Publication date: December 01, 2025
BREXIT AND BUYER AND SELLER OBLIGATIONS
With its exit from the European Union, the United Kingdom has ended the lack of advanced trade formalization between EU member states and the United Kingdom. It does not benefit from full access to the EU single market and customs union, nor from international agreements (including free trade agreements) that the EU has concluded with other third countries. This entails special requirements that must be met by businesses importing works of art into the customs territory of the European Union.
PRACTICAL ASPECTS RELATED TO THE TRANSPORT OF WORKS OF ART
Transport practices emphasize that transporting works of art without professional expertise can prove detrimental to the individual. However, few courier companies accept orders to transport works of art, fearing the associated risks. The best choice, according to practitioners, is to outsource such transport to a professional international freight forwarder, as the risks that ordinary couriers fear can result in very high fees to “insure” against such events. A second issue concerns the experience and equipment of vehicles involved in transporting “non-typical” goods, including works of art. International freight forwarding companies have appropriate conditions in place to adequately cover the risks associated with transporting historical monuments, artistic, collectible, or historical objects.
LEGAL STATUS OF THE WORK OF ART:
From a tax perspective, difficulties arise in determining the appropriate tax rate for specific works of art, for which a special taxation procedure has been established (Article 120 of the Value Added Tax Act). However, in the case of the import of works of art, we will be interested in the 7% rate specified in Article 120, Section 3 of the Value Added Tax Act. The customs duty rate, however, is generally 0% for the import of works of art.
The next legal act that uses the concept of a work of art (though under a different name – “cultural object”, which, in light of the statutory expressions contained therein, seems to encompass works of art) is Regulation (EU) 2019/880 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the introduction and import of cultural goods. It should be noted that Article 3(1) of this Regulation generally prohibits the import of certain categories of works of art from Annex A that have been removed from the territory of the country where they were created or discovered in violation of that country’s laws and regulations.
We also have Annexes B and C, which list categories of cultural property covered by a general import permit after meeting certain conditions. The classification of a given item into the appropriate category covered by a given annex depends, among other things, on the material used to create the work, its age, and its origin (meaning its method of creation or discovery). Then, we can further analyze the relevant requirements for its import specified in the regulation. The Act on the Protection and Care of Monuments should also be mentioned. Here, a work of art falls within the statutory definition of a monument.
In summary: works of art are generally exempt from customs duties without any specific case analysis, subject to a special value added tax rate of 8 percent. Their import into the EU is legal provided there are no violations of relevant regulations, and works of art are subject to categorization for their entry into the EU customs zone.
PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF IMPORTING FROM THE UK TO THE EU:
When importing goods into the customs zone on one own, one must complete the following steps: First, registering on the Electronic Services Platform for Tax and Customs (PUESC), as this platform will allow to complete all other formalities, such as obtaining an EORI number, which identifies businesses in contacts with EU customs authorities. For every such transport of goods, customs declarations must be submitted – preparing the appropriate documentation for the goods to be transported into the EU customs zone and presenting the goods for customs clearance. It is also helpful to know that customs declaration formalities can be completed in virtually any EU country. Furthermore, goods can be declared through a customs agency or in person. If the goods are subject to customs duties, one typically has 10 days from the customs authority’s acceptance of the declaration to pay the customs duty and import VAT.
Appropriate documentation for legal import of goods should also be provided. Customs declarations for trade with countries outside the European Union should include a commercial invoice, a goods specification or a loading list (if the invoice does not fulfill the specification function), documents required for the application of preferential tariff arrangements for import (certificates of origin), a permit, authorization, or other documents if required for the import or export of goods, a bill of lading (a basic document, discussed in detail in the discussion of the CMR Convention), and other documents required depending on the type of goods. Regarding the importer’s criminal liability, it is worth mentioning that this is the basis for determining the value of the shipment, which determines customs costs. Customs authorities, it’s worth noting, usually consider the invoice amount to calculate customs duties.
It is important to point out a few requirements that must be met to legally import goods from the UK into the EU customs area. First and foremost, it is important to note that the international transport of goods is governed by the CMR Convention, to which the United Kingdom is a party. Therefore, its provisions should be applied to the transport of goods from the UK to Poland (the CMR Convention applies to “any contract for the carriage of goods by road in vehicles for hire or reward, regardless of the place of residence and the nationality of the parties, where the place of taking over the shipment and the place designated for its delivery, as specified in the contract, are located in two different countries, of which at least one is a contracting country.”). The consignment note is important, as it is the document that underpins the legal transport of international cargo. The consignment note is proof of the conclusion of the CMR contract, but it is not essential to determine the validity of the contract. It should be prepared in triplicate: one goes to the sender, the second is always found with the shipment, and the third is given to the carrier. Each one has exactly the same value. However, practice shows that there are usually more waybills, due to the need to leave them at customs checkpoints.
It is worth noting that in the customs declaration one must identify oneself as a natural person so that the courier company can process the declaration under pain of criminal liability for any discrepancies between the declaration and the actual state of affairs.
