How a Customs Authority Decides on an Application
Article 16 of the Customs Code governs the way a customs authority adopts a decision on the application of Georgian customs legislation, submitted by a person or a group of persons. The applicant must provide the authority with any information required for the adoption of the decision. The authority, for its part, must verify whether the conditions for accepting the application into proceedings are met, without delay but no later than 30 days from receipt of the application, and, where the conditions are satisfied, notify the applicant within the same period that the application has been accepted into proceedings.
The decision itself must be adopted without delay, but no later than 120 days from the acceptance of the application into proceedings. If the authority cannot meet that deadline, it must inform the applicant before the period expires, indicate the relevant reason and set a new deadline for the decision, which may not exceed 30 days unless Georgian customs legislation provides otherwise. At the applicant's request, the deadline may also be extended for the purpose of correcting the information the applicant has submitted, and in that case the applicant must communicate the details of the correction and the time needed for it.
Entry Into Force and the Applicant's Procedural Guarantees
The decision enters into force on the day it is delivered to the applicant and remains in force indefinitely, unless Georgian customs legislation or the decision itself provides otherwise. From the date of its entry into force, execution of the decision is mandatory for the customs authority. Where a decision may negatively affect the applicant, the authority must, before adopting it, communicate its content and justification, and give the applicant the opportunity to present arguments within the period set by the authority. Such a decision must be substantiated and must indicate the right to appeal under the procedure established by the Code.
The requirement of prior communication with the applicant does not apply to the issuance of the preliminary decision provided for by the Code. Nor does it apply where the interests of protecting the state and its population, human or animal health, plant health, the environment or consumer safety so require; where the purpose of the decision is to facilitate the execution of another decision; where the interests of a criminal investigation or of customs offence proceedings might be harmed; and in other special cases defined by the legislation.