EU ENLARGEMENT Customs and Rules of Origin

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EU ENLARGEMENTCustoms and Rules of Origin
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EU - ENLARGEMENT

• Customs transitional measures
• Impact on EU preferential Agreements

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An unprecedented enlargement

• EU 15 ? EU 25
• CY,CK,EE,HU,LV,LT,ML,PO,SK,SL
• Population from 377 m. ? 451 m.
• Land Area 34
• 3234568 Km² ? 3973140 Km²

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Customs Territory

• Territory of 25 Member States
• Internal borders dismantled
• New external border
• Russia, Belarus, Ukrania, Romania, Balkans
• (Switzerland)

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Art.2 Act of Accession principle

• Principle MS apply from the date of accession
  the "Acquis communautaire"
• Exception as provided in Act of Accession
• - goods moving between old-new MS
• - goods moving between new MS
• - goods moving between EU25 and 3rd countries

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Acquis Communautaire

• Customs legislation
• - C Customs Code Reg. 2913/92
• - C. Implementing provisions Reg. 2454/93
• -Combined Nomenclature
• - Common Customs Tariff
• Preferential Agreements
• - Autonomous ( GSP, Western Balkans)
• - Conventional ( MED, Chile, Mexico, .)

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Administrative and Operational Capacity

• A functioning Customs Administration in place
• Operational Instruments
• - TARIC
• - CCN- CSI ( IT network)
• - NCTS (transit)
• - SMS (stamps management system)
• - (others)
• 25 administrations acting as 1 single
  administration

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Customs measures Annex IV n 5 Act of Accession
Main principle Goods that on the date of
accession are in free circulation in an acceding
or an old MS will be in free circulation
throughout the enlarged community
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Trade within the enlarged community

• Proof of pref origin ISSUED before accession
• ACCEPTED as evidence of status

if
-goods on the date of accession are under a
customs procedure -prohibition of drawback
applies on non originating materials
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Cyprus/Malta

• No EUR 1 as proof of status ( no prohibition of
  drawback exists)
• should use a different document to prove
  "community status" ( T2L, T2M. )

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Preferential AgreementsArt. 6 Act of Accession

• from 1st may 2004, NEW MS
• will be parties to ALL preferential Agreements of
  the EU
• will withdraw ALL their existing FTA with 3rd
  countries
• will end FTA's with the EU

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Trade with third countries

• Proofs issued by third countries before accession
  (under agreement with CC) shall be accepted
• EU 15 would also accept this proof
• proof of origin and transport documents issued
  before accession
• submitted to Customs by 1st september 2004

IF
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Approved exporter

• Authorisation granted by CC before accession
  could be
• MAINTAINED
• if EC agreements also provides for this
  facilitation with the same countries
• approved exporter apply the same EC RO from the
  time of accession

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Approved exporter
Authorisation granted before accession should be
REPLACED by a new authorisation in
accordance with EC legislation by 1st of MAY 2005
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EU Approved Exporter

• Authorisations granted by "old" Member States
• remain VALID

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Accession Protocols with 3rd countries
Need to ensure reciprocity I) CC have
Agreements with third country II) CC do not have
Agreement with third country
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CC and EU have Agreements with 3rd Country
Proofs issued by CC before accession to a third
country presented after accession should be
ACCEPTED by 3rd party on the basis of the EU/3rd
party agreement PO ? CH issued
PO/CH accepted EU/CH Agreement Agreement

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CC and EU have agreement with 3rd country
3rd party Authorised Exporter ( under PO-CH
Agreement) Should be ACCEPTED by EU 25 under EU-
CH Agreement
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CC do not have Agreement with 3rd party
CH exports ? CYPRUS before accession
after accession possibility to claim for the
EU/CH preference ? A POSTERIORI PROOF OF
ORIGIN (and viceversa)
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Impact on Pan-European system of cumulation

• Modification of number of parties

EU 25
- EFTA BU - RO - TU
(Cyprus / Malta not being today part of Pan
European system will benefit with enlargement)
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Impact on preferential trade

• Materials originating in CC will become EU
• materials in order to determine EU origin
• EC origin ?
• " increase possibilities of sourcing for
  manufacturer's of finish products BUT increase
  competition for the EU15 manufacturer's of
  intermediate products"

PO DE
MA
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PAN-EURO- MED

• Protocol RO approved in Palermo ( July 2003)
• system DIAGONAL CUMULATION
• requirements -identical RO
• -FTA's between partner countries
• -no drawback rule (partial drawback)
• Implementation on process
• preparation Decisions to modify Protocols of
  origin
• Adoption of Decisions by Joint Bodies
• Target date mid- 2004 ?

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Impact on Pan-Euro-Med

• Main constraint
• FTA's between partner countries
• With enlargement
• Candidate Countries ? Immediate application of
  Pan-Euro-Med as EC members

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Non Preferential R.O.

• HWP still on progress in WTO
• Acceding Countries ? application rules of
  Customs Code and Implementing provisions
• Interpretation Art. 24 use of EU negotiating
  common position at WTO

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• Thank you for your attention
• Rosa Maria LOPEZ JORRIN
• Head of Unit
• Rules of Origin
• Commission - DG TAXUD