Technology to Customs: Catch me, if you can

The WTO and the WCO are probably two of the most important players in the international trade sector. They are engaged in conventions designated to facilitate the international trade. The HS convention wishes to set rules for customs classification. The ITA goal is to enhance the duty free treatment of technological products. Occasionally, a frontal dispute between the two conventions occur, when classification of alleged ITA products is appealed, as was happened in Israel also in 2021, concerning STB. While the worldwide trend is to innovate and create new technological products, and the ITA purpose is to encourage using such products, it seems that too many obstacles for this goal exist, while the main one, perhaps, is the customs classification disputes. Possible solutions for reducing classification disputes, may be developing softwares and applications to help classify goods automatically, and not by a human being. Alternatively, having more recent updating of the ITA, once every year (for products descriptions), and coordinate these updates with the HS updates. The world of technology products is changing in a rapid speed. If the ITA wishes to survive in this era, it must make adaptations, otherwise, it may stay behind and become irrelevant.