If you export goods to third countries, you can apply for an export refund under certain conditions.

The European Union (EU) has set prices for many agricultural products that are higher than the world market level. Industrially produced foodstuffs are therefore usually more expensive in the EU than on the world market. Export refunds are intended to compensate for this price difference. They are a subsidy.

In January 2016, a comprehensive global reduction in subsidies was agreed at WTO level as part of the 10th Ministerial Conference. In the run-up to this decision, the EU generally reduced all export refunds for agricultural products to zero as of January 1, 2014. Currently, export refunds are only paid in crisis situations in order to support the domestic (agricultural) economy in unforeseen crisis scenarios.

If an export refund greater than zero is set in the event of a crisis, this is done by means of fixing regulations. These ordinances also regulate in which of the following sectors a refund can be paid for the export of agricultural products:

• Cereals,
• rice,
• beef and veal,
• milk and milk products,
• pigmeat,
• eggs,
• poultry meat
• Non-Annex I goods (i.e. products made from agricultural products, for example baked goods and confectionery).

It is important that the agricultural products and processed products are so-called market organization goods.

Please use the CN code of your export goods to check whether an export refund is granted for the specific goods you wish to export before you submit your application in the Electronic Customs Tariff (ECT) EZT-Online. You can also ask your customs office of export or the Hamburg-Jonas main customs office for the current refund rate.

• EZT-Online