Proof of origin for exports to the EU: EUR.1 or origin declaration

This article explains how an exporter from BiH (food processor, producer of honey, wine, brandy, cheese, cured meat and similar) proves that goods have preferential origin when exporting to the EU. It applies to exporters who sell goods in the EU and claim preferential duty, including for smaller consignments.

In short

• Preferential origin is different from the ordinary "certificate of origin" issued by a chamber of commerce. The Indirect Taxation Authority (Uprava za indirektno oporezivanje, UIO) deals only with preferential origin.
• The proof is either a movement certificate EUR.1 (issued by customs) or an origin declaration on an invoice, delivery note or other commercial document.
• Any exporter may make the declaration for a consignment up to EUR 6,000. For higher values you need approved exporter status.
• The proof is valid for 10 months from issue. You keep it with supporting documents for at least 3 years.
• From 1 January 2026 only the rules of the revised Pan-Euro-Mediterranean (PEM) Convention apply. For most agri-food products up to 15% of net weight may be non-originating materials.

Who it applies to

Exporters claiming preferential treatment in the EU under the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, whatever the size of the consignment. Exceptions where no proof is needed: non-commercial small packages between private persons up to EUR 500, and travellers' personal luggage up to EUR 1,200. The same proofs are used in CEFTA and other agreements, each with its own protocol, so for other markets check the specific agreement.

What to do

1. Establish that the goods originate. Goods originate if wholly obtained in BiH (for example honey or fresh produce from your holding), sufficiently worked or processed under the product list, or made originating through cumulation (materials from the EU or another PEM country). Washing, packing, simple mixing or labelling are not sufficient processing.
2. Check non-originating materials. Imported materials (for example sugar, flour, oil, spices) may make up at most 15% of the net weight of the finished product for products of chapters 2 and 4 to 24 of the tariff (except processed fishery products of chapter 16), but never more than the limit set in the product list for that product. For other products the limit is 15% of the ex-works price.
3. Choose the proof.
   • EUR.1: submit a written application and the completed certificate at the customs office where you clear the export. Customs checks the documents and endorses the certificate. It is issued once the export has actually taken place or is ensured. Since 1 January 2025 the Convention also allows electronic issue of EUR.1; ask your customs office how to submit it.
   • Origin declaration: type, print or stamp it on the invoice, delivery note or another commercial document that describes the goods in sufficient detail. The exporter declares that the products are of preferential origin, naming the origin. The exact prescribed text is on the UIO page. The declaration carries place and date and the exporter's original handwritten signature. An approved exporter may be exempt from signing only with a written undertaking to customs accepting full responsibility for such declarations.
4. Keep your evidence. Keep the application or a copy of the declaration, plus documents on the origin of materials, for at least 3 years. Customs may ask for verification later.
5. If you export often, consider approved exporter status (below). A new exporter should first use EUR.1 or the declaration up to EUR 6,000.
6. Mistakes can be fixed afterwards: an EUR.1 can be issued retrospectively within two years of export, and an origin declaration can be made out after export if presented in the importing country within two years of importation.

Approved exporter

Status is granted by the UIO Customs Sector. Conditions in the Instruction: you are a producer or trader of those products, you have already exported them and given accurate origin information, you have no unpaid indirect tax debt, and you employ at least one person who passes a knowledge check on rules of origin. The approval is issued within 60 days of a complete application, for an indefinite period, and you write your authorisation number (for example BA/200/19) into the declaration.

Deadlines and amounts

• Threshold for a declaration without status: up to EUR 6,000 per consignment.
• Validity of the proof: 10 months from issue.
• UIO administrative fees for approved exporter status: KM 10.00 for the application and KM 100.00 for the approval. We did not find the EUR.1 fee on UIO pages, so check it at the customs office.

Where to go

• The UIO customs office where you clear exports (for East Herzegovina, check the nearest office on the UIO site).
• Approved exporter application: Uprava za indirektno oporezivanje BiH (Indirect Taxation Authority), Sektor za carine, Odsjek za tarifu, vrijednost i porijeklo, Bana Lazarevića bb, 78000 Banja Luka.
• UIO: Origin of goods

Laws and sources

• UIO, Porijeklo robe (forms, fees, declaration, approved exporter list)
• Decision No 1/2023 of the EU-BiH Stabilisation and Association Council, Protocol 2 (OJ L 2024/245)
• Decision No 1/2023 of the PEM Convention Joint Committee, revised rules (OJ L 2024/390; Službeni glasnik BiH, Međunarodni ugovori, br. 8/24)
• European Commission: PEM Convention and cumulation notice
• Uputstvo o uvjetima i načinu sticanja statusa ovlaštenog izvoznika (Službeni glasnik BiH br. 73/19)

Note: cumulation with EU materials depends on the European Commission notice listing between which countries it applies; check the current notice on the Commission page above or with customs before relying on it.