Next round of EU duty reductions due for January

WITH THE next round of import duty reductions under the SA/European Union (EU) free trade agreement (FTA) due to be implemented from January 1 next year, importers should be busy checking their import tariff classifications to be ready to take advantage of the lower rates from day one, according to Riaan de Lange of SA Tariff and Trade Solutions. Although we are now into the seventh year of the 12- year phase-in period before duties are totally eliminated in 2012, companies still stand to benefit from duty reductions right across the list of qualifying products. But these will vary with the exact classifications of each tariff item, and importers should be sure that they know precisely where their goods fall to be able to take advantage of the various reductions, De Lange added. Qualifying goods from Europe will be eligible for the reduced rates of duty if they are cleared for domestic consumption in SA from January 1, and importers who want to benefit from this will have to time the customs clearance of their deliveries to fall on-or-after that date. While anything that arrives early can be held in a bonded warehouse, and only cleared after the deadline date, De Lange warns that importers should balance up the cost of this storage and handling against the savings they expect from reduced duty rates.