Austrian customs grabs counterfeits worth 38 million euros!

Austrian customs grabs counterfeits worth 38 million euros!

Vienna, Österreich - In 2024, Austrian customs recorded a significant increase in confiscation of fake products. A total of 128,898 items with a total value of over 38 million euros were collected, which has been the third highest value since the start of the records. The figures come from a current report that documents the measures against product piracy in Austria and states that 98 percent of the seized shipments were counterfeits that were sold on the Internet, while the total number of fake articles was almost less than 10 percent.

There is special attention to the fake medication that is a serious danger to public health. Customs secured 378,109 pieces of fake and illegal medications, which is about half as much as in the previous year (801,863 pieces). However, the number of anti -medication has increased by 6 percent to 7,147 shipments.

Summary of the attacks

The report also shows that the customs confiscated unusual items, including:

• 21 pallet detergents (16,300 kg)
• 6,000 potency pills
• 50 kg smoking tobacco
• over 170,000 cigarettes

The most common medicines that were taken up were potency and fertility-promoting products, followed by sleeping and calming agents as well as pain and inflammatory medication.

the EU-wide context

The Austrian customs statistics reflect a Europe -wide challenge. According to a joint report by the European Commission and the EUIPO, customs in the EU in 2023 stopped 152 million fake and potentially dangerous goods worth almost 3.4 billion euros. This represents an increase of 77 percent compared to the previous year.

The most common confiscated articles in the EU are games, toys and packaging material. In addition, the report emphasizes the urgency of continuous measures against counterfeiters because the customs authorities are under pressure, in particular through the growing electronic trade. In this context, a comprehensive reform proposal for the customs union was presented, which provides for a new EU customs authority and an EU customs data platform to increase the effectiveness of customs controls.

development in the EU

The trends in the EU also show that in recent years the number of goods seized on the limits has decreased, while the value of the confiscated goods increase, since articles are increasingly ensured with a higher retail value. The most common products that were confiscated in 2022 include games, packaging material, toys, cigarettes and played CDs/DVDs, which together made up over 72 percent of the recorded goods.

The need to act against the challenges of product piracy and at the same time protect public health remains the priority for customs authorities in the entire EU. The reformed measures should promote the use of new instruments and a better exchange of information in order to increase security in the internal market.

For further information on the activities of the customs authorities and their effects on the market, please visit the article on vienna.at or learn more about the EU-wide measures on germany.representation.europa.eu Reports of the euipo at euipo.eu .