Glossary of EU import rules

The economic operator established in the EU that carries product-safety duties for goods placed on the EU market: named on the product, holding the technical file, answerable to authorities. Required by GPSR since 13 December 2024. Full answer.

An EU-established entity appointed in writing by a non-EU manufacturer to carry specific duties under a product regime — used across GPSR, the packaging regulation and the product directives. Full answer.

An EU entity appointed by a non-EU chemical manufacturer to carry its REACH registration duties, removing that duty from every EU importer it covers. If your supplier has one, you are a downstream user. Full answer.

Economic Operators Registration and Identification: the customs number every EU trader needs to import or export. One per legal entity, issued by the home member state. Full answer.

The EU’s VAT Information Exchange System — the free official check of whether a VAT number is valid for intra-EU trade. Verification, not a quality statement. Full answer.

The EU’s integrated tariff database: the duty rate, VAT and measures per product code. The authoritative answer to “what does importing this cost”. Full answer.

Binding Tariff Information: an official EU ruling fixing your product’s customs code for three years. The cure for classification doubt. Full answer.

Import One-Stop Shop: the scheme for collecting VAT on imports under €150 direct to consumers, declared in one monthly return instead of at the border. Full answer.

One-Stop Shop: the VAT scheme for EU distance sales — declare B2C VAT for all member states in one local return. Full answer.

Extended Producer Responsibility: national registration, fee and reporting regimes for packaging, electronics, batteries and more — per member state, with no EU-wide register. Full answer.

Not the factory: whoever first places the product or its packaging on that national market. An importer selling into Germany is the German producer. Full answer.

The EU General Product Safety Regulation (2023/988), applying since 13 December 2024 to nearly all consumer products — including the Responsible Person requirement marketplaces enforce by suspending listings. Full answer.

The documentation proving a product meets its rules — design, tests, risk assessment. Under GPSR kept for ten years and held by the Responsible Person. Full answer.

The manufacturer’s signed statement that a product meets all applicable EU requirements; travels with CE-marked products and their file. Full answer.

The maker’s declaration that a product meets applicable EU directives — conformity, not safety, and not a certificate. A “CE certificate” from a supplier is not a thing. Full answer.

The UK’s own marking regime post-Brexit; GB continues to recognise CE for most goods while Northern Ireland follows EU rules under the Windsor Framework. Full answer.

The status needed to import 50 tonnes or more of CBAM goods per year — iron, steel, aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, electricity — in place before crossing the threshold. Full answer.

Under the Omnibus amendment, under 50 tonnes of CBAM goods per importer per calendar year is fully out of scope — no reporting, no certificates. The running total is your own watch. Full answer.

The information document for lower-risk waste shipments inside the EU — on paper until 31 December 2026, then filed in DIWASS two working days ahead. Full answer.

The EU’s digital waste shipment application system, live since 21 May 2026 for notifications and from 2027 for Annex VII. Full answer.

The claim that goods qualify for a lower or zero duty under an FTA or scheme — proven with documents, not assumed, and the difference between 0% and full rate. Full answer.

An extra import duty on goods sold below normal value, hitting specific countries and producers — stacked on top of the ordinary duty and calculated over the same customs value. Full answer.

Items with civilian and military uses, controlled under their own EU regime with export licences — separate from sanctions screening. Full answer.

The VAT carousel where a seller charges VAT, disappears, and the buyer reclaims it — the reason an invalid VIES number on an invoice is a red flag, not a formality. Full answer.