As of 1 May 2016, the new European Community Customs Code came into effect for all member states, including Belgium. However, customs has allowed us to continue working with the old system provided that our End-Use Authorisation or T5 permit is still valid, specifically up to October 2018. It came to our attention that the permits of a number of clients had already expired, in many cases without the possibility of extension. We recently received more information about the new system and the required TORO permit – so it’s time for an update.

An importer such as Pittman still requires End-Use Authorisation. Buyers within the EU must in turn possess a Transfer of Rights and Obligations or TORO permit. Since we at Pittman also purchase goods in the EU, we must also have both permits.

This diagram gives an overview of the new system:

To keep things simple, we will continue to refer to the goods within this new system as T5 goods. The same tariffs and tariff quotas – i.e. the amounts for which no import duties apply – remain in place. Each month, customs expects an overview of outstanding goods. Customs applies a deposit of 10% of the regular import duty on any outstanding goods with a T5 or TORO permit.

TORO PERMIT REQUIRED

From now on, whenever we as an importer want to sell goods on to a client, we are obligated to present a TORO permit. Our clients must possess the same permit.

Should our clients not possess a TORO permit, we ourselves must figure out the correct procedure and check whether end-use authorisation is required. At Pittman Seafoods, we have decided to sell TORO-possessing clients goods requiring End-Use Authorisation.

NEW DOCUMENTS AVAILABLE

The old T5 document can no longer be converted into a T2 document for intra-community transit. The previous blue document has now been replaced by the TORO document.

As soon as we have the email addresses of the authorised offices, we will personally inform our clients.

Clients who still have a valid End-Use Authorisation may continue to work with the old blue documents. Please note: these no longer serve as official customs documents and are used only to prove the movement of goods. Suppliers with TORO authorisation provide us with the new TORO document, with the provision that they themselves remain responsible for the correct processing or resale.

Would you like to know more? Contact Aline Legrand (aline.legrand@pittmanseafoods.com)