Another free trade area has seen a recent change: on February 1st 2025, the so-called Interim Trade Agreement (ITA) between the EU and Chile entered into force, replacing the previous Association Agreement between the EU and Chile from 2002. The ITA was published in OJ EU L/2024/2953 of 20 December 2024 and contains new rules that have been relevant for preferential trade between the EU and Chile since that date:
- The Approved Exporter (AE) system is replaced by the so-called REX system, i.e. the Registered Exporter system.
- The originating status of goods can therefore now only be demonstrated by means of a statement on origin or importer’s knowledge. Movement certificates EUR.1 and invoice declarations issued by an Approved Exporter are no longer accepted by customs authorities as of that date.
- This also applies to goods which, on 1 February 2025, are in transit, in temporary storage, in customs warehouses or in free zones.
The Interim Trade Agreement forms part of a broader Advanced Framework Agreement (see OJ EU L/2024/1759 of 30 July 2024) and contains the trade part, including the rules of origin, which is particularly important for businesses. It was separated from the remainder of the Agreement because, as the trade part, it falls within the exclusive competence of the EU and could therefore be ratified by the EU alone. The remaining part of the Framework Agreement primarily contains political framework provisions, including on human rights and sustainability. This part must be ratified by all EU Member States. This approach by the EU is quite common in connection with the ratification of free trade agreements, as it accelerates the entry into force of the trade part. Once the Framework Agreement enters into force following ratification by the Member States, the Interim Trade Agreement will cease to apply (Article 33.15 ITA).
The German customs administration provides information in ATLAS-Info 0714/25 on the document codes to be used from 1 February 2025 when claiming preferential treatment for goods originating in Chile. The European Commission provides information on the key elements of the ITA in a Guidance document (in English). In summary, this new agreement also contains typical features of modern agreements, including:
- Uniform use of the terms CC, CTH and MaxNOM
- Presentation of the rules of origin in two rather than four columns
- More frequent acquisition of originating status through a change of tariff heading
- Simplifications to the often complex combination rules for agricultural products
What Do Companies Need to Consider?
Companies supplying goods to Chile that are able and wish to confirm the European origin of the goods for their customers must be registered as Registered Exporters (REX), because statements on origin for consignments of originating products with a value exceeding EUR 6,000 may only be made out by a REX, stating the REX number.
Conversely, importers must ensure that the statement on origin for goods from Chile contains not only the reference number of the Chilean exporter, but also the exporter’s name and signature (see German Customs Specialist Article of 29 January 2025). When declaring the reference, the new document codes must be used.
Here, too, due to the more favourable rules of origin, it may be worthwhile, particularly for exporters, to reassess the origin of goods under the new rules where those goods did not acquire originating status under the previous rules.
