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Last April, the European Commission published the new regulation by which imports of certain aluminum products from third countries are subject to prior surveillance of the European Union (EU).

The new system will request an import license , which will be granted automatically, to those companies that want to import aluminum products. In this way the Commission can have a real-time review of trade flows.

With this measure the EU wants to anticipate the possible distortions in the European market that can be produced by the tariffs of 10% of the United States to the imports of several countries.

Protect European aluminum producers

The sum of some factors such as the reduction of world prices , the excess of aluminum production capacity in China and the increase of import duties on a wide range of products in the United States mean that some type of diversion can occur. trade and lower prices in the EU. Therefore, we want to avoid generating any type of damage to the vulnerable European industry.

Anticipation of market changes

With this initiative, the European Commission will be able to effectively monitor the import trends of aluminum . The system pursues statistical objectives, taking into account that the license is granted automatically, it should not affect trade flows, but it can provide data to anticipate abrupt changes in the aluminum trade and, if necessary, act accordingly. with the World Trade Organization to prevent any kind of economic damage to European producers.

Therefore, the release for free circulation of certain aluminum products must be subject to the submission of a surveillance document issued by the competent authorities designated by a Member State (DOVI).

Imports whose net weight does not exceed 2.5 tonnes as well as products from Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein are excluded from the application of this Regulation.

Since January 1, the Export Registry System (REX system) is the certification system for the origin of the products that the European Union (EU) is implementing progressively.

This applies, for the first time, in the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and through which the EU grants tariff preferences to developing countries .

The REX system is based on the principle of self-certification, by which economic operators.make their own communications about the origin of the goods to be exported to the EU.

In order to carry out this action, the economic agent must be registered in the database managed by each of the beneficiary countries. In this way, the economic operator becomes a registered exporter.

Progressive implementation of the system

Progressively, the REX system will completely replace the current certification system based on certificates of origin Form A, which are issued by the authorities of the beneficiary countries and in invoice declarations made under certain conditions by economic operators. This system will also be used among the GSP beneficiary countries that apply regional accumulation.

Since January 1 of this year, the REX system is in transition period and will continue during the following year. If necessary, you can extend the term by 6 months more by making a prior request. The EU already plans that those beneficiary countries that requested it before June 30, 2016, may postpone the start of the application of the system until January 1, 2018 or January 1, 2019.

At the time the EU made public a list of countries that can apply the REX system from January 1, 2017 and those that postpone this application:

Countries that apply the REX system as of 01/01/2017:

Zambia, Yemen, Tuvalu, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Togo, Chad, Sao Tome and Principe, Kenya, South Sudan, Somalia, Comoros, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Niue (Island), Nepal, Mali, Liberia, Laos, Kiribati, India, Ginea Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Micronesia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Cook Islands, Congo, Central African Republic, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bhutan, Nauru, Burundi and Angola

Countries that will apply the REX system as of 01/01/2018:

Afghanistan, Armenia, Bolivia, Cote d’Ivoire, Eritrea, Gambia, Guinea, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Niger, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria and Tanzania.

Countries that will apply the REX system as of 01/01/2019:

Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cambodia, Haiti, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mongolia, Nigeria, Paraguay, the Philippines, Samoa, Senegal, Tajikistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu and Vietnam.

Coexistence of the two systems

It is important to keep in mind that during the transition period the two systems will coexist . Form A certificates can still be issued by exporters who have not yet registered in the REX system and, in turn, these certificates will no longer be issued to exporters who have registered with the system, who must use the internal communication through it.

Thus, at the end of the period, shipments whose amount exceeds € 6,000 will be entitled to the GSP preferential tariff treatment only on imports if they are accompanied by a declaration on origin made by a registered exporter of the REX system.

Currently, who more and who least has made a purchase from outside the European Union of technology or household items . This practice has become increasingly popular because of the multiple benefits in terms of the price of this type of product.

