EU4PFM expert Jacek Kapica highlights the key findings of the Customs Integrity Perception Survey (CIPS), focusing on both progress and areas for improvement in combating corruption.
The EU4PFM program continues to work closely with the State Customs Service of Ukraine (SCS) and its international partners to strengthen integrity and combat corruption in customs. A recent Customs Integrity Perception Survey (CIPS), conducted by the SCS in cooperation with the World Customs Organization’s Anti-Corruption and Integrity Promotion (A-CIP) Programme, offers a critical insight into the current state of customs integrity.
The survey highlights both progress and challenges, providing a clear framework for future reforms. EU4PFM, as part of its ongoing support, stands ready to assist in implementing the necessary recommendations to enhance transparency and accountability within Ukraine’s customs system.
According to the findings of Jacek Kapica, EU4PFM international expert in anti-corruption activities, the survey reveals that the perceived level of corruption in customs could reach up to 35%. Additionally, 65% of business respondents agree that the complexity of customs regulations negatively impacts their ability to operate, while 47% believe that bribes may help them circumvent certain customs requirements. These insights stem from the CIPS study, surveying customs officers and business representatives. EU4PFM anti-corruption expert Jacek Kapica draws attention to these findings and offers recommendations, with EU4PFM ready to support the SCS in implementing them.
In his analysis the expert highlights three key issues: the “willingness” of both groups surveyed to engage in corrupt activities, the complexity of customs legislation, and the protection of whistleblowers, including the internal customs environment related to integrity.
Jacek Kapica explains that perceptions of corruption can be measured by examining the share of business respondents who consider it possible to “simplify their lives” through bribes. For instance, 35% of business respondents confirm that evading customs requirements through bribes is “often or always possible,” while 11% admit to offering bribes when customs officers request them to expedite procedures. According to the expert, this suggests a level of corruption for omitting regulations and readiness to pay when initiative is coming out from customs officer.
Analysing the root causes, the expert points to the complexity of customs legislation. “When legislation is simple to follow, procedures are transparent, straightforward, and largely free from human intervention, the issue of paying someone to expedite the process becomes much less relevant,” he emphasizes.
Ukraine’s customs regulations, however, appear complex not only to business representatives—27% of customs officers agree that the rules are so complicated that they struggle to consistently follow them. Moreover, 65% of business respondents believe the complexity of the rules negatively impacts their operations. This complexity is one of the reasons why 11% of business respondents fail to comply with the rules or are frequently willing to do so.
Another contributing factor is the lack of inevitable consequences. Corruption often goes uninvestigated, either because both parties are invested in the outcome or because whistleblowers may face risks, for example, to their safety.
The survey sheds light on the current level of motivation among whistleblowers and identifies areas for improvement, such as whether those reporting feel safe, expect effective investigations, and are encouraged by customs leadership. For instance, 21% of business respondents and 10% of customs officers do not feel safe reporting integrity violations.
For companies, this concern may stem from fears about the future security of their operations after reporting. Beyond reluctance to report corruption, 16% of business representatives disagree that customs management takes measures against corruption, and 10% believe leadership does not set a positive example of integrity.
The motivation to report violations correlates with other key factors. For example, 12% of customs officers disagree that their superiors encourage them to report integrity breaches, and 10% feel that reporting corrupt behaviour does not lead to any action against it.
A concerning signal is how customs officers would respond if they suspected a colleague of taking money from businesses to overlook procedures. While 80% would report this to their supervisor, 83% would not report it to the internal investigations unit. This reflects a strong influence of direct leadership and a reluctance among officers to report outside their immediate team.
The nature of leadership and management style is also evident in the fact that when a superior requests a deviation from standard procedures, 46% of customs officers feel they are not adequately informed about the reason. Additionally, 14% of officers admit that they occasionally face interference from other officials when carrying out standard procedures, and 7% report that they never act without interference.
Recommendations
Simplifying procedures, aligning norms with the EU, and expanding the information available to businesses through guidelines, instructions, training sessions/webinars, and hotlines could significantly reduce the number of those who view bribes as a way to navigate complex legislation, the expert suggests.
To encourage more widespread reporting of corruption from both sides, measures to ensure the safety of whistleblowers, transparency, and examples of reported cases’ outcomes—without revealing the identity of the whistleblower—are essential. Additionally, all customs officers should receive training, including a presentation of the contact person within the internal unit for reporting corruption-related concerns.
To reduce tolerance for corruption, customs could launch a public campaign, such as: “Don’t offer, we don’t accept, and it will only cause you trouble.” Such a campaign could demonstrate that customs is committed to internal change and raising integrity by tackling corruption.
EU4PFM is fully committed and ready to support the SCS in implementing these and other measures to combat corruption.
The survey was conducted in September 2024 across five regions of Ukraine, with 448 customs officers and 477 business representatives participating. The margin of error is 4%.
Source:
WCO A-CIP Programme https://www.wcoomd.org/en/media/newsroom/2024/december/ukraine-takes-its-first-look-at-results-from-the-cips-under-the-wco-acip-programme.aspx
Further information on the survey:
