customs union

n. An international association organized to eliminate customs restrictions on goods exchanged between member nations and to establish a uniform tariff policy toward nonmember nations.

customs union

n (Economics) an association of nations which promotes free trade within the union and establishes common tariffs on trade with nonmember nations

Thesaurus

Noun

customs union - an association of nations to promote free trade within the union and set common tariffs for nations that are not membersunion - a political unit formed from previously independent people or organizations; "the Soviet Union"Benelux - a customs union comprising Belgium and Netherlands and Luxembourg

Customs Union

an association of states organized to coordinate tariff policy. Among capitalist countries, customs unions are created by bilateral or multilateral agreements that regulate tariffs in order to encourage the sale of goods produced by member countries and to discriminate against outside countries. As a rule, member states do away with tariff barriers within the union and create a common customs territory with a standard external customs duty. Contemporary customs unions pursue a policy of collective monopolistic protectionism. Although they sometimes moderate this policy, the customs unions of imperialist powers often employ “nontariff’ barriers, for example, stricter customs formalities, health and quarantine requirements, and marking regulations and increased import duties and fees.

Customs unions were first organized in the 19th century. One of the first was the union established in 1865 by France and Monaco. In 1924 a customs union was formed by Switzerland and the principality of Liechtenstein. Customs unions of highly developed countries have been established by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1947) and the treaty of the European Economic Community (Common Market, 1957), which provided for the elimination of all trade restrictions between member countries and the introduction of an overall customs tariff in external trade. The convention forming the European Free Trade Association (EFTA, 1960) provided for the abolition of customs duties and quantitative trade restrictions between member countries and the retention of customs tariffs in external trade. However, members of the Common Market and the EFTA still use various customs regulations and have not standardized duties for external trade. In 1959 customs unions were established by the West African countries of the Ivory Coast, Dahomey (present-day Benin), Upper Volta, Niger, Mauritania, Mali, and Senegal and the Central African countries of the People’s Republic of the Congo, Gabon, the Central African Republic (the present-day Central African Empire), and Chad.

Socialist countries do not have customs unions. The USSR concluded agreements on cooperation and mutual assistance in tariff policy with Hungary in 1958 and Poland in 1960. In 1962 member countries of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) signed a multilateral agreement on mutual assistance and cooperation in tariff policy that standardized documentation, freight registration, and transportation and postal regulations. In 1965 the customs offices of Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Poland, and the USSR signed an agreement on the simplification and standardization of customs registration of freight for fairs and exhibitions and freight shipped by motor vehicle. Such agreements facilitate transportation, prevent violations of customs legislation, and help strengthen the world socialist market.

L. I. TUL’CHINSKII

customs union

Customs union

An agreement by two or more countries to erect a common external tariff and to abolish restrictions on trade among members.

Customs Union

A market with the free movement of goods, services, labor, and capital between two or more jurisdictions. For example, even though Texas and Oklahoma are different places with different governments and regulations, the two have a customs union because workers do not need permission to move between them and one may transfer money between them without incurring any tariffs or fees. Most often, however, a customs union refers to a union between two or more countries, not regions within the same country. For example, the European Union is a customs union. See also: Free trade.

customs union

see TRADE INTEGRATION.

customs union

a form of TRADE INTEGRATION between a number of countries in which members eliminate all trade barriers (TARIFFS, etc.) amongst themselves on goods and services, and establish a uniform set of barriers against trade with the rest of the world, in particular a common external tariff. The aim of a customs union is to secure the benefits of international SPECIALIZATION AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE, thereby improving members’ real living standards. See GAINS FROM TRADE, TRADE CREATION, EUROPEAN UNION, MERCOSUR.

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Customs Union

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Words related to customs union

noun an association of nations to promote free trade within the union and set common tariffs for nations that are not members

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