If you are an exporter or supplier of fish or other seafood, you have to use the same documentation.
| Note: An update of this article is pending. Please note that some terms and/or references may differ from the Movement of Goods Act and the Customs Duty Act that enters into force from the 1st of January 2023. |
An exporter in this respect means a company that issues certificates of origin in connection with exports.
What characterises a supplier is that it primarily supplies originating materials or originating products to exporters. As proof of origin, they will issue a supplier's declaration.
Both exporters and suppliers are subject to the same requirements to document the origin of the products for which they issue documentation of origin.
Exporters/suppliers can again be divided into two main groups - producers and traders. Some companies can operate both as producers and distributors. In this context, a producer is defined as someone who has manufactured export goods in accordance with the requirements that are laid down in the applicable free trade agreement.
It must be possible to track the goods in the export document from the arrival of the raw materials, through any production and all the way to the date of export. These are conditions that you, as an exporter, need to address before issuing a certificate of origin.
You have no other underlying documents than a supplier;s declaration? The supplier who has issued it must have underlying documentation in support of its declaration.
Approved exporters
An approved exporter is an exporter who has been approved by the customs authorities to issue Origin Declarations regardless of the value of the originating product. Exporters who do not have such permission may only use Origin Declarations when the value of the originating product does not exceed NOK 50,000.
Where does the export go?
- Exporting to the EU
- Exporting to a country outside the EU that we have a free trade agreement with
- Exporting to a country that we do not have a free trade agreement with
Crew requirements in free trade agreements
Fish exports are in many cases subject to the requirement that the goods must be wholly obtained in the exporting country. As regards fish caught outside the customs area, the requirement is that the catch must be made by "their vessels", i.e. the vessels of the contracting parties. Norway is working to make the "flag rule" decisive in all negotiations, but most agreements also contain requirements, among other things, for crew nationality. Below is a list of the requirements that apply in connection with export to the various contracting parties. When a 75% rule is stipulated, officers are counted as part of the crew. It is the citizenship that determines the nationality.
With the EU:
- "The Fishing Letter": All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from Norway or an EU member state.
- Compensation agreements: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from Norway or an EU member state.
-The EEA Agreement: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from Norway, Iceland or an EU member state.
With the PEM Zone (Albania, the Faroe Islands, Switzerland, Egypt, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Ukraine, Georgia): All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from an EFTA member state or the respective contracting party.
The new alternative rules to the Convention on Origin, that includes the EEA agreement, the Compensation Agreements and PEM: no crew requirements.
With Iceland:
- The EFTA Convention: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from an EFTA member state.
- The EEA Agreement: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from Norway, Iceland or an EU member state.
The new alternative rules to the Convention on Origin, that includes the EEA agreement, the Compensation Agreements and PEM: no crew requirements.
With Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Equador, the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates), Hong Kong, Indonesia, Panama, Peru, Singapore, the South African Customs Union (Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland, South Africa and Lesotho), South Korea: No crew requirements.
With Mexico: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from an EFTA member state or Mexico.
With the Philippines: All officers and at least 75% of the crews must come from the exporting contracting party.