Free trade agreement between governments Countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab Gulf States and the governments of the European Free Trade Association countries (EFTA)

Name of the agreement

Free trade agreement between governments Countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab Gulf States and the governments of the European Free Trade Association countries (EFTA)

  Join the agreement

Ratified by Royal Decree No. 43/2010 issued on April 18, 2010

  Agreement details

  • In recognition of the extended bonds of friendship, and the strong economic and political ties between the member states of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the member states of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, especially the Declaration of Cooperation signed in Brussels on May 23, 2000, and desiring to strengthen those ties and bonds through Establishing a free trade area that will establish close and permanent relations between them. Determined to develop and strengthen their economic and trade relations through the liberalization and expansion of trade in goods and services for their common interest and mutual benefits, the parties agreed to conclude a free trade agreement that entered into force on 1/7/2015.
Import:
  • Purchase Invoice: It shall include the details of the goods, the most important of which are the country of origin, tariff code (H.S), weights and numbers.
  • Bill of lading.
  • A letter from the importer requesting preferential treatment stating that the goods are eligible for the conditions of preferential treatment.
  • Movement Certificate (Euro1) (Certificate of Origin) stipulated in the agreement .
Export:
  • purchase invoice.
  • Certificate of origin according to the approved forms .
  • Goods included in category (A) shall be exempted from customs taxes as of the entry into force of the agreement on 1/7/2015.
  • The goods included in category (B) are exempted from customs taxes five years after the entry into force of the agreement, as they are completely exempted on 1/7/2020 AD (such as albuminous materials originating in FTA countries, some chemicals and raw leather).
  • The goods included in the category (RC) shall be subject to customs taxes according to the customs tariff schedules.
  • Goods included in category (X) are excluded from the scope of this agreement (such as tobacco, cigarettes, and alcohol).
  • The goods included in category (P) are goods that are prohibited from being imported from the European Free Trade Association (FTA) countries to the GCC countries (such as tires, asbestos, and pork products).
  •  That the goods are directly imported from the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries, and the goods imported (transit) through the ports of other countries are considered direct imports, and if they pass through the territory of a third party, a declaration from the customs authorities in the third country must be attached confirming that the goods were under customs control during transit. Provided that the Goods shall not be cleared by Customs or subjected to any processing, production, manufacture, improvement or any subsequent operation outside the territory of either Party except loading, unloading, transshipment or any other operation necessary to keep the Goods in good condition for the carriage of the Goods to the Sultanate of Oman.
  • The importer requesting exemption or his authorized representative must disclose that, by writing in the application form the following statement: “These goods meet the terms of preferential customs tariff treatment stipulated in the Free Trade Agreement between the GCC countries and the governments of (EFTA) countries.”
  • Presentation of the movement certificate (Euro1) (certificate of origin) to benefit from preferential treatment (Form No. 3).
  • The proof of origin shall remain valid for a period of (12) months from the date of issuance of the certificate of origin by the exporting party, and for the purpose of benefiting from preferential treatment, it shall be submitted to the customs authorities during this period.
  • The following are excluded from submitting a certificate of origin:
  1. Passengers' personal effects, provided that they are of a personal nature and in non-commercial quantities, whose value does not exceed 1,200 Euros.
  2. Small personal parcels or postal parcels, provided that they are of a personal nature and in non-commercial quantities, whose value does not exceed 500 Euros.
  • Goods can be released against a cash or bank customs guarantee of the tax value of similar goods in the customs tariff schedule in case the customs requests any additional documents.
  • Products exported from one of the GCC countries must be accompanied by a certificate of origin issued and certified by the GCC countries.
  • Goods that pass through the ports and free zones receive preferential treatment with exemption, provided that no modification is made to them and that they return with the same documents issued to them by the exporting country and remain under customs control in the country of transit.
  • Goods imported from free zones shall receive preferential treatment and shall be exempted from customs tax, provided that they originate from one of the two parties, qualify for the conditions of origin, and are subject to adequate manufacturing or production processes as specified in Appendix (4) of the agreement.
To view the agreement, please visit the website of the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs at the following link: https://mjla.gov.om