But, although it may seem that everything is an advantage, it is not always the case since, as it is popularly said, “cheap is expensive”.

The main reason why people buy outside the EU is because of the low prices they find in products that are much more expensive in our country. Mainly, they are usually fashion technological products such as mobile phones, tablets and computer accessories. Also, accessories such as bags, shoes and even clothing are very popular.

Lack of guarantees

In purchases made outside the EU, mainly to China and the US, one of the biggest problems that consumers face is the lack of guarantees. The main incidents are that the product received does not correspond to the one announced, or that, in the event of a malfunction, it is very difficult to claim or the guarantee is only one year.

In this case consumers are reluctant to complain , because, if for example you have bought a mobile phone and it does not work, the process becomes complicated when you have to send it back (the period can last two or three weeks), receive a reply and to have it fixed or replaced by another. The process can last for weeks or months.

Therefore, although the product has been cheap, the useful life has been very short or nonexistent and, therefore, the low price is not so profitable .

VAT and postal processing

One issue that is leading the EU is the payment of VAT and tariffs on products that come from non-EU countries . The boom in the purchase of products outside the EU, especially in China, has led to an increase in non-EU postal traffic, which makes it more difficult to control the packages and to check if VAT is not being paid. %, and of the tariff, of 2.5%.

For its part, Brussels has decided that from next year all shipments will have to pay VAT . Until now only products of more than € 22 have done it.

In this sense, the postal process threatens to collapse.

According to data from the Tax Agency , in 2015 a total of 1,365,153 shipments were received from countries that do not belong to the EU. Of these, the majority (970,131) were declared with a value of less than 22 euros.

My package is in customs

The Kahala Agreement (2012) is an international postal agreement that was processed with the intention of expediting shipments from Asia to the West. The lack of personnel for the control of this type of shipments have favored the fact that most of the products reach their recipient without Customs payments.

However, it is possible that, in some cases, customs will intercept shipments by ordinary mail and legally open it to check if the data of the shipment corresponds to reality.

If it is the case that in the post office they suspect that the value indicated by the seller is not correct, the package may be retained in Customs and notify the recipient. In this case, you will be asked for proof of purchase and you will have to pay taxes and fees if necessary.

When do I have to pay taxes?

Until now and until Brussels put into operation the new regulations, in purchases made outside the EU the recipient does not have to pay any tax if the value of the product purchased is less than 22 euros . Nor does it apply to shipments between individuals that do not have a value greater than € 45.

In the case of a commercial shipment to an individual, if the cost, including expenses and insurance, are between 22 and 150 euros, the recipient must pay the VAT that corresponds.

From 150 euros, whether the shipment is of a commercial nature or is between individuals, the recipient will have to pay the VAT and the corresponding customs and tariff costs, depending on the type of merchandise.

If you change your residence and you need to take all your belongings with you it is necessary to know that holders of goods and personal effects that come from the European Union are not subject to any customs clearance .

On the other hand, people coming from non-EU countries who decide to move permanently to the peninsula or the Balearic Islands, have to request the duty-free importation and taxes before the Spanish Customs of entry of said goods, or before the customs more next to the address, in which they must state that this importation is requested with duty-free tax exemption for transfer of residence.

In the case of a vehicle, the request for tax exemption on certain means of transport must be made.

Only imports may be exempt due to change of residence of the owner of the vehicle.

Documentation to request the franchise

In order to apply for the franchise in the importation of vehicles, it is necessary to submit a series of documentation:

• – Application for importation in writing, reflecting the personal data of the applicant.
• – DNI (Spanish) or NIE (Foreigners)
• – Low consular or other low of an official body of the country of origin that proves the change of residence.
• – Register registration certificate in Spain.
• – Movement permit
• – Vehicle data sheet
• – Vehicle purchase invoice or, failing that, declaration of value and the demonstration that the vehicle has been acquired with a minimum of 6 months before the move.
• – Clearance authorization

Conditions to qualify for franchise

In order to qualify for duty-free importation, procedures must be carried out during the 12 months following the transfer. Previously, the vehicle must have been purchased under the normal tax conditions of the country of origin and with a minimum use of 6 months prior to importation.

