Duties on import of goods from EU to be lowered on February 1st –duties on import of new and used automobiles cut by 10%

The Minister of Finance, Diana Dragutinović, announced today (January 27, 2009) that the duties on import of goods from EU would be lowered on February 1st, as well as that the duties on import of new and used automobiles would be cut from 20 to 10%.

Dragutinović said that that would be the result of commencement of application of the Stabilization and Association Agreement, which stipulated reduction of duties on import of goods from EU.

Application of the Transient trade agreement with EU was supposed to start on January 1st, but it was postponed because the changes in the Law on customs rates, which was one of the laws that accompanied the Law on budget for year 2009, had not been adopted.

The Government of Serbia made decision on October 16, 2008, to start application of the Transient trade agreement with EU on January 1st, 2009, in order to shorten the time between the commencement of application of the Agreement and the acquiring of the status of candidate for membership in European Union.

The Transient trade agreement between Serbia and EU anticipates gradual liberalization of trading in industrial and agricultural products within the next six years.