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I. Introduction

As a principle, both in imports and exports, the declaration contained in the customs destination application is unalterable.1 As the Argentine Supreme Court of Justice (hereinafter, the "CSJN") has consistently held, "[…] an entire system rests on the reliability of what is declared through the corresponding documentation, a system that does not depend on the greater or lesser efficiency with which the National Customs Administration carries out the control tasks assigned to it: on the contrary, adherence to such requirements tends to prevent maneuvers that distort and pervert the export or import regime, as the case may be, from being carried out under its protection" (see "Subpga S.A.C.I.E. e I. c/ Estado Nacional (A.N.A.) s/nulidad de resolución," S.227.XXII, Fallos: 315:942, 05.12.1992). This is why inaccurate declarations, under Art. 954 of the Customs Code (the "C.A."), are so severely sanctioned.

Unlike other grounds for non-punishability of such inaccuracies, expressly provided for in the C.A.,2 the ground of "content inversion" is a construction of case law, with effective application in the customs field.

However, this lack of statutory provision produces uncertainty and a lack of uniformity in outcomes.

The purpose of this article is to explain content inversion as a ground for non-punishability, to set out the requirements that case law has progressively recognized for its configuration in specific cases, and to analyze various practical issues related to its application.

See the full article in Spanish at this LINK

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