Commission Decision (EU) 2023/829 of 17 April 2023 on relief from import duties and VAT exemption on importation granted for goods to be distributed or made available free of charge to persons fleeing the military aggression in Ukraine and to persons in need in Ukraine (notified under document C(2023) 2490) (Only the Dutch, Estonian, French, German, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian and Slovak texts are authentic)

1 Goods shall be admitted free of import duties within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 and exempted from value added tax (VAT) on the imports within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Directive 2009/132/EC, where the following conditions are fulfilled: (a) the goods are intended for one of the following uses: (i) distribution free of charge by the bodies and organisations referred to in point (c) for the benefit of the persons fleeing the military aggression in Ukraine; (ii) being made available free of charge for the benefit of the persons fleeing the military aggression in Ukraine while remaining the property of the bodies and organisations referred to in point (c); (b) the goods satisfy the requirements laid down in Articles 75, 78, 79 and 80 of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 and Articles 52, 55, 56 and 57 of Directive 2009/132/EC; (c) the goods are imported for release for free circulation by, or on behalf of, State organisations including State bodies, public bodies and other bodies governed by public law or by, or on behalf of, charitable or philanthropic organisations approved by the competent authorities of the requesting Member States where the goods are intended to be used.

2 Goods referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article may also be admitted free from import duties within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009, and exempted from VAT upon importation within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Directive 2009/132/EC, in a requesting Member State other than the requesting Member State where the goods are intended to be used, provided that the goods are imported for release for free circulation by a State organisation, or other charitable or philanthropic organisation, that is approved by the competent authorities and carries out similar activities in the Member State where the goods are intended to be used.

3 The transfer of the goods between the two Member States shall be subject to prior notification by an approved charitable or philanthropic organisation to the competent authorities of the requesting Member State granting the import duty relief and VAT exemption.

4 Subject to prior notification to the competent authorities of the requesting Member State granting the relief from import duties, organisations benefiting from the relief from import duties and VAT exemption in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 may transfer goods referred to in paragraph 1, for which relief from import duties and VAT exemption has been granted, to Ukrainian State organisations, or charitable or philanthropic organisations approved by the Ukrainian competent authorities, for distribution of the goods free of charge to persons in need in Ukraine.

5 Subject to Articles 75 to 80 of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 and Articles 52 to 57 of Directive 2009/132/EC, goods shall also be admitted free of import duties within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 and exempted from VAT upon importation within the meaning of Article 2(1), point (a), of Directive 2009/132/EC where they are imported for release for free circulation by, or on behalf of, disaster relief agencies in order to meet their needs during the period they provide disaster relief to persons fleeing the military aggression in Ukraine.

Member States shall report information regarding the nature, quantities and value of the goods they have admitted free of import duties and VAT pursuant to Article 1 to the Commission on a monthly basis, on the fifteenth day of the month following the reporting month. By 31 March 2024, Member States shall communicate the following information to the Commission: (a) a list of organisations approved by the competent authorities in the Member States as referred to in Article 1(1), point (c); (b) the following consolidated information regarding the goods admitted free of import duties and VAT pursuant to Article 1: (i) the customs declaration number; (ii) the acceptance date of the customs declaration; (iii) the customs procedure code; (iv) the requesting Member State or the destination country where the goods were intended to be used; (v) the Combined Nomenclature code; (vi) the Integrated Tariff of the European Communities code (TARIC); (vii) the net mass; (viii) the supplementary unit, if applicable; (ix) the value of the goods; (x) the duty rate; (xi) the VAT rate; (xii) the amount of uncollected duties and VAT; (xiii) the origin of the goods; (xiv) the titles of bodies and organisations referred to in Article 1(1), point (c); (c) the measures taken to ensure compliance with Articles 78, 79 and 80 of Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009 and with Articles 55, 56 and 57 of Directive 2009/132/EC and, as appropriate, risk management and customs control measures taken pursuant to Article 46 of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council , with regard to goods falling within the scope of this Decision.

Article 1 shall apply to importations into Estonia, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Romania and Slovakia from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.

This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Estonia, the French Republic, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Poland, Romania and the Slovak Republic.