Brussels, 04/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 4 November, the European Commission published a draft regulation to exempt jet fuel imports from customs duty for a period of up to five years from 1 January 2014. The aim of the proposal is to ensure that the 0% customs tariff, which has been applied to jet fuel for many years, can continue.
At present, most jet fuel imported into the EU is from countries that benefit from the generalised system of preferences (GSP). However, due to changes in the GSP rules next year, imports of jet fuel from big exporters in the Middle East and India may no longer benefit from preferential treatment under EU trade rules. In order to give time to the EU airline industry to adjust and to provide certainty for traders, the Commission has decided to propose exemption of all jet fuel imports from customs duties, regardless of their country of origin. The addition of customs duty to jet fuel would lead to sudden price hikes in the absence of alternative suppliers while refineries in the EU would not be able to increase production in such a short time span.
The draft regulation needs to be adopted by the Council of Ministers before the regulation can come into force. The system will be revised in five years' time. (FG/transl.fl)