관세법상 거래가격의 원칙과 운송비용 결정기준 -LNG 수송 시 자연 발생하는 BOG 사건 (대법원 2016. 12. 15. 선고 2016두47321 판결)에 대한 분석을 중심으로

Abstract

As the international natural gas market grows year by year, questions have been raised about how it would be appropriate to determine the ratable value of customs of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for the purposes of customs valuation under the Customs Act in relation to the situation where Boil-off Gas (BOG) is naturally evaporated in the process of the imports of LNG by sea. In general, BOG is provided free of charge as a fuel for the LNG carrier. In such a case, the specific legal issues are whether the transport cost should be recalculated to include the price of the BOG and whether the transaction value of imported goods would be reduced by reflecting the amount of LNG lost. They have provoked interesting debates that lead to in-depth analysis of the “principle of transaction value” and the “principle of actual paid transportation cost” and the criteria for adjusting transaction value. Unlike the United States, but similar to in Europe, Korean law adopts so-called CIF basis which includes the cost of transportation in the tariff taxable base. When calculating the transport cost included in the taxable value, it is also a principle to determine it according to the fare statement, etc. as the actual shipping fee paid between the parties in accordance with the spirit of Article 1 of the WTO Agreement on Customs Valuation. Along with the development of modern science and technology, various types of LNG carriers have been designed to safely handle BOG. The Supreme Court ruled that the value of the BOG cannot be viewed as a part of fare. This conclusion is supported, and the related legal logic and grounds are analyzed in this article. In addition, this article deals with the standards for adjusting the transaction value of imported goods, especially in relation to Incoterms and the loss of some of the goods, although they were not mentioned in the Supreme Court judgment. Since it is already expected by the parties at the time of the contract that LNG would partially disappear due to BOG, the price actually paid to the seller entirely corresponds to the transaction value in the Customs Act and the argument for the reduction cannot be accepted.