Glossary search results for "K" (73)
List of terms in glossary:
Refund for duties previously paid on non-originating materials that were used to produce a final good exported under a preferential tariff.
Trade and development arrangements between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries - designed to facilitate the ACPs' integration into the world economy through gradual trade liberalisation and improved trade-related cooperation. They are set within the framework of the EU-ACP Partnership Agreement (known as the Cotonou agreement) that governs relations between the EU and the ACP countries.
Under the EPAs, EU markets are immediately and fully opened, while the ACPs have 15 years to open to EU imports (with protection for sensitive imports) and even up to 25 years in exceptional cases.
Related content:
Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)
EPA - Eastern and Southern Africa
EPA SADC: Southern African Development Community
What is e-commerce?
Trade is today greatly facilitated by online platforms for e-commerce. These can either be individual e-commerce platforms, i.e. own online shops, or hosted platforms where a firm offers an interface and usually back-office software for different sellers and buyers (for example Ebay or Amazon). E-commerce platforms facilitate trade because they enable sellers from one country to get easily in touch with customers from other countries. Sellers can advertise and offer their goods and services on such platforms to many potential customers. Similarly, such platforms facilitate the search for adequate products for customers as they will be presented with and can compare between different sellers. Customers can be either end-users or other firms which use these goods for their own production process or service.
If you consider to sell your product via such online channels to customers in foreign markets, it is nevertheless necessary to assess the same exporting requirements as for traditional sales channels. When selling small quantities to end-users it is important to inform yourself about de minimis rules. Such rules often exempt low-value items from tariffs and have only minimal formal requirements regarding the necessary documentation. You can find more information on de minimis regimes here
Depending on the products you want to sell, additional requirements may need to be assessed. For example, you will need to consider questions about the payment gateways used online, about requirements in your target market about data privacy and the cross-border transfer of data, or questions how to handle warehousing and the logistics.
You can contact chambers of commerce, export promotion agencies, consultancies or similar institutions for help in this process (LINK to useful contacts). The Enterprise Europe Network also offers a general guide for SMEs to e-commerce in Europe which includes information on overseas markets.
The “Entry Price System” establishes a minimum price threshold above which the price of imported produce should remain. It applies to imports of 15 kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables to protect its producers against international competition. These thresholds depend on the product, the partner country and the season. EPS applies in combination with ad valorem import tariffs.
Abbreviation of European Union (EU) which consists of 27 countries (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden), as of 1 February 2020. (UK left the EU on 31/1/2020)
The European Community merges three former European Communities - for nuclear energy (EURATOM), coal and steel (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC or Common Market).
Unites the EU Member States and the three EEA EFTA States (Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) into an Internal Market governed by the same basic rules. These rules aim to enable goods, services, capital, and persons to move freely about the EEA in an open and competitive environment, a concept referred to as the four freedoms.
Former regional organisation that aimed to bring about economic integration among its member states. It was created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957. Upon the formation of the European Union (EU) in 1993, the EEC was incorporated and renamed the European Community (EC). In 2009, the EC's institutions were absorbed into the EU's wider framework and the community ceased to exist.
Regional trade organisation and free trade area consisting of four European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. The organisation operates in parallel with the European Union (EU), and all four member states participate in the European Single Market and are part of the Schengen Area. They are not, however, party to the European Union Customs Union.
The European Union is a unique economic and political union between 27 EU countries that together cover much of the continent. It is the largest trade block in the world, the biggest exporter of manufactured goods and services, as well as the biggest import market for over 100 countries. The EU's main economic engine is the single market. It enables most goods, services, money and people to move freely.