The dutiability of royalties and license fees is one of the most controversial topics that has arisen since the Customs Valuation Agreement adopted transaction value as the primary basis for the calculation of customs duties and import taxes. The dutiability of a royalty payment depends not only on meeting the conditions set forth in Article 8(c) of the Customs Valuation Agreement, but also on the analysis of the influence and control of the parties or the contractual terms agreed by them. The analysis of the influence and control of the parties or their explicit contractual terms (the control/influence-and contractual approach) has also taken into consideration in a recent advisory opinion issued by the WCO Technical Committee on Customs Valuation. The purpose of this article is to analyze the latest Advisory Opinion 4.15 issued by this Committee in 2013, explain its application on the control/influence-and contractual approaches, and explore how these two approaches have been applied by different countries.
Global Trade and Customs Journal