Bonded warehouse
In the bonded warehousing procedure, goods my be stored at certain places in the customs territory approved by the FCA (e.g. at the domicile of a company) under conditions determined by the FCA.
Customs warehouses can be open customs warehouses or warehouses for bulk goods.
Bonded warehouses offer the possibility for certain, usually unlimited periods of time
- to store transit goods in the customs territory without customs clearance
- to store goods which are intended for sale in the customs territory but whose import duties are payable only after the end of a stockholding period
- to transfer stored goods to another customs procedure
The places authorised by the customs administration my be premises under customs supervision or other places, e.g. silos, tanks, etc.
The operation of a bonded warehouse is subject to an authorisation issued by the customs administration based on an application and subject to certain conditions. On receipt of an authorisation, the warehouse operator may, under the terms of this authorisation, place goods according to the corresponding customs clearance procedure, place them in storage and terminate the procedure for these goods. He is obliged to keep records of warehouse movements and to maintain stock records of the warehouse.
Storage facilities for bulk goods are only available in Switzerland. This is the storage of duty unpaid goods in private facilities. These goods must be approved by the customs authorities and must meet certain conditions. These are goods in quantities of at least 10 tonnes net weight, which are suitable for bulk handling and transport due to their uniform physical character.
They may be stored for a maximum of two years, with a possible extension of up to five years.
