On the entry into force of the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and its Member States, on the one hand, and the Islamic Republic of Iran, on the other hand

Please note for foreign economic activity entities that the Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union (hereinafter referred to as the EAEU) and its member states, on the one hand, and the Islamic Republic of Iran (hereinafter referred to as Iran), on the other hand, dated December 25, 2023 (hereinafter referred to as the Agreement), which replaces the Interim Agreement leading to the establishment of a free trade area between the EAEU and its member states, on the one hand, and Iran, on the other hand, dated May 17, 2018, has entered into force since May 15, 2025.

The Agreement is the basis for liberalizing and simplifying trade in goods between the Parties, i.e., it establishes a free trade area by granting the Parties, subject to the conditions defined by the Agreement, a preferential regime involving exemption from payment of import customs duties or reduction of import customs duty rates for goods originating from the Agreement's participating countries.

The Agreement, like the Interim Agreement, provides for the establishment of import customs duty rates for goods originating from Iran. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 2.3 of the Agreement, tariff rate quotas have been established for certain types of goods originating from Iran.

Both agreements stipulate that for the purpose of granting preferential tariff treatment, goods must meet the requirements of the Rules of Origin of Goods provided for in Chapters 6 of the agreements.

In accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 6.23 of the Agreement, the customs authorities of the importing country grant tariff preferences for originating goods if the following conditions are met:

the imported goods meet the criteria for determining the origin of goods established in Article 6.3 of the Agreement;

the declarant ensures compliance with the requirements of Chapter 6 of the Agreement (including the "direct consignment" requirement);

the origin of the goods is confirmed by a document of origin in accordance with Article 6.15 of the Agreement.

The document of origin of goods, in accordance with Article 6.2 of the Agreement, is a certificate of origin of goods or a declaration of origin of goods.

Unlike the Provisional Agreement, the Agreement provides for the possibility of confirming the origin of goods not only by a certificate of origin of goods, but also by a declaration of origin of goods, as one of the conditions for granting preferential treatment.

The procedure and cases for submitting a declaration of origin of goods for the purpose of granting tariff preferences are provided for by Article 6.17 of the Agreement.

Thus, a declaration of origin of goods can be submitted for the purpose of confirming the origin of small batches of goods, the customs value of which does not exceed 5000 euros. A declaration of origin of goods is a statement of origin of goods made by the manufacturer or exporter on any commercial document relating to the goods, in accordance with the sample established in Annex 4 to the Agreement.

At the same time, paragraph 5 of Article 6.17 of the Agreement grants the customs authorities of the importing country the right to request a certificate of origin of goods if they have reasonable doubts about the reliability of the information declared in the declaration of origin of goods, or the compliance of the goods with the criteria for determining the origin of goods.

You can find more detailed information on the text of the legislative acts mentioned in this message on the official website of the Eurasian Economic Commission (https://eec.eaeunion.org/comission/department/catr/ttr/iran-pref.php).