Furthermore, when a given item enters the EU customs zone, a change of carrier may occur. This is permitted by internal agreements between courier companies, which is part of the courier company’s internal policy. Therefore, the conclusion is that we only have influence over the carrier selection at the beginning of the transaction.
IMPORT OF WORKS OF ART AND THE ACT ON THE PROTECTION OF MONUMENTS:
Finally, it is important to mention certain restrictions on free trade contained in the Polish Act on the Protection and Care of Monuments, which also stem from EU regulations. Primarily, there are two criminal provisions, namely Articles 108a and 109 of the Act, which penalize the illegal introduction of monuments into the territory of the Republic of Poland, in connection with which such actions are prohibited by EU Regulation 2019/880 on the introduction and import of cultural goods, and the illegal removal of works of art with specific characteristics (anyone who exports a monument abroad without permission or, after having exported it abroad, fails to import it into the territory of the Republic of Poland within the validity period of the permit or, in the case referred to in Article 56a, paragraph 8, within 60 days of the date on which the decision refusing to issue another permit for the temporary export of the monument abroad becomes final or from the date of receipt of information that the application for another permit for the temporary export of the monument abroad has been left unconsidered).
METHODS OF VALUING A WORK OF ART IN THE ASPECT OF CUSTOMS FEES:
The customs value of goods is the actual economic value of a given item, which serves as the basis for calculating taxes and duties on various types of goods. In general, the customs value of the goods primarily influences the amount of duty that an importer will have to pay, as the customs duty rate is, in a sense, a fixed factor, as EU law introduces a fixed tariff for each type of goods listed therein. Customs value also plays a role in determining the tax base for excise duty and value added tax.
There are various methods for determining the customs value of goods and they are as follows:
1/ Transaction Value Method
2/ Transaction value method for identical goods
3/ Transaction value of similar goods method
4/ Unit price/deductive method
5/ Computed value method
6/ The so-called “last chance” method
Re. 1)
This method takes precedence over all other methods of calculating the customs value of goods. The key element of this method is that the basis for determining the value is the price actually paid or payable for the goods when sold for export to the customs territory of the European Union, adjusted if necessary. Therefore, in the case of works of art, this method requires an appropriate valuation of the work of art, based on the value of the materials, artistic and historical value, and the artist’s reputation, as these factors will determine the work’s price.
Ad. 2)
We only use this method when the first method, i.e., the transaction value method, cannot be used. This method is rarely applicable to art trade, as each work is typically unique and original, unless the artist specifically creates copies for sale.
Ad. 3)
If the identical goods method is not applicable, then we proceed to the similar goods method to calculate the customs value of the goods. Unlike identical goods, similar goods do not necessarily have to be identical, as the name suggests. Rather, it’s about the physical characteristics of a given category of goods, their appearance, function, and intended use. If the characteristics are the same for goods recently imported into the EU customs zone, the customs value of the goods we are calculating will also be the same. It seems that this method is rarely applicable to works of art, especially for collectors and enthusiasts of the artists in question.
Ad. 4)
Here, when determining the customs value of goods, the unit price of the goods at which the items were sold in the largest collective quantities within the customs territory of the European Union to individuals unrelated to the seller calculating the customs value becomes important. In this case, the application of this method to the art trade seems questionable, given that the import of a work of art is rather rare, and in fact, a given work of art usually is. This also reflects certain differences in the methods used to create the works, the reputation of the artists, and so on. It will be rare to observe a sale of a given work of art in “aggregate quantities.” Here, too, we apply this method only when none of the previous methods can be applied.
Ad. 5)
This method generally takes into account the value of the costs or the value of materials and production or other processes used in the production of the imported goods, an amount for profit and general expenses equal to the amount normally included in the selling price of goods of the same class or kind as the goods being valued, produced by producers in the exporting country for export to the Union, as well as the costs of transport and insurance of the imported goods, and loading and handling charges associated with transporting the imported goods to the point of entry into the customs territory of the Union. It appears that this method will apply to trade in works of art, but only to the production of the work of art.
Ad. 6)
This case of calculating the customs value of goods is quite enigmatic, as it is a method of last resort. It is only used when all previous methods have failed and there is no other recourse. Essentially, it requires only that the customs valuation of the goods comply with EU regulations, but the use of any other method is, of course, permitted. The problem here lies more in the burden of proof resting with the importer to prove the value to the customs authority. The method they adopt must be credible in the customs authority’s assessment. It seems that in the case of works of art, this method will be most applicable. Expressions of artistic creation are so diverse that it is sometimes difficult to find any similarities in this regard. It is a good idea to seek the assistance of an art valuation expert or appraiser when using this method.
The customs valuation of goods is a very important element that will determine the total cost of importing a given work of art, which must be included in the declaration of the value of the goods together with other documents that must be provided to the carrier, in accordance with the provisions referred to in the previous points above.