This period of 6 months can be extended up to 12 months if the vehicle was acquired or imported under some type of exemption established in diplomatic, consular or in favor of members of international organizations based in the country of origin of the interested parties.

If the import comes from the Canary Islands, it must be justified that it comes from there, with boarding pass and official documentation of its origin. In the case of the Canary Islands, only VAT is paid and no tariff.

The authorization of customs clearance is a key document in the process of import and export of goods that serves to authorize a customs representative to manage the bureaucratic procedures involved in international trade processes.

This document also serves for the customs representative, in this case Gecotex, to represent the client in various aspects and customs procedures such as the following:

• 1. Request the refund of undue income
• 2. Act in sanctioning procedures
• 3. Tariff classification of merchandise

Although this authorization is not essential in all import and export processes, in most cases companies that have international trade activity end up hiring external companies for this purpose. The bureaucratic complexity necessary to carry out the autorozation of customs clearance is long and tedious.

The customs agents that have the Authorized Economic Operator certificate (as is the case of Gecotex) also have more advantages in terms of authorization of customs clearance. This is due to the fact that the status of the OAS offers more agility when it comes to resolving bureaucratic procedures and this ends up having a noticeable effect in a shorter time of action by the customs representative.

We find two types of authorizations according to the frequency of collaboration between the client and the customs agent

Authorization for each operation

It is an authorization in a timely manner in which the customs agent represents a company in a specific operation. The operation is usually identified with a commercial invoice resulting from the operation carried out of freight transport.

Global authorization

As its name indicates, it is an indefinite authorization in which the client hires the customs agent in a constant manner in all import and export operations.

Legal regulation:

Below we offer a series of legal regulations that regulate the authorization of customs clearance in the Kingdom of Spain:

Article 5 of the Customs Code (Regulation EEC 2913/92) Art. 46 of the General Tax Law (Law 58/2003) Arts. 8 and 16 of OM 11838 of June 9, 2000 Article 45 of the Customs Ordinances

General questions about the document:

IMPORTANT: Photocopies or scanned documents are not accepted. The Customs only allows original documents and therefore it is not admitted under any circumstances that the authorizations are photocopies or scanned documents.

How is the authorization sent?
By not allowing photocopies or scans the authorization can only be sent in physical format either by mail or by a messenger.

What data should we incorporate?
For the authorization must indicate the complete data of the company or self-employed that imports or exports the goods s: name or business name, address, CIF and also the data of the customs representative. The authorizations per operation must also include the commercial invoice.

What type of signature do they ask for (recognition)?
It will be necessary to provide one of these two types of signatures:

1. Bank recognition: Stamped by a bank. The document certifies that the person signing it has the power to sign the authorization.
2. Inclusion of proxy data: the authorization of data of the empowerment deed should be indicated

The preservation of threatened species of fauna and flora is an important and topical issue in recent times. That is why the affected countries have taken measures not only at an individual level, but also at a global level.

Initiatives such as the CITES Convention, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, are precisely concerned with controlling irregularities and thus preventing endangered species from being endangered.

The Origin of CITES

The CITES Convention (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) was signed on March 3, 1973 in Washington and 21 countries joined. It was not until 1975 that it effectively came into force.

Today, almost all countries in the world are members, a total of 183. Spain joined on May 16, 1986.

At the time this type of agreement was a novelty, since in the 60s, when it began to talk about the preservation of species, the international debate on the need for a regulation of wildlife trade in favor of conservation was not usual.

The preservation of the species

Experts say that the international trade of wildlife reaches a value of several billion euros a year, affecting tens of thousands of species of animals and plants.

