Ukraine, EU to apply alternative rules of origin to goods move across border starting Dec 1

MOSCOW. Nov 28 (Interfax) - Ukraine and the European Union will start applying alternative rules of origin while moving goods across their borders starting December 1, 2023, Ukrainian media have reported with reference to the State Customs Service's social media post.

"The alternative rules of origin include certain innovations compared to the effective edition of the rules of origin under the Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin," it said.

The agreement adds new terms such as 'fungible products', 'maximum content of non-originating materials', 'groups', and 'positions' to the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System.

The alternative rules update the list of goods fully received in the convention member states.

The tolerance rule will be based on two criteria, i.e. the weight of agricultural produce listed in Groups 2, 4-24 of the Ukrainian Classification of Goods for Foreign Economic Activity (UCGFEA), except for fish from Group 16, and the cost of industrial products.

The new rules simplify the procedure for confirming the origin of goods. The number of documents that must be submitted for exports to the EU has been reduced to two from four, namely the EUR.1 certificate and the proof of origin. In particular, submitting a supplier's declaration and a long-term supplier's declaration would be enough to confirm the origin of materials or feedstock used in the production of finished products.

The document also simplifies the mechanism for granting approved exporter status. Such status may be granted to any exporter regardless of the number of product shipments. It extends the term of validity of documents confirming the origin of goods to ten from four months. It also permits making out an origin declaration retrospectively within two years after importation of relevant products.

It also allows for breaking up the shipments of goods in the transit country when the goods are under customs control.

The customs authorities of the convention member states are entitled to provide each other with specimen impressions of stamps used in their customs offices and the authorization numbers of approved exporters directly rather than via the European Commission, as before.

The State Customs Service called on declarants to bear in mind that goods will enjoy tariff preferences for the payment of duties and will acquire preferential origin from Ukraine or the EU subject to the presentation of one of two documents confirming the origin of goods.

These documents are a EUR.1 movement certificate, which is supposed to contain the TRANSITIONAL RULES wording in English in Section 7, or a declaration of origin drawn up in line with the description given in Annex III to the Alternative Rules.