Brazil court fines terminal for unlawful container retention, ruling they are not packaging

A court in Santos, on the coast of São Paulo, has fined the customs-bonded terminal Eudmarco S/A R$15,000 for delaying the return of two containers that were held at the facility for nearly a year due to irregularities with the cargo being transported. The court ruled that the transport unit (container) has no legal connection to the goods it carries.

The decision was issued last Thursday (31st), with Judge Frederico dos Santos Messias, of the Specialized Maritime Law Chamber, determining that the containers were unlawfully retained by the terminal. The ruling is subject to appeal.

According to the claim filed by the container owner, the cargo arrived at the terminal in July and August 2024 but was not released after the terminal claimed the goods were subject to perdimento — the legal forfeiture of goods seized by Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service due to customs violations.

“The container is a means of transport, a logistical asset, and not packaging or an accessory to the merchandise […] The condition of perdimento or abandonment of the cargo, even under the oversight of the Federal Revenue, does not grant the bonded terminal the right to retain the transport unit,” the judge stated.

The terminal was officially notified on June 27 that it must return the containers within 48 hours, or face a fine between R$5,000 and R$15,000. The containers were only returned on July 1.

Containers

According to the owner of the containers, the goods arrived in Brazil and were delivered to the terminal to undergo customs procedures. However, the importers failed to complete the necessary steps to legalize the cargo and bring it into the country, resulting in the merchandise being impounded at the terminal.

Despite out-of-court efforts and authorization from the Federal Revenue Service to destuff (unload) the containers and release them to the claimant, the containers remained detained.

In March 2025, the company filed a lawsuit. In its ruling, the court also stated that “bonded warehouses are required to provide dedicated facilities for seized goods, as well as separate areas for containers, in accordance with Federal Revenue Service Regulation No. 143/2022.”

“It is essential to make a legal distinction between the cargo unit (the container) and the goods (the cargo) it carries. This distinction is fundamental and is expressly supported by Brazilian law,” said Judge Messias.

Source: G1

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