Exporting from the European Union: securing your formalities and your proofs of origin

On the export side, it is rarely Belgian customs that holds you up: it is a customer refusing the goods for want of the right certificate, or the authorities in the destination country. We prepare the documents and the evidence before the container leaves.

When this page concerns you

• Your foreign customer requires a certificate of origin or a preferential proof you have never issued.
• You export to a country linked to the European Union by a trade agreement and you do not know whether your products qualify.
• Your goods fall under export control: dual use, cultural goods, waste, sanctioned products or destinations.
• You are exporting outside the EU for the first time and your internal procedures were written for imports only.
• A shipment was refused or delayed on arrival and you want to understand why before the next one.

What we review

• Export tariff classification and its consistency with the one you use on the import side.
• Preferential origin: the rule to be met per product, cumulation, sufficient processing, and the proofs you are genuinely able to produce.
• Registered exporter (REX) status and its correct use under the relevant agreements.
• Export controls: dual use, sanctions, licences, restrictions by destination and by counterparty.
• The export declaration and its consistency with your commercial and transport documents.
• The documents your customer expects on arrival, often more demanding than those required by the European Union.

What you receive

• A product-by-product matrix: applicable origin, proof to be provided, document to be issued and by whom.
• The list of documents to prepare for each destination, with their issuer and the time needed to obtain them.
• A corrective action plan wherever a proof of origin is missing or would not survive an audit.

What is included, and what is not

The European Union – Brazil corridor and Mercosur

The agreement between the European Union and Mercosur changes the rules of origin and the duties applicable to a large number of products. We follow this corridor closely, in Portuguese as well as in French, and we know what the Brazilian authorities actually expect from a European exporter — which is not always what the European text suggests.

Frequently asked questions

Can you issue our certificates of origin?

No. Certificates of origin are issued by chambers of commerce, or drawn up by you under registered exporter status. We build the supporting file, check eligibility product by product and guide you through the application — the signature remains yours.

Our freight forwarder already handles exports. What do you add?

Your freight forwarder files the declaration from what you send them. They check neither your preferential origin, nor your eligibility under trade agreements, nor what your customer will require on arrival. That is precisely where we step in.

Do you work on export controls and sanctions?

Yes, on the preparatory side: identifying products subject to licensing, checking destinations and counterparties, and building the application file. Authorisation decisions belong to the competent authorities.

The files we handle

We do not publish our clients' names: customs compliance touches sensitive commercial data, and discretion is part of the service. Here, however, is the nature of the files that pass through our hands.

Some of these are full assignments, others one-off interventions or collaborations with other firms on the parts they do not cover. We prefer to say so rather than display logos.