Goods handling when duty is suspended

Excise duty is chargeable on tobacco goods when they are manufactured within the EU, or when they are imported into the EU from countries outside the EU’s excise duty area. Tobacco goods covered by the duty suspension arrangement can be produced, processed, stored and moved without excise duty having to be paid on them. Payment of excise duty is postponed until the goods are no longer covered by the duty suspension arrangement. When the goods are no longer under suspension of duty, they are said to have been “released for consumption”. Excise duty must be paid in the EU country in which this takes place, according to the particular excise duty rates set by that country.

In order to handle tobacco goods under suspension of duty, several requirements must be fulfilled. It is essential for special authorisation first to be granted by the competent authority in the EU country in question. In Sweden, authorisation is granted by the Swedish Tax Agency.

There are four types of authorisation, each of which creates different opportunities to act under a duty suspension arrangement. You can be granted authorisation to act as:

• a warehouse keeper
• a registered consignor
• a registered consignee
• a temporarily registered consignee

You can decide on the type of authorisation you wish to apply for, according to the kind of business you plan to operate.

You can find out more about how to apply for the various types of authorisation in the relevant sections listed in the menu. Here you can also find out about the rights and obligations associated with each type of authorisation.