With sponsorship of FRONTEX (EU) led Eastern Partnership IBM Capacity Building Project, a WCO National Workshop on the classification of goods in the Harmonized System (HS) and the role of the Customs Laboratory was held in Kiev, Ukraine.  The Workshop was facilitated by two Senior Technical Officers from the WCO´s Tariff and Trade Affaires Directorate and Mr. Alessandro Proposito from the Central Directorate for Chemical Laboratories, Rome, Italy.  The Workshop was attended by 23 officers, from different sections of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, involved in HS classification and Customs Laboratory matters.

At the opening of the Workshop, Mr. Dariusz Mrowiec, Customs Advisor on the Capacity Building Project led by FRONTEX highlighted the importance of a Customs Laboratory for the correct classification of certain commodities in the Harmonized System (HS) and thanked the WCO and the Italian Customs Administrationfor supporting the modernization of the Ukrainian Customs Administration.

Mr. Alessandro Proposito, emphasized the importance of a Customs Laboratory for the correct and uniform classification of commodities in the HS and in the national Customs tariff and encouraged the cooperation and networking between Customs Laboratories.

During the Workshop a wide range of topics related to the HS and Customs Laboratories were addressed and the participants were also thoroughly informed about the amendments to the HS 2017 and about several databases and documentation specifically designed for the day to day routine in a Classification Unit.  Participants were also informed about the efforts of the WCO Secretariat in promoting cooperation and networking between Customs Laboratories and, in particular, about the WCO Regional Customs Laboratories initiative.  The role of the Customs Laboratories in HS classification was discussed in detail.  Moreover, some analytical determinations of special interest to Ukrainian Customs (e.g., beverages, chemicals, ferroalloys, vehicles, high-tech products) were discussed.