A Dutch machine builder delivers a production line to a customer in Brazil. A supplier ships components for maintenance to the US and gets them back three weeks later. A specialized SME takes a demonstration model to a trade fair in Singapore. In manufacturing, the customs flow is often interwoven with origin, BOM management and temporary goods movements — three things that barely come up in regular import/export practice but are daily fare for you. DouaneDoc has worked for manufacturers for years and knows the difference between “Made in EU” as marketing and “Made in EU” as preferential origin.
What’s at play for Industry and manufacturers
In a factory with hundreds or thousands of article numbers, origin administration is an art in itself. One screw comes from Taiwan, another component from Poland, the semi-finished product is assembled in Germany and final assembly happens in the Netherlands. Are you then allowed to issue EUR.1 to a customer in South Korea? That depends on the specific product rules in the EU-Korea agreement per HS heading: sometimes a value addition of 40% suffices, sometimes a tariff change, sometimes both. Whoever interprets this wrongly exports for years under the wrong preferential rate — with recovery claims for the importer and reputation damage for you as seller.
On top of that comes supplier’s declaration management. For materials you purchase yourself, you need supplier’s declarations — for one-off shipments or, for ongoing relationships, a long-term supplier’s declaration (LTSD) valid for a maximum of two years. If an LTSD expires unnoticed, your EUR.1 flow stops until the supplier renews.
Finally there are the special goods flows. Temporary export for repair requires an export declaration with code for return, followed by a re-import declaration with outward processing so that only duties are levied on the repair value. An ATA Carnet replaces customs formalities for demonstration material, trade fair goods or tools during work abroad — handy, but only if the carnet is correctly closed in each country. And Approved Exporter status (in DMS: license simplified statement of origin) saves you the EUR.1 form per shipment, but demands demonstrably reliable origin management.
Documents Industry and manufacturers often need
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EUR.1 / EUR-MED — The preferential origin certificate for trade under free trade agreements. We test per HS heading whether the product is actually preferential.
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Statement of origin on invoice — For shipments under €6,000, or unlimited under Approved Exporter license.
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Long-term supplier’s declaration (LTSD) — For ongoing trade relationships with EU suppliers, max two years valid. We maintain an expiration tracking record.
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Approved Exporter application — License at Customs for simplified statements of origin. We support the application including process and risk management description.
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Temporary export / outward processing — For goods going abroad for repair, modification or processing and returning. Including INF form where applicable.
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Re-import declaration after repair — Declaration with correct code so only the repair value is taxed.
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ATA Carnet — Replacement for import declaration in countries that recognize the ATA convention, for fairs, demos and tools.
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Export declaration with dual-use license reference — For goods on the EU dual-use list (Regulation 2021/821).
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Non-preferential certificate of origin (KvK) — Often required by L/C, Egyptian, Algerian or Saudi importers.
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CBAM reporting and certificates — For import of steel, aluminum, cement, fertilizer, hydrogen — relevant for raw materials sourcing.
How we serve Industry and manufacturers
We step further into your operations than with the average importer. Specifically:
- Origin audit on your product portfolio. We review your article list against the specific product rules per agreement. Result: a matrix per destination country with green/orange/red status per SKU.
- LTSD administration. We maintain a central registry of your suppliers with expiration dates; you automatically get a heads-up two months before expiry.
- Approved Exporter process. We write the process document for you, arrange the application at Customs and support the audit interview.
- Standardized repair flow. For a service organization we set up a fixed flow: export with code “temporary”, tracking reference, automatic re-import with outward processing.
- ATA Carnet via KvK. We arrange the carnet, instruct your technician on correct stamping points and close the carnet at the KvK after return.
- Integration with your ERP. SAP, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Exact Globe, AFAS — we pull article and order data from your system so declarations align with your sales invoices.
See our EUR.1 origin certificate and ATA Carnet service for details.
Frequently asked questions from Industry and manufacturers
May we issue EUR.1 if our machine consists of 60% EU components?
Not automatically. It depends on the specific product rule in the relevant free trade agreement and the tariff heading of your machine. Some rules require a tariff change (all non-originating materials under a different HS heading than the end product); others a maximum value of non-originating materials; sometimes both. We test per agreement and per HS code.
What if a supplier refuses to give us a supplier’s declaration?
Then you can only count that material as non-originating in your own origin determination. Often it helps if we explain on your behalf what is being asked — suppliers sometimes block out of unfamiliarity, not unwillingness. If it doesn’t work out, we recalculate whether you still fall within the product rule based on remaining EU materials.
Our technician is taking a tool kit to a customer visit in Saudi Arabia. ATA Carnet?
Yes, provided Saudi Arabia and the contents fall under ATA. For repair tools, demonstration material and scientific equipment, an ATA Carnet is by far the simplest solution — no import duties, no local VAT, and you collect it from the KvK on return.
We send parts to a supplier in China for processing — how do we arrange the return flow?
With an export declaration under outward processing (license required in advance or simplified via declaration). On re-import, only the processing value + transport costs are taxed with import duties and VAT, not the original goods value. We arrange the license and the watertight file.
Get started
Is your origin administration falling behind, or do you want to become an Approved Exporter? Request a quote or get in touch for a non-binding origin audit.