Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Dara Calleary, has announced that a new round of the EU’s tariff suspension / quota scheme applications opens today, Monday, January 1, 2025 (New Year’s Day).
The minister is calling for applications from manufacturers in the industrial, agricultural, and related sectors.
The tariff suspensions scheme offers the possibility for such companies to import raw materials, components, or intermediate products from outside the European Union free from tariff duty, if the item cannot be sourced in the EU/Turkey.
The tariff quota scheme is designed to address shortages in the availability of essential materials within the EU and can be applied for in the same way as suspensions.
This is the first of two calls this year, the next one will be on July 1, 2025.
Welcoming the new call, Minister Calleary said: “The tariff suspension and quota schemes represent a very effective way for Irish manufacturers to gain a competitive edge by reducing the cost of sourcing components that are not available in the EU.
“I would encourage all Irish manufacturers to avail of these schemes.”
Deadline for applications is 5:30p.m on Friday January 31, 2025. Applications should be sent by email to [email protected] and posted to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, 23 Kildare Street, D02 TD30.
The department has said that late or incomplete applications will not be accepted.
The suspension of duties on these applications, if they are successful, will come into effect from January 1, 2026.
Tariff suspension
The tariff suspension / quota scheme offers the possibility for companies to import raw materials, components or intermediate products from outside the EU free from tariff duty.
Companies, in applying for tariff suspensions, must be able to demonstrate that each item for which duty suspension is sought:
- Is intended for further processing by them;
- Is not available within the EU;
- Generates duty savings of at least €15,000/yr (if an applicant company cannot reach this minimum limit on its own, it is possible to join forces with one or more other companies to do so).