There are special stipulations on the following commodities when shipping to Spain. If you plan to ship one of the commodities listed below, be sure to adhere to the following stipulations in order to avoid delays and holds at customs.
- Products Of Animal Origin are goods which contain at least partly material derived from the body of an animal. These products can be divided in food or non-food.
Food means any substance, whether processed, semi-processed or raw, which is intended for human consumption, but does not include cosmetics or substances used only as pharmaceuticals.
Non-Food (not intended for human consumption) includes animal by-products, animal feed, samples for testing or research purposes (food-grade or non-food grade), and in vitro diagnostics (IVD).
Animal products and animal by-products are often subject to a veterinary inspection. These products can only be accepted under a special contract for International Special Commodities (ISC). In addition those products must undergo veterinary checks at an approved Veterinary Border Inspection Post (BIP) when entering the EU & EFTA countries or territories (EU regulations are aligned for EU countries or territories and NO; IS; CH; LI).
For UPS shipments arriving in the EU by air, Cologne is the first point of arrival /BIP. Inspections will be processed at Cologne but final customs clearance process will be issued in the destination country or territory.
Additional charges for Vet-inspection will be applicable see Brokerage Services and Charges.
Import requirements:
Generally, each type of Product of Animal Origin has specific import requirements that must be met. Food which is subject to veterinary inspections must:
Come from an EU listed Third Country or Territory (no safeguard measures in place)
Come from an EU approved establishment . Registered producers are listed under the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/food/international/trade/third_en.htm
Be accompanied by appropriate Health Certificate(s), signed by a veterinarian of the competent authority of country or territory of export. Photocopies of the Health Certificate will not be accepted.
Be appropriately packaged and labelled, indicating the nature, ingredients, quantity/ weight, the country or territory of origin and manufacturer.
Any foodstuff coming from non-approved establishments, sent as samples for testing purposes, can only be imported with a permit/license from a respective national veterinary authority. The permit/license must be send to the border inspection point responsible for the veterinary inspection. Delays may occur as the license needs to be provided already at the time of inspection.
Any non-compliant shipment must be returned at shippers expense immediately. The following exemptions apply to non-commercial shipments / gift shipments or purchased by private individuals for private consumption):
Meat, meat products, animal fat - max. 10 kg from Faroe Island and Greenland.
Fish and fish products (with intestines and organs removed) - max. 20 kg from all third countries or territories; no limitation from Faroe Islands.
Other animal products (for example, honey, egg, frog, live mussels - max. 10 kg from Faroe Islands and Greenland, and max. 2 kg from all other third countries or territories).
- Please see Animal Products and Food Supplements.
- Please see "Food Supplements".
- Please see "Animal Products".
- All food items shipped to Spain require a Sanitary inspection previous to customs clearance. Sanitary inspection requests the following documents:
- Registration number of the importer at the Ministry of Health
- Registration number of the importers warehouse facilities at the Ministry of Health
- Certificate of analysis (with lot numbers and other identification mark) provided by the producer
- Original letter from importer stating the intended use of the product
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Individuals can import food in accordance with the Spanish health protocol. For these reasons, Spanish customs requests the following documents:
Original letter from importer stating the intended use of the product.
However, Spanish Customs only allow to import as individual if the value of the goods is under 150 EUR and we are talking about e-commerce shipment or gifts between individuals.
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Based on the EU regulation 2009/669/EC certain foodstuffs (for example tea with origin China) imported from certain third countries or territories are subject to increased level of official controls due to contamination risks of these products by aflatoxinson and pathogens. These controls are carried out at Designated Point of Entries (DPE) defined by each member state.
The import of feed and food originating in or consigned from Japan following the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power station and not subject to vet inspection can only be imported into the EU through Designated Point of Entries (DPE). They must be accompanied by a declaration attesting that the goods are either harvested or processed before March 11, 2011, originated from a prefecture other than the ones affected by higher levels of radiation or if originated from an affected prefecture have been subjected to laboratory analysis determining the level of certain radionuclides (regulation 2011/297/EC).
The customs office responsible for our import sites are not defined as DPE. Commodities subject to import controls at a DPE can't be imported with UPS.
- Customs classifies certain food supplements as medicine, especially vitamins and other products with physiological effects. Food supplements classified as medicine can not be imported without an import license.
Only authorized importers are allowed to import medicine. The importer has to provide an import permit issued by the Ministry of Health. The medicine must be registered in Spain, otherwise the importation will not be allowed. If the importer cannot provide an import license, then the goods will be returned to the shipper.
Private individuals cannot import medicine unless they can provide a medical prescription from a doctor and a special authorization from the Ministry of Health issued for the respective shipment. The documents are required prior to importation . If the private consignee cannot provide a prescription, the goods will be returned to the shipper.
A sanitary inspection may apply causing an import delay. Brokerage accessorial charges may apply.
- The European Union (EU) has placed an import ban on Honey from certain countries or territories.
Before shipping Honey to a European Union country or territory, it is highly recommended to contact your local chamber of commerce or your importer for detailed information.
If the importation is allowed by the European Union, the shipment must be accompanied by an original health certificate provided by the shipper/producer, otherwise, importation will not be possible. Furthermore, a vet inspection at the first point of arrival into the EU is required, even for sample shipments.
Brokerage accessorial charges will apply and an import delay may occur.
