Published on 20 April 2026
FIFTH SECTION
Application no. 7888/20
Aleksandr Vasilyevich BOGOMOLOV
against Ukraine
lodged on 29 January 2020
communicated on 2 April 2026
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The application concerns an alleged breach by the applicant of customs regulations in the course of customs clearance of a vehicle and sanctions imposed as a result: confiscation of the vehicle and a fine in the amount of the value of the vehicle.
The applicant, a Moldovan national, purchased a vehicle in Germany on behalf of a private company under a general power of attorney and was transporting it to Moldova through the territory of Ukraine.
On 28 October 2019 the Uzhhorod City District Court found the applicant liable under Article 483 § 1 of the Customs Code for having concealed the vehicle from customs control by submitting documents containing false information as to its value. It established that, during the customs control, the applicant had submitted a sale contract indicating that the vehicle had been purchased for EUR 3,000, whereas additional documents discovered during an inspection indicated a value of EUR 14,800. The court ordered the applicant to pay a fine corresponding to 100% of the value of the vehicle, amounting to UAH 417,857.89 (EUR 14,800), and ordered the confiscation of the vehicle, as provided for by the relevant provisions of the Customs Code.
In a final judgment of 26 December 2019, the Zakarpattia Court of Appeal upheld that decision, dismissing the applicant’s arguments that he had lacked intent to circumvent customs rules, had not been aware of the actual value of the vehicle or the payment arrangements, and had been subjected to misconduct by the customs authorities.
The applicant complains, under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention, that the sanction imposed on him was unlawful and disproportionate.
QUESTION TO THE PARTIES
Did the sanction imposed on the applicant by the domestic courts for the alleged breach of customs regulations, in particular the fine, constitute an interference with the peaceful enjoyment of his possessions within the meaning of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1? If so, was that interference lawful and did it strike a fair balance between the demands of the general interest and the protection of the applicant’s property rights, in particular as regards the proportionality of the sanction (see Krayeva v. Ukraine, no. 72858/13, 13 January 2022)?