Taxation and Customs Union

Binding Tariff Information (BTI)

NEW in Q4/2019: Apply for a BTI decision through the EU trader portal

As of 1 October 2019, all BTI-related processes will be made electronic and economic operators will have to introduce all new applications electronically. See ‘Apply for a BTI decision’ for more information.

Customs duties payable on imports/exports and other related provisions

The rate that must be paid – and any related requirements, such as import/export certificates – depends on the tariff classification applicable to the product.

To have legal certainty in advance that you are applying the correct classification to your goods, you should apply for a Binding Tariff Information (BTI) decision.

Features of a BTI

  • Issued by national customs authorities in the EU
  • Generally valid for 3 years throughout the EU, regardless of where it is issued
  • Binding on:
    • all EU customs administrations and
    • the holder

How to use a BTI

You must apply your BTI to customs procedures when importing/exporting your goods. You must declare it in your customs declaration.

Viewing current BTI decisions

You can view all currently valid BTI decisions in the public BTI database. The decisions are made public for transparency reasons, but all confidential information is protected.

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