Customs

In this part of the CEFTA Web Portal you will find the most important customs import/export procedures separately for each CEFTA Economy. Procedures include but are not limited to: 1.The location of customs clearance offices; 2.The working hours in each office; 3.The procedures to follow based on the destination of your goods; 4.The documents to present to customs authorities for obtaining approval for the relevant destination; 5.The officially approved documents given to you by customs authorities in each case; 6.The procedures followed by customs authorities for calculating the customs value of your goods; 7.The definition of rules of origins determining customs preferential or non preferential tariffs; 8.The Free Trade Agreements signed by each CEFTA Economy with the other signatories. In cases where the final destination of goods is one of the CEFTA Economies, please refer to the import procedures section of this Economy on this portal. In cases where goods transit through different economies before arriving to their final destination, please refer to the transit procedures of these economies. If goods exit one of the CEFTA Economies included in this site, please refer to the export procedures for the relevant Economy.




Laws and regulations

Inward processing in the Republic of Macedonia is implemented in accordance with the Customs Code (articles 97-104), Official Gazette 39/0504/08, 158/10 and 44/11, the Customs Code Implementing Regulation (articles 311-333, 345-342) and the Law on VAT (article 27). Customs Administration of the Republic of Macedonia has implemented an electronic system for issuing export permits for inward processing.

Subject

Inward processing is a procedure for relief of the payment of import duties and VAT for raw materials, semi-finished goods and ancillary materials imported for the purposes of processing within the Republic of Macedonia. Following the completion of the processing, the obtained finished products are exported/re-exported. The procedure is applicable for all types of goods. The inward processing procedure shall be authorized provided it creates the most favourable conditions for export/re-export of the finished products.

Procedure

Inward processing may include activities of processing, modification and completion, and the imported goods may be used as goods that allow or facilitate the production process, with the exception of fuels, lubricants, equipment and tools.
Upon obtaining the authorization for inward processing, the goods shall be subject to customs procedures that apply to the regular import of goods. In addition to the single administrative document, the following documents shall be mandatorily submitted: the underlying invoice used for declaration of the customs value of the goods, declaration on the customs value of the goods, copy of the authorization for the inward processing procedure, other supporting documents (licenses, etc.) and a security ensuring the payment of the customs debt (in the case of application of the suspended payment system). In addition to the regular customs procedure, in certain cases specific procedures are applied, as laid down in detail in the Regulation on inward processing.

Authorization

The authorization for inward processing is issued by the Customs Administration of the Republic of Macedonia, upon a written application by a legal or natural person that is carrying out the procedure or acts in the capacity of organizer of the procedure. The person has to be established or have a residence in the Republic of Macedonia. A prerequisite for the issuing of the license for temporary import is that the finished products obtained by the inward processing of the imported goods have to be intended for export/re-export. The applicant mandatorily indicates which of the two systems of payment of the customs duties mentioned below is to be applied. The Customs Administration of the Republic of Macedonia is obligated to respond to the application within a period of 20 days following the receipt of the full documentation.

Period for export or re-export of obtained goods

The term of validity of the authorization for import for the purposes of inward processing is 36  months at the most, and for specific goods shorter terms are prescribed. Once initiated, the inward processing procedure should be completed within a period not longer than 12 months. In accordance with the nature of the goods, the stipulated period of time for completion of the inward processing of certain goods is shorter. The Regulation on inward processing provides a detailed description of the goods that are subject of shorter terms for processing.

Systems/methods used for calculation of import duties

The import for the purposes of inward processing shall be subject to two methods in terms of import duties and VAT: suspension system and drawback system. The suspended payment implies that import duties and VAT are levied, but paid only after the completion of the inward processing procedure. The goods that are subject to the system of suspended payment shall not be released in free circulation in the Republic of Macedonia. The drawback system involves a full payment of the duties in the case of import for the purposes of inward processing, implying that the goods could be released in free circulation. After completion of the inward processing procedure and export/re-export of the goods, the system provides for reimbursement of the funds paid for exported/re-exported goods.

The Regulation on inward processing  provides a detailed description of both systems and the prerequisites to be met for their application.

Documents, certificates, used during inward processing

Customs Code
Amendments to the Customs Code (Official Gazette 04/08)
Regulation on the Implementation of the Customs Code
Regulation on inward processing
Written application for approval for inward processing

Documents available only in Macedonian language:


Закон за ДДВ на Република Македонија (Law on VAT)
Измени и дополнувањa на царинскиот закон/Amendments to the Customs Code (Official Gazette 158/10)
Измени и дополнувањa на царинскиот закон/Amendments to the Customs Code (Official Gazette 44/11)
Измени и дополнувањa на царинскиот закон/Amendments to the Customs Code (Official Gazette 53/11)
Измени и дополнувањa на царинскиот закон/Amendments to the Customs Code (Official Gazette 11/12)

Contact

MINISTRY OF FINANCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
– CUSTOMS ADMINISTRATION
Lazar Licenoski 13
1000 Skopje
Macedonia

tel. +389 23 116 188
fax: +389 23 237 832
e-mail: info@customs.gov.mk
web: www.carina.mk