Risk management system used by the customs authorities of the Russian Federation: problems and areas for improvement

The subject of this study is the legal regulation of the risk management system (RMS) applied by the customs authorities of the Russian Federation within the framework of the EAEU. The work analyzes the place and role of RMS in the system of customs law and customs administration, its relationship with the institution of customs control, as well as the implementation of the principle of selectivity of objects and measures to minimize risks. Special attention is given to the study of the mechanism for categorizing individuals performing customs operations as a tool of the subject-oriented model of RMS, aimed at ensuring differentiated application of risk minimization measures regarding customs control objects, taking into account the risk level category of the foreign economic activity participant. The authors conduct a detailed analysis of supranational and national regulation of RMS, international WTO and WCO standards in this area, as well as the peculiarities of law enforcement practice. Based on the research findings, the authors justify the problems of the current RMS model applied by the customs authorities of the Russian Federation and propose directions for its improvement. The research methods used by the authors include both general scientific methods (abstraction, induction, deduction, hypothesis, analogy, synthesis, classification, systematization, generalization, and others) and specific methods of scientific cognition (systemic analysis, comparative legal, formal legal, legal hermeneutics, systemic-structural, legal modeling, and others). The scientific novelty of the work lies in the comprehensive justification of the independence of the risk management institution within the system of customs law and its absorption of the customs control institution. It is concluded that RMS is not limited solely to the selection of customs control objects but represents a continuous cycle of actions, including the collection and analysis of information, identification and assessment of risks, development of risk profiles, application and subsequent evaluation of measures to minimize risks, and the use of the results of such evaluations to improve RMS. It is justified that the current model of categorizing participants in foreign economic activity is undergoing a crisis, manifested in an excessive concentration of subjects in the medium risk category, which reduces the stimulating and preventive potential of RMS. It is concluded that there is a need to shift the focus of RMS application towards the stage of preliminary information and the introduction of flexible risk assessment criteria. It is shown that international standards define key directions for the development and modernization of national customs risk management systems.