CITES has a broad power of action that includes, for example:

• Live animals and plants, including products derived from them.
• Leather articles of exotic animals.
• Bones, ivory and teeth (whether carved or not).
• Carapace and claws
• The coral, the eggs and different extracts for different uses.
• The feathers, scales or hair.
• The flowers, leaves, roots and rhizomes.
• The instruments made with certain woods and those same raw woods.
• Souvenir items for tourists and those for medicinal use of wild origin.

The trade of certain products have made the exploitation levels of some animals and plants unsustainable and commercialization with them has the capacity to significantly reduce populations and even cause some species to be on the verge of extinction.

International trade control

In order to make the international trade in wild animals and plants sustainable, without endangering their survival, the CITES Convention establishes a global network of controls.

This requires the use of official permits to trade in endangered wild species and other by-products. Therefore, these control mechanisms prohibit trade in endangered species and regulate trade in endangered or threatened species.

There are two main bodies that are responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of the Convention:

The Conference of the Parties

It is the highest organ of the Convention and groups all the member States. Every 2 or 3 years is responsible for bringing all the Parties together in ordinary session. Extraordinary meetings may also be held when requested by at least one third of the Parties.

The Secretariat of the CITES Convention

It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, is administered by the United Nations and financed by contributions from the Parties. The mission of the Secretariat is to act as liaison agent for the exchange of information between the different States and with other authorities and organizations.

According to the Convention it is necessary to request export permits in the country of origin and import prior to the exchange of any specimen. Also, the issuance of certificates for the planned exceptions and the application of stricter national legislations is contemplated, as is the case of the European Union.

The system established by CITES allows all merchandise to be duly documented and to know the origin, destination and commercialization reasons.

However, the Convention considers other control actions necessary, such as:

• The appointment of one or more Administrative Authorities.
• The appointment of one or more Scientific Authorities.
• The establishment of the entry points authorized by each Country Party.

As its name suggests, international trade is any exchange of goods that takes place between two different economic states or regions .

International trade is the main engine of the world economy. In general, each country specializes in a type of activities that may be conditioned by aspects such as the climate, geology or culture of a particular place.

As an example, it is much more logical that a country like Colombia grows coffee because this plant needs a lot of water and a high temperature to develop. In this case, the tropical climate of Colombia is optimal for the cultivation of this plant. On the contrary, it would be very difficult to grow coffee in Iceland , although, the seas of the Arctic Ocean of which the island is surrounded are suitable for fishing for cod due to its low temperatures.

When Iceland needs coffee, it probably imports the product from other countries, such as Colombia. The same will happen with Icelandic cod in Colombia.

Exceptions of the term ‘International trade’

In terms of the sector, the exchange of goods that occurs within the same economic region is not considered foreign trade (or exports) . This is the case, for example, of commercial operations that occur within the European Union or the Eurasian Customs Union.

Let’s take the case that our company, based in Barcelona, ​​is selling skateboards to several stores in Portugal. Upon commercial exchange within the European Union, this commercial operation would qualify as “intra-community sale” and not as export. In this case, no Customs Companies service is required.

Spain in numbers: data on foreign trade

When a country exports more than it imports, it is said that this country has a positive or favorable trade balance. A favorable trade balance is considered in economic terms as a good indicator in a country’s economy. After three decades of international trade defícit, in 2013 Spain managed to have a positive trade balance again. Specifically, the positive balance of the country was 7,130 million euros, a figure equivalent to 0.7% of GDP .

Data on the countries that most buy from Spain

The countries that imported the largest volume of Spanish products in the first half of 2012 are the following (in millions of euros):

– France 18,947.5 (-1.6%)

– Germany 11,822.7 (+ 7.4%)

– Italy 8,123.4 (-6.9%)

– Portugal 7,448.1 (-9.3%)

– United Kingdom 6,669.4 (-2.3%)

– US 4,284.9 (+ 1%)

In Spain, the body responsible for promoting the internationalization of Spanish companies is the ICEX Spain Export and Investment , a public entity under the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness.

