Countries › Paraguay › Guide › 9. Trade and customs › Customs penalties, smuggling and appeals in Paraguay

Customs penalties, smuggling and appeals in Paraguay

Argentina. For full detail on Argentina, go to The Argentine Thread.

Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Paraguayan customs liability is strict: formal faults cost 5 to 10 daily minimum wages, faults by difference 50 percent of the tax at stake, and fraud a fine equal to the tax evaded, with directors jointly liable. Smuggling, as rewritten by Ley 6417/2019, is also a crime punishable by up to five years, or five to ten for natural animal and plant products, with small cases under US$500 FOB settled by confiscation. Proceedings run on short business day deadlines: five days to appeal to the head of customs, then the Tribunal de Cuentas.

USD figures use PYG 5,868.31 per US dollar, the Banco Central del Paraguay reference quotation in the planilla of 28 October 2026. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Formal customs fault fine	5 to 10 daily minimum wages Ley 2422/2004 art. 321, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Fine for a fault by difference	50 percent of the tax at stake %Ley 2422/2004 art. 328, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
No fine for differences with tax at stake below	50 USDLey 2422/2004 art. 327, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Customs fraud fine	100 percent of the duty evaded, plus the duty %Ley 2422/2004 art. 333, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Smuggling prison term (general)	Up to 5 yearsLey 6417/2019, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Minor smuggling threshold	500 USDLey 6417/2019, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Appeal from customs office to head of customs	5 business daysLey 2422/2004 art. 374, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Limitation to impose customs sanctions	3 yearsLey 2422/2004 art. 316, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
No customs proceeding when customs value does not exceed	500 USDLey 2422/2004 art. 348 num. 3, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Daily minimum wage (jornal) for customs fines	117077 PYGRes. MTESS 670/2026, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
BCP reference rate used for conversions (28 Oct 2026)	5868.31 PYGBCP planilla de cotizaciones, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. Strict liability and who is liable. Liability for customs faults and infringements does not depend on intent or on the actual effects of the act. Anyone who contributes to or benefits from the offence is liable, including carriers for their crew, companies for their employees and the consignee of the goods, and directors and managers are jointly liable for fines imposed on the company unless they prove they did not hold office at the time. Sanctions are fines, administrative measures and confiscation of goods or means of transport, and can be cumulative; if confiscation cannot be carried out it becomes a fine.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 313, 314, 317, 318 and 319, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. Formal faults. Breaches of formal customs rules that are not fraud or smuggling are fined 5 to 10 daily minimum wages, applied automatically by the customs office; a proceeding is opened only if the offender does not accept. Good faith, lack of intent or error is no excuse.
Example: PYG 585,385 to PYG 1,170,770 per fault at the PYG 117,077 jornal from 1 July 2026. / About US$100 to US$200 per fault.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 320 to 324, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Faults by difference. When inspection shows that following the declaration would have cost the Treasury tax (differences in quality, kind, origin, size, quantity or weight beyond tolerances) and it is not fraud or smuggling, the fine is 50 percent of the tax at stake. If the declarant accepts, it pays the tax as assessed and the fine and takes the goods at once; otherwise it can take them by paying tax as declared and depositing the difference and fine pending the proceeding. No fine applies if all elements for correct taxation were declared and the error is evident from the declaration (transcription, calculation, currency conversion, classification with other elements correct), if the tax at stake is under US$50, or if a quantity difference is within tolerance.
Example: Tax at stake PYG 10,000,000: fine PYG 5,000,000. / Tax at stake US$1,704: fine US$852.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 325 to 328, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. Customs fraud. Fraud (defraudación) is an intentional act or omission breaching customs law that harms or could harm revenue, without being smuggling: false or inaccurate statements of the tax base other than arithmetic errors, abusive use of split import facilities, simulating an essential requirement, or using duty free goods for purposes other than those of the exemption. The fine equals the customs tax evaded, on top of collecting the tax.
Example: Undervaluation hiding PYG 10,000,000 of tax: pay PYG 10,000,000 of tax plus a PYG 10,000,000 fine. / US$1,704 of tax plus a US$1,704 fine.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 331 to 333, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. Smuggling. Smuggling is any act aimed at bringing goods into or out of Paraguay in breach of the essential customs, banking and administrative requirements, including crossing outside the primary zone, hidden compartments, moving or holding foreign goods for sale without import papers, diverting transit goods, moving goods in or out of free zones without authorisation, and selling duty free goods within five years or before the end of the concession without paying the exempted taxes (both the knowing seller and buyer). It is also a crime punishable by up to five years or a fine; for animal or plant products in natural state, five to ten years; for officials who take part, five to ten years. Below US$500 FOB the goods are confiscated without criminal liability, except natural animal or plant products.Ley Nº 6417/2019 (Código Aduanero art. 336 and 345 as amended), Art. 1 (new art. 336 and 345), 2019-11-01 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley 6417/2019 (promulgated 1 Nov 2019, published 5 Nov 2019) rewrote the smuggling definition and the minor smuggling rule.

