The Estonian-owned Tallink Silja shipping line is demanding that the Finnish state repay EUR 10-20 million in fairway fees that it says it should not have been charged.
CEO Keijo Mehtonen says that the first applications, for fees paid in 2005-2006, have already been submitted.
“We have interpreted that the compensation for these years will come automatically. In the next process we will apply for more repayments, from 1997.”
Customs authorities have received applications for incorrectly billed fairway fees from about 80 vessels.
The applications for 2005 must be submitted before the end of this year. Marko Koski of the National Board of Customs says that the processing of the applications has not yet begun. j
“Applications are now being accepted, and they will be handled next year. Guidelines for handling the applications will be coming in January."
The process was sparked by a ruling by the Helsinki Administrative Court, according to which the fairway fee system that was in use until 2006 was in violation of European Union regulations, and that it discriminated against ships involved in international shipping.
The draft national budget earmarks EUR 37 million for repayment of fairway fees levied before 2006.
Finnish Customs says that ships are entitled to repayment for 2005, but not for 2003 or 2004.
