarenetwork.org/report/top_news_100615/article/tobacco_smuggling_in_the_baltic_states_increases.htm>
  13. Transcrime. European Outlook on the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. Trento: Transcrime – Università degli Studi di Trento. 2015, p. 1-303.

Judita Venckevičienė

Law Institute of Lithuania