CUSTOMS & EXCISE DIVISION EPA AWARENESS AND SENSITIZATION PROGRAMME FOODS AND BEVERAGE SECTOR 23 MARCH 2011

PREFERENCE CONDITIONS Paragraph 1 of Annex II of the EPA provides that customs duties of the EC shall be entirely eliminated on all products originating in a CARIFORUM State, except those of Chapter 93 of the Harmonized System, upon the entry into force of EPA.

THE AIM OF PREFERENCE TO GIVE A COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE TO INDIGENOUS PRODUCTS:  NATURAL RESOURCES  GROWN OR WHOLLY PRODUCED  SIGNIFICANT MANUFACTURING PROCESS

BENEFITS OF PREFERENTIAL ORIGIN MAKES CARIFORUM ‘ORIGINATING’ GOODS MORE COMPETITIVE

PREFERENCE CONDITIONS Exported goods must meet the rule of origin Direct Transportation conditions must be met

RULES OF ORIGIN Annex II to Protocol I – Article 6 The following products shall be considered as originating in the CARIFORUM States:  products wholly obtained in the CARIFORUM States within the meaning of Article 6 of this Protocol; For example: (a)mineral products extracted from their soil or from their seabed; (b)fruit and vegetable products harvested there; (c)live animals born and raised there; (d)products from live animals raised there;

RULES OF ORIGIN Annex II to Protocol I – Article 7 The following products shall be considered as originating in the CARIFORUM States:  Products which are not wholly obtained are considered to be sufficiently worked or processed when the conditions set out in the List in Annex II are fulfilled.

RULES OF ORIGIN

INSUFFICIENT WORKING OR PROCESSING Article 8 of Protocol I provides the operations which shall be considered as insufficient working or processing to confer the status of originating products, whether or not the requirements of Article 7 are satisfied Examples:  (a)operations to ensure the preservation of products in good condition during transport and storage;  (b)breaking-up and assembly of packages;  (c)washing, cleaning; removal of dust, oxide, oil, paint or other coverings;  (d)ironing or pressing of textiles;  (e)painting and polishing operations;

‘EX’ RULE ‘EX’ means the rules listed in columns 3 and 4 of the List to Annex II are exclusive to the goods described in column 2 ‘EX’ MEANS EXCLUSIVE

DIRECT TRANSPORT Direct transport  The preferential treatment provided for under the Agreement applies only to products which are transported directly between the territory of the CARIFORUM States and the EC Party without entering any other territory.  Products constituting one single consignment may be transported through other territories with, trans-shipment or temporary warehousing in such territories, provided that they remain under the surveillance of the customs authorities in the country of transit or warehousing and do not undergo operations other than unloading, reloading or any operation designed to preserve them in good condition.

MOVEMENT CERTIFICATE EUR I FORM The Movement Certificate EUR.1 Form is a declaration for products having preferential origin status that is needed for shipments to the EC. The administration of the Movement Certificate EUR 1 Form is governed by national legislation to give effect to the EPA Agreement, in particular, Protocol I, and shall be issued by the Comptroller of Customs & Excise

FREE ZONES Article 38 CARIFORUM States shall take all necessary steps to ensure that products traded under cover of a proof of origin and which in the course of transport use a free zone situated in their territory, are not substituted by other goods and do not undergo handling other than normal operations designed to prevent their deterioration. By means of an exemption to the provisions contained in paragraph 1, when originating products are imported into a free zone under cover of a proof of origin and undergo treatment or processing, the authorities concerned shall issue a new Movement Certificate EUR.1 at the exporter's request, if the treatment or processing undergone complies with the provisions of this Protocol.

COMPLETION OF THE FORM The EUR.1 has to be filled in by the exporter (or his representative). The Form is one (1) of the supporting documents of the “Export Declaration C82” submitted to the responsible Customs & Excise Office. In order to confirm the origin of the goods, supporting documents such as a supplier’s declaration may also be presented to the Customs & Excise Office

COMPLETION OF FORM The list of the Customs & Excise Offices shall be published on the official Web-site of the Division and forwarded to the TTMA, TTCC and Broker’s Board The list of the Approved Printers shall be published on the official Web-site of the Division and forwarded to the TTMA, TTCC and Broker’s Board

EXPORTER’S RESPONSIBILITY Ensure that all information provided is accurate:  Ensure that the details on the EUR 1 Form is the same as that of the invoice  Ensure that the Exporters Declaration is completed  Ensure that an original signature is placed in box 12 of the Form and the Exporters Declaration

PROCESSING OF THE EUR 1 FORM The Proper Officer will check the details of the Form against the invoice (and other supporting documents). In particular, he/she shall check whether the space reserved for the description of the products has been completed in such a manner as to exclude all possibility of fraudulent additions. Upon satisfaction, the Proper Officer will assign an official number to the Form and place his/her signature and stamp in box 11 of the Form

PROCESSING OF THE EUR 1 FORM The Stamping of the document means: (1)The document is destined for the EC (2)The Form has been correctly completed (3)There is no indication that the goods do not qualify for preference The Stamping of the Form does not: (1)Verify that the goods meet the rule of origin and thus qualify for preference

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Verification takes place upon request to the Comptroller of Customs & Excise by the Customs Authority of the EC when page 2 of the EUR I is completed The Comptroller shall take any steps necessary to verify the originating status of the products and the fulfilment of the other requirements of this Protocol. For this purpose, the Comptroller shall have the right to call for any evidence and to carry out any inspection of the exporter's accounts or any other checks considered appropriate

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