Suspension from the Registry of Importers and Exporters

The Customs authority is empowered to suspend Importers and Exporters engaged in repeated misconduct or gross negligence from their registry.

Final resolutions imposing these sanctions may be appealed before the Federal Court of Appeals on Contentious and Administrative matters.

Section 105 of the Customs Code sets forth that this appeal does not suspend the effects of the resolution imposing the sanction. This means that while the Court resolves whether the sanction should be applied or not, the Customs authority may suspend the importer or exporter.

Scholars have criticized this, but there was very little case law on this issue.

The Court of Appeals had the chance to analyze this issue recently, in a case presented by Neumáticos Goodyear SRL. As a precautionary measure, the company requested the Court to instruct the Customs authority not to suspend it until the appeal had been resolved.

The Court granted the precautionary measure.

In this decision the Court pointed out that the fact that the appeal set forth in Section 105 of the Customs Code did not suspend the applicability of the sanction jeopardizes the exercise of the constitutional right of defense and also puts in danger the rights of developing economic activity and trade, also contemplated in the Constitution.