International trade: free trade or protectionism?

As for international trade , countries can adopt 2 antagonistic positions : free trade , which promotes the free movement of goods between countries without the need to tax new taxes because they are foreign goods, or protectionism , which imposes trade barriers with so to protect sectors of the internal economy of a country.

The EFTA, example of free trade in Europe

The EFTA (European Free Trade Association or European Free Trade Agreement) is an agreement that came into force in 1960 and whose current members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

The CAP of the European Union, an example of protectionism

The CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) is a clear example of protectionism within the framework of internal trade of the European Union. The CAP favors the cultivation and commercialization of agricultural products within the EU. For this, the CAP imposes high taxes on all agricultural products that come from outside the EU market and lowers the price of domestic products through public subsidy to farmers.

Agents participating in a foreign trade process

1) The exporting company.

2) The Freight Forwarder.

3) The Customs Agency:

4) The transport company:

5) Customs administrations of the respective countries:

Where to study Foreign Trade in Spain? The best schools

Due to the boom in international trade, at present there are many universities and faculties that offer to study international trade in Spain.

Among the best universities that:

ESADE : This business school in Barcelona is an institution in the framework of economic studies and therefore one of the best options when it comes to training in international trade.

IESE : This Barcelona school also enjoys great prestige when it comes to international trade.

In the framework of the European Union (EU) the most important tariffs are those of importation, which are in charge of evaluating the merchandise that comes from another country. In the EU, these tariffs are governed by the Binding Tariff Information (BTI) system.

In this way, the products that are going to be exported are classified, identifying themselves with the corresponding tariff. The request can only refer to a specific type of merchandise and can be justified before any EU customs administration.

But, in order to access this information, you must first ask the customs authorities of the country to which you are going to export.

How to request the BTI?
The BTI request must be made to the customs authorities of the State in which the interested party wishes to enforce that document or before the Member State in which it is established.

Nowadays it can be addressed both online and in writing and, in Spain, to the competent authority, which is the Department of Customs and Special Taxes. In the case of doing it through the Internet, it must be done through the website of the Tax Agency (AEAT).

There are some factors to consider when making the request:

– BTI requests can only be submitted for imports or exports that will be made.

– BTIs can not be used for imports or exports that have already been produced or have procedures in progress.

– A BTI request must be made for each of the products to be exported .

– A BTI application can only be used by the owner or an agent acting on their behalf.

– The information provided in box 2 (full name and address of the owner) and 9 (commercial name of the merchandise). They are confidential and protected by professional secrecy.

– The application is free , but at customs you can have some expenses, such as analysis, expert advice or the return of samples.

– It is possible to request the holders that the attached documents be translated into the official language of the country to which they are exported.

– This may cancel the application in cases where there are incomplete or wrong indications.

Validity of the BTI

The term of validity of a BTI is 6 years , as indicated in Article 12.4 of the Customs Code , unless certain circumstances already contemplated that annul its validity, such as:

a) That does not conform to the right established by the publication of a classification regulation that may derive from the use of the information contained in this document.

b) When it is incompatible with the official interpretation of the nomenclature, because of:

– A modification of the explanatory notes of the Combined Nomenclature.

– Judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU.

– Declaration of the Customs Code Committee.

– Modification of Harmonized System notes.

– Publication of the OMA classification criteria.

– Revocation based on article 9 of the CA.

The revocation or modification of the decision will be effective:

– On the date of application of the measures incompatible with your BTI, when these are community

– On the date of publication by the Commission in the C series of the Official Journal of the European Union, when it refers to international measures.

– When the owner is notified in any other case.

If firm and definitive contracts for the purchase or sale of a good have been carried out based on a BTI that is subsequently revoked, it can continue to be used in certain cases for a period of 6 months.

To use it in this period you will have to notify the customs, providing the documents that justify the existence of such commercial contracts.