ImportRules

Selling to the EU from Indonesia

Every claim on this page links to the full answer with the regulation and article on the main guide — nothing here is new or looser than the official text.

You export from Indonesia — Jakarta, Surabaya, the industrial zones of West Java — into the European Union: garments, footwear, furniture, electronics, palm-oil derivatives. Since 13 December 2024 almost every consumer product sold in the EU needs a Responsible Person inside the EU. This page answers the questions Indonesian exporters actually ask.

The questions, with answers

Is there an EU–Indonesia trade agreement? concluded, not in force

Not yet in force. Negotiations concluded in September 2025 after nearly ten years, and the agreement is in ratification. Until it applies, your goods pay the ordinary tariff or the GSP rate where that applies. It is worth knowing the date it starts, because a duty that disappears changes a landed cost overnight.

Whether a preference actually applies is decided per product by the origin rule in the agreement, not by where the goods were shipped from. Rules of origin works that through, and the goods code decides which rule you are under. A claim without valid proof is recovered from the importer, three years back, with interest.

Source: EU–Indonesia CEPA: negotiations concluded September 2025, ratification pending. Checked: 4 September 2026.

I sell from Indonesia to the EU. Do I need an EU Responsible Person?

Yes. The Responsible Person must be an economic operator established inside the EU — an Indonesian company cannot take the role. Most Indonesian exporters appoint a paid service, €200–800 per year per catalogue.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/988, Article 16. Checked: 4 September 2026.

I export palm oil or palm-oil derivatives. What applies?

Palm oil is on the EUDR deforestation list: plot geolocation and deforestation-free proof required (delayed to 30 December 2026 for large operators). REACH applies to chemical substances. Packaging around it triggers EPR per member state. And if it reaches consumers, GPSR on top.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1111 (EUDR); Regulation (EC) 1907/2006 (REACH). Checked: 4 September 2026.

My product has CE from our factory. Is GPSR automatic?

No — CE and GPSR are separate. A product can be CE-marked and still lack the Responsible Person that GPSR requires, and still get its listing suspended. Many Indonesian manufacturers carry CE for footwear, toys or electronics — the GPSR layer comes on top.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/988 alongside the CE directives. Checked: 4 September 2026.

Next steps

Appoint a Responsible Person before your listings are suspended, not after — restoring a suspended listing takes longer than setting one up. The full guide covers GPSR, REACH, EPR and CBAM, each with regulation, article and the date it was last verified.

Selling into several EU countries at once? Labelling and warnings must be right per country — that is in the labelling answer.