6. Proceedings. The customs office where the facts occurred investigates (sumario); if the goods are worth up to US$1,000 its head decides in a single instance, and no proceeding is opened when the customs value does not exceed US$500 FOB. All terms are in business days and peremptory (six business days where none is set). The accused has six business days to answer and offer evidence, evidence is produced within 20 business days (plus up to 10), final pleadings take six business days, the investigator reports within 20 business days and the head of the customs office rules within 30 business days. While the administrative proceeding runs, the limitation period for criminal action is suspended.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 348, 356, 362, 367, 370, 372 and 378, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

7. Appeals. The customs office decision can be appealed to the head of customs within five business days of notice, who must decide within 20 business days (extendable once); silence means tacit rejection. Decisions of the head of customs that end the administrative stage can be challenged before the Tribunal de Cuentas under the contentious administrative procedure law. Final sanctions must be complied with within five business days. Customs liquidations, final customs resolutions and customs guarantees are enforceable titles collected in the civil courts.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero, Art. 374 to 377, 379 and 382, 2004-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

8. Time limits. Customs can impose sanctions for three years from 1 January of the year after the offence (or after it was detected if the date is unknown) and claim taxes and fines for five years from 1 January of the year after they became due. Since Ley 7143/2023, customs functions belong to the DNIT, and that law repealed the Code articles that split fines with private informants (329, 330, 334, 335, 346 and 347); 50 percent of difference and fraud fines and 50 percent of auction proceeds from smuggling confiscations are now DNIT institutional revenue.Ley Nº 2422/2004 Código Aduanero; Ley Nº 7143/2023, Code art. 282 and 316; Ley 7143 art. 17 and 32, 2023-08-04 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley 7143/2023 repealed Customs Code art. 329, 330, 334, 335, 346 and 347 (informant shares of fines) once the DNIT took effect.

Offence	What it is	Sanction	Norm
Formal fault	Breach of formal rules	5 to 10 daily minimum wages (PYG 585,385 to 1,170,770)	Art. 320 to 324
Fault by difference	Declared data would have cut tax, no intent shown	50% of tax at stake; none below US$50	Art. 325 to 328
Fraud	Intentional harm to revenue (undervaluation, misuse of exemptions)	Tax plus fine equal to the tax	Art. 331 to 333
Smuggling	Bringing goods in or out against essential requirements	Confiscation, fines; crime up to 5 years (5 to 10 for natural animal or plant products and officials)	Art. 336 as amended by Ley 6417/2019
Minor smuggling	Smuggled goods under US$500 FOB	Confiscation only (not natural animal or plant products)	Art. 345 as amended

Customs offences and sanctions (Customs Code as amended)

Worked example

An importer declares US$40,000 for goods worth US$50,000 and customs finds the gap. If treated as a fault by difference with PYG 10,000,000 of tax at stake, the fine is PYG 5,000,000 (US$852). If customs proves an intentional false value, it is fraud: the PYG 10,000,000 of tax plus a PYG 10,000,000 fine (US$1,704 each), and the directors are jointly liable for the fine.

Step by step

1. When notified of a difference, decide within the deadline whether to accept (pay tax and fine and release the goods) or contest (pay as declared and deposit the difference and fine) (art. 326).
2. If a proceeding opens, answer and offer all evidence within six business days (art. 362).
3. Appeal a customs office decision to the head of customs within five business days (art. 374).
4. If the head of customs does not decide within 20 business days, treat it as rejected and go to the contentious administrative route (art. 376 and 377).
5. Pay final sanctions within five business days to avoid civil enforcement (art. 379 and 382).

Common traps

Strict liability: good faith or reliance on the supplier's invoice does not avoid a formal or difference fault (art. 317 and 324).
Directors and managers are personally jointly liable for customs fines on the company (art. 319).
Buying duty free goods from someone who imported them under an exemption within five years makes the buyer a smuggling offender if it knew (art. 336 k).
Every deadline is short and peremptory, counted in business days, and six business days apply where none is set (art. 356).
The DNIT Code PDF still shows the informant reward articles; Ley 7143/2023 repealed them.

Sources

Related: Paraguay country profile · live dashboard · central bank and release calendar · our posts on X · where Argentina is involved, see The Argentine Thread guide

← Mercosur and Paraguay's trade agreements: preferences, origin rules, the EU and Singapore dealsExporting from Paraguay: export declarations, IVA exemption and exporter IVA refunds →

Get rule changes weekly

Free. One email a week from The LatAm Thread.

One more step after you press the button: we take you to Substack, where your email is already filled in. Confirm there to start. No spam, unsubscribe anytime, we never share your address. By subscribing you agree to the privacy policy.