While Exporting Products from Georgia to the EU, in Order to Take Advantage of Benefits
1.
In frames of the Association Agreement signed between Georgia and the EU in 2014, Georgian entrepreneurs benefit from a preferential trade regime when exporting products and services to the EU – the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, which increases the accessibility of the EU market for Georgian entrepreneurs and gives them the opportunity to benefit from abolished customs duties when importing.
2.
While exporting products from Georgia to the EU, in order to take advantage of benefits provided by agreement, it is important to determine product’s Georgian origin.
3.
The Certificate of Origin for a product (movement certificate) is issued by the Revenue Service. To receive a Certificate of Origin,an applicationand required documentation can be submittedby handto the customs departmentof the Revenue Service, and/or other structural units of the department, or electronically via the webpage
The Revenue Service will issue Certificate of Origin no later than in 3 work days followingapplication submission, free of charge. The certificate is active for 4 months after issuing, and it should be presented to the importing country within this period.
4.
From September 1st, 2014, Georgian entrepreneurs can export their products to the EU without customs duties.
As of today, only 3 regimes apply to products of Georgian origin exported in the EU – “Entry Price”, active only for 0.3% of the tariff line products, the “Anti-Circumvention Mechanism”, active for 3% of the tariff line products, and the “Tariff Quota”, activeonly for one product – garlic. It is determined that within a calendar year only 220 tons of garlic can be imported in the EU without tariffs.
5.
When exporting products of animal and non-animal origin from Georgia to the EU, the export product must pass conformity assessment (certification), which determines the conformity of the product with EU standards, and subsequently issues the certification.
Two kinds of certificates are issued for products of animal and non-animal origin – Veterinary and Phytosanitary Certificates, issued by the National Food Agency of the Ministry of Agriculture of Georgia, on the basis of analyses conducted by accredited laboratories.
The Veterinary Certificate is issued for both live animals and products of animal origin, on basis of procedures of veterinary control.
The Phytosanitary Certificate is issued for plants and products of plant origin (fruit, vegetables, etc.), after assessing documents accompanying the products, researching information on assessments carried out at the place of origin, visual assessment of the product, and the collection of samples for analysis in cases of probable violation.
6.
In order to export to the EU, the product must go through conformity assessment, after which the entrepreneur will place the CE Mark on the product, which signifies the products’ compliance with the EU directives. For certain industrial products, the CE mark is not required. The conformity assessment is carried out by the accredited or authorized conformity assessment agencies and individuals. An agency/individual can become accredited by LEPL Unified National Body of Accreditation” – Accreditation Center. A list of accredited agencies can be viewed at this website
In order to export industrial products to the EU, a Certificate of Origin is also required.
7.
More information about mandatory export procedures from Georgia into the EU, including additional information about the rules of origin, is available at the website
8.
This video tutorial was created with support of the EU-GIZproject - “SME Development and DCFTA in Georgia”, which is implemented in the framework of the EU4Business Initiative.