Border Inspections Targeting Major Claims and Contraband Tobacco Trafficking
German Customs Seize Over 66,000 Untaxed Cigarettes in Two Separate Incidents
In a series of events on the A2 federal motorway on July 21, German customs officials discovered two cases of violations, resulting in the seizure of over 66,000 untaxed cigarettes and an outstanding claim against a foreign transport company.
The first incident occurred on the motorway towards Dortmund. A car with a foreign license plate was checked, and the driver's suspicious behaviour, including speeding up and overtaking several vehicles, then slowing down, piqued the officers' interest. In the trunk of the vehicle, officers found over 66,000 cigarettes with Polish tax stamps in black sports bags. The seizure of the untaxed cigarettes amounts to a tax loss of over 12,500 euros.
The second incident took place in Hannover on the same day as the customs check. During this incident, the transport company was found to have an outstanding claim of over 60,000 euros in a central enforcement system. The officers initiated an on-site tax evasion procedure due to the driver exceeding their personal allowance.
Tax evasion related to tobacco products, including when quantities exceed personal allowance, is treated as a criminal offense under Section 370 of the German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung, AO). The penalties for tax evasion can be severe, with fines or imprisonment of up to five years. In particularly serious cases, such as evaded taxes exceeding €50,000, the penalty can range from six months to ten years' imprisonment.
While specific penalties for tobacco quantity violations are not detailed in the sources, the standard approach is that evaded tobacco taxes fall under general tax evasion law and penalties outlined above. Authorities also impose fines and may confiscate illicit tobacco products. The severity increases with the amount of evaded tax, i.e., the greater the quantity exceeding allowance, the higher the potential fines and prison terms.
In the two incidents on July 21, the tax loss from the cigarettes amounts to over 12,500 euros each, totalling over 74,500 euros. The transport company chose to pay the outstanding amount, allowing the truck to continue its journey.
This means that persons found importing or selling tobacco products beyond permitted amounts without paying taxes can face criminal prosecution as tax evaders with potentially significant penalties. Exceeding personal allowances for tobacco products often triggers suspicion of tax evasion or smuggling since the tax allowances are meant to exempt small amounts for personal use only. If quantities are above these allowances, authorities may assume commercial intent or illicit trade, thus increasing the risk of prosecution.
[1] German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung, AO) [2] Section 370 AO (German Fiscal Code) [3] Customs Investigations: Tobacco Smuggling
- The seizure of over 66,000 untaxed cigarettes in two separate incidents by German customs on July 21 indicates an instance of general-news related to tax evasion, falling under Section 370 of the German Fiscal Code (AO).
- The penalties for tobacco quantity violations, such as the ones related to the incidents on July 21, can be severe, potentially resulting in fines or imprisonment, as stipulated in the German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung, AO), especially if the evaded tax amounts exceed personal allowances or indicate commercial intent or illicit trade.