If the shipper fails to verify the import regulation of the destination country or territory and sends honey which is prohibited by the European Union, then all charges that may apply for the respective shipment will be billed back to the shipper.
- Data shipments to Spain require an invoice with the value of the CD-ROM or disk media (not the intellectual value of the content).
- Please see animal products.
- Medical devices (for example, used for dental or medical treatment) regardless of the value, require the following:
- Registration number of the importer's warehouse facilities at the Ministry of Health-Sanitary Department
- Declaration of Conformity provided by the shipper
- EC Certificate of Conformity provided by the shipper
- Original letter from importer stating the intended use of the product
A Health or Pharmacy Inspection may apply. Accessorial charges may apply.
- Please see food supplements.
- The invoice must include a description of the part, the type of machine for which the part will be used, and a list of the part's components.
- Customers must use an authorized UPS / MBE (Mail Boxes Etc) Store, UPS Customer Center or ISC Approved Shipper to ship personal effects.
The UPS Store, Mail Boxes Etc, UPS Customer Center or ISC approved shipper will be required to identify personal effect shipments on the shipping label by placing "Personal Effects" in the Reference Field of a UPS "smart" label or in the Special Instructions Field of a UPS waybill. They must also clearly indicate 'Personal Effects' shipment on the Commercial Invoice.
Personal Effects are classified as used items (owned for a minimum of 6 months) intended for the consignee's personal use. Any items intended for any other use, such as wholesale or retail sales, business purposes, or for distribution are not considered personal effects and cannot be shipped on this basis. "Personal Effects" must be clearly stated on the invoice and goods description.
All of the following documents must be scanned into DIS/SIR and originals on the package:
An inventory list with estimated values with the reason for importation (holidays, move, relocation) A confirmation that the goods are older than 6 months and that they are intended for personal use only A photocopy of passport or ID card Any items intended for any other use, such as wholesale or retail sales, business purposes, or for distribution are not considered personal effects and cannot be shipped on this basis.
Excisable goods (for example, perfume, alcoholic drinks, tobacco), medicine and perishable food can not be cleared as personal effects.
Personal effects shipments are not allowed in combination with Return Services.
- In order to clear sample shipments duty & tax free, the total invoice value may not exceed 22.00 Euro and the total weight of the shipment may not exceed 9 kg.
It is always the decision of customs to allow the entry as a sample shipment, duty and tax free. The invoice must include a description of the sample.
- In order to avoid wrong customs declarations at import, it is mandatory that the exporter provide very detailed information about the shoes (for example, what kind of leather, what material used for soles and uppers, what kind of shoes (sport shoes, sandals, boots), who is to wear the shoes (children, women, men).
- Most of modern test reagents for diagnostic research are built on antibodies which are generated from animal tissue. There are two types of antibodies, the monoclonal antibodies and polyclonal antibodies.
Monoclonal antibodies are generated in vitro. Tissue from animals are taken (e.g. blood) and infected with certain substances or pathogens. The blood cells react with the production of antibodies which are than harvested and used for the production of the test kits. Due to the in vitro production and the controlled way of production those types of test kits are not subject to veterinarian control if it is a commercial production.
Polyclonal antibodies are gained from living animals like rabbits. They are infected with the substances / pathogens and the animals are producing antibodies. The antibodies are harvested from the blood stream of the animals. Test reagents with polyclonal antibodies are subject to vet inspections.
Shipment documents (commercial invoice or declaration on letterhead) should include:
the place of origin of the material
the quantity of the material, in weight or volume
a description of the material/ animal source
catalogue number and price (if available)
additives (e.g., sodium azide, glycerol), their source (e.g., whole serum, supernatant, ascites), and purification, if any.
protocols the recommended protocol or datasheet indicating any unique fixation, detergent, blocking, or incubation conditions.
the intended use (commercial/ manufacturing; research/ testing)
the name and address of the shipper
the name and address of the receiver
Commercially packaged, ready-to-use In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) containing products of animal of origin, do not require a Vet-inspection, if compliant with Directive 98/79/EC on In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices. A declaration of conformity (CE-marking) must be provided for each individual commodity (e.g. reagents, test kits, immunosorbent assays such as ELISA kits.
- A certificate of origin is not required for the import clearance of textiles. The need of a certificate of origin for the import clearance was reversed on October 24, 2011.
The country or territory of origin must be stated on the invoice for each invoice line. If the customs authorities doubt the correctness of the declared country or territory of origin they may request an additional proof which might be a certificate of origin.
Customs may require an import license for certain products from certain countries or territories, depending on the harmonized tariff code. The importer must obtain the import license. An original export license from the exporter of the country or territory of origin might be necessary to obtain the import license. The requirement of an import license is dependent on the country or territory of origin of the goods, not the country or territory of export. For further detailed information it is highly recommended to contact your chamber of commerce.
If the import license cannot be provided by the importer, the textiles must be returned or abandoned. It is always the decision of customs to allow the entry as a sample shipment, duty and tax free. The invoice must include a description of the sample.
- Data shipments require an invoice with the character of the USB stick (storing intercompany data) and the value of the USB Stick.
- All veterinary products, such as surgical and hospital instruments or dental instruments do not require any additional documentation provided by the shipper. The importer has to provide a letter that confirms the intended use of the goods.
- Please see food supplements.