A man arrives at Schiphol Airport from India and is checked by Customs. During the check, Customs discovers that he is carrying 1,200 cigarettes. He is granted an exemption for 200 cigarettes, but for the remaining 1,000 cigarettes, Customs issues him with a payment notice (UTB) for €529.23, comprising customs duty, excise duty and VAT. Due to a computer fault, this notice was issued manually. The man later received a digital version containing all the details. He paid the amount immediately but lodged an objection.
During the appeal, the man explains that the cigarettes were not all for him and that he did not know he was required to declare them. He claims that he was already checked in the baggage hall, before he even had the chance to go through the red channel. However, Customs is upholding the assessment, as the man had not declared the cigarettes in the green channel (nothing to declare).
The man then lodged an appeal. He argued that the handwritten notice had not been drawn up correctly, that he had not voluntarily chosen the green channel, and that he was entitled to an exemption for the cigarettes belonging to a friend. The court ruled that it made no difference whether he had voluntarily passed through the green channel or had been checked in the baggage hall. The man should still have made a declaration. The court also rejected the request for an exemption for his friend’s cigarettes, as they had not passed through Customs together.