Glossary
What is economic customs procedures?
Economic customs procedures are arrangements that suspend or relieve import duty while goods are stored, processed or used temporarily, rather than entering free circulation. They exist to stop duty penalising trade that was never destined for the domestic market. |
Which procedures are included?
- Customs warehousing — duty suspended while goods are stored
- Inward processing — duty relieved on goods imported for manufacture and re-export
- Outward processing — relief on goods sent abroad for processing and returned
- Temporary admission — relief on goods entering for a limited time and purpose
- End use — a reduced rate where goods are put to a specified use
What authorisation involves
Each procedure needs approval before it can be used, usually backed by a guarantee and records that trace goods from entry to discharge. The common thread is discharge: every consignment entering a procedure must be accounted for leaving it, whether by export, transfer or release to free circulation.
Why the terminology varies
The EU groups these under ‘special procedures’ in the Union Customs Code, and the older ‘economic procedures’ label persists in industry use and in national guidance. Both describe the same family of duty-relief arrangements.
iCustoms tracks entry and discharge across every special procedure, so nothing sits unaccounted for. |
