Foreign trade legal support
and customs disputes
Legal support for foreign trade starts with the contract: most problems at customs and at the bank stem from vague terms on price, delivery basis and deadlines. We review the foreign trade contract before signing and handle disputes with customs once a problem has arisen.
For contracts with Chinese suppliers we focus on the bilingual text and prevailing language, signatory authority and company seal, and on where and under which law a dispute will be heard.
Specification
Specification · Foreign trade legal support. Standard terms · scope and timing are set after reviewing the documents
Service
- Contracts
- supply, agency, forwarding
- Disputes
- value, classification, refunds, customs offence cases
- Options
- contract template for your supplies
Terms
- Timing
- contract review 2–5 days
- Documents
- written opinion with redlines included
- Currency
- RUB
Process
- Before the deal
- contract review
- Dispute
- objections, appeal, court
- Outcome
- refund, DT correction
Price
- Base
- fixed fee per contract review
- Extras
- dispute and court work — quoted per case
Service flow
- 01
Assessment
We study the contract or the customs decision, gather documents and correspondence and assess risks or the prospects of the dispute.
1–2 days - 02
Opinion and position
For a contract we issue an opinion with redlines: delivery term, price, currency deadlines, claims, arbitration. For a dispute — the position and the list of evidence.
2–5 days - 03
Pre-trial stage
We prepare objections to the audit report, an appeal to the higher customs authority or a refund application for overpaid duties.
within the appeal deadline - 04
Court
If the administrative appeal fails, we file a claim with the commercial court and represent the client at all instances.
months - 05
Enforcement
After a ruling in the client's favour we secure the refund and DT correction and apply the lessons to future shipments.
after the ruling
Problems
The contract states one delivery term, the invoice another, and the price is not broken down — customs adjusts the value.
We align the contract, specifications and invoices on one delivery term and set out the price components before the first shipment.
After release customs carried out an audit and demanded additional duty and VAT with penalties for several years of shipments.
We prepare objections to the report, gather price and code evidence and appeal to the higher customs authority and the court.
A quality or short-shipment dispute with the supplier, but the contract has no acceptance procedure and no dispute resolution clause.
We build into the contract the acceptance procedure, claim deadlines, governing law and arbitration with an enforceable award.
Documents
What we need for a contract review or dispute. The delivery term in the contract must match the invoice and transport documents — otherwise customs questions the value.
Incoterms
- FCA
- common for rail and road — name the exact place of delivery
- CIP
- under Incoterms 2020 — all-risks insurance (ICC A) unless agreed otherwise
- DAP
- the seller delivers to destination; clearance and duties are on the buyer
Documents
- Contract
- draft or signed contract with all annexes
- Correspondence
- correspondence on price, discounts and delivery terms
- Customs decisions
- value adjustment or classification decision, demand, audit report
- DTs and payments
- declarations, value declarations, proof of duty payment
- Price evidence
- export declaration, price lists, bank documents
FAQ
The contract is the key document for customs and the bank: they check price, delivery term and payment deadlines against it. A pre-signing review removes mismatches with invoices, unworkable currency deadlines and gaps in claims and arbitration.
Yes. The adjustment decision can be appealed to the higher customs authority or the commercial court by proving that the transaction value is documented: contract, invoice, payments, export declaration, price lists. Courts often side with the declarant when the set is complete and consistent.
Yes. If duties and VAT were overpaid — due to a wrong value, code or an unapplied preference — a refund application is filed, as a rule within three years of payment. If refused, we challenge it in court.
Russia and China are both parties to the 1980 Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods, which applies to supply contracts by default. Disputes are usually referred to international commercial arbitration — e.g. ICAC at the Russian Chamber of Commerce or CIETAC; both countries are New York Convention members, so awards are enforceable.
Yes. We handle the dispute at every stage — from objections to the audit report and an appeal to the higher customs authority to the commercial court, including duty demands and administrative offence cases.
Declaring inaccurate data that affects duties or bans and restrictions triggers liability under Chapter 16 of the Code of Administrative Offences — usually a fine linked to the unpaid amount plus back duties with penalties. Large amounts may lead to criminal liability, so such cases are best handled from the first customs request.