Monitoring and audit as a tool of achieving balance of private and public interests in tax and customs legal relations

Introduction: the search for an optimal balance between private and public interests remains extremely relevant today. The conflict of such interests is inevitable when regulating relations associated with the implementation of the fiscal function and financial supervision by the state. The use of such tools as monitoring and audit allows for neutralizing controversies between payers of compulsory payments and tax (customs) bodies. There appear the following issues requiring scientific consideration: analysis of the legal rules regulating the procedure for conducting monitoring and audit, identification of problems arising in course of their application, determination of the ways for their development. Purpose: to show the possibilities of achieving a balance between public and private interests on the basis of tax monitoring, audit in the field of customs affairs. Methods: analysis and synthesis, formal-logical, comparative-legal, historical, statistical. Results: it is determined that tax and customs relations may be to a certain extent fiduciary in nature; the essence and functions of tax monitoring as an innovative form of tax control are clarified; the relationship between audit and customs control after the release of goods is correlated; the role of tax monitoring and customs audit is established for the optimal balance of private and public interests. The main functions of tax monitoring and audit in the field of customs are identified: fiscal, preventive, analytical. Conclusion: the authors present some ideas concerning the development of monitoring and audit that might contribute to balancing private and public interests. It is proposed to expand the range of organizations in respect to which tax monitoring can be conducted. It is argued that audit reports can be used by the customs authorities when categorizing participants in foreign economic activity, as well as when determining the financial stability of authorized economic operators. The possible advantages of introducing the institution of customs auditors are presented.