EU reintroduces protective quotas for individual countries
On July 1, the European Commission lifted the 15% limit of the EU protective quota for angles, shapes and sections of the 17th category. Quotas for the UK, Turkey and Korea will also be re-introduced for specific countries and the remaining quota will be restored without limitation, Kallanish notes.
The 15% limit was introduced recently due to the excessive crowding out of some traditional suppliers. However, as the Commission notes, this country limit affects the traditional trade flows of certain trading partners, limiting their access to duty-free volumes to levels below their historical trade levels.
As part of the upcoming changes, country-specific quota holders will not have access to the remaining quota during the last quarter of the protection year.
This measure applies to HS codes 7216 31 10, 7216 31 90, 7216 32 11, 7216 32 19, 7216 32 91, 7216 32 99, 7216 33 10 and 7216 33 90. Ukraine will have a quarterly quota exceeding 31,600 tons, Great Britain - 27,500 tons, Turkey - 22,800 tons and Korea - 5,000 tons, with a remaining quota of 12,555 tons.
The validity period of this measure will last until June 30, 2026, and the level of liberalization will be 0.1% per year.
Consultations on the change will be held either in person in Brussels or in a virtual setting from June 12 to 19.
Adam Smith Poland
kallanish.com