Frequently Asked Questions

Goods bought in the European Union (EU) do not require customs clearance. From January the 1st 2021 the EU consists of 27 countries: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia.

Goods bought in any country outside the EU require customs clearance. From January the 1st 2021 the EU consists of 27 countries: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia.

To customs clear any good we need 3 main documents:
1. Invoice for the goods
2. Power of attorney from the consignee of the good to the customs broker (Euro Brokers Ltd. or Pakora Pluss Ltd.)
3. Transport consignment. Depending on the mode of transport, it could be: CMR (auto transport), Airway Bill (air transport), Bill of Lading (sea transport), courier or post invoice, SMGS (railway transport).

In some cases, customs may require additional documents depending on the type of the cargo, type of packaging, mode of transport, incoterms of delivery and other individual circumstances. Please drop us an email with the description of your cargo and attaching all documents you have to [email protected] and our qualified customs brokers will provide you with a precise list of documents required for your specific case.

The most common taxes charged are import duty and VAT. Some types of goods may require antidumping and excise duty tax. Import duty amount will depend on a type of product, country where it was produced, certificates of origin. The majority of import duty rates vary between 0% and 7%, however, these can go over that amount, for example: 10% (for automobiles), 12% (clothes), 17% (shoes).

Companies, which pay VAT inf Latvia, could obtain a special VAT regime from Internal Tax & Revenue https://www.vid.gov.lv/lv/pvn-ipasie-maksasanas-rezimi-0

To proceed with customs clearance, your car should already be in Latvia. Typically, the taxes to be paid will be 10% import duty and 21% VAT.
If you have a residence permit in Latvia or are returning to Latvia for permanent residency, you will not have to pay any taxes. You will need to have a specific set of documents depending on you circumstances. Please get in touch with our customs brokers while describing your situation to get this specific list.

You will need to have a full list of your belongings with their approximate cost. You can customs clear your personal possessions without having to pay any taxes during the first 12 months after permanently moving to Latvia.

The way of customs clearance will depend on the type of your cargo, how it was transported, packaged etc. It will also involve creating a customs declaration.
Please get in touch to get an advice on how to customs clear your cargo.

An export declaration will be required for any export operations to avoid any problems with Internal Tax & Revenue. As a starting point, we will need an invoice and transport documents (CMR, Bill of Lading, Airway Bill, SMGS etc).
Please get in touch to get a precise list of documents and a quote for customs clearance for export.

Modern technology and customs legislation allow for most of the cargo to be customs cleared online. You will not have to be present neither at customs nor at our office. Just send us the documents and we will do the rest.

The time required depends on many factors, however, most of the cargo get cleared within 24 hours of submitting the documents to customs. The average time for export clearance is 2 hours and import take from 2 to 6 hours

The price is usually calculated individually based on the circumstances as it depends on multiple factors such as: Cargo type, mode of transport, number of HS codes, type of packaging, frequency of deliveries. Please get in touch to get a tailored price quote.

We can arrange a container delivery from the port of Riga.

The easiest and the fastest way to deal with port charges is for consignee to pay themselves. However, we are open to be your trusted agent to pay the fees on your behalf (for example, if you do not reside in Latvia permanently). Please get in touch if you are interested in this option.

We do not require to have a branch in a certain town to perform customs clearance. Modern technology and customs legislation allow for most of the cargo to be customs cleared online. You will not have to be present neither at customs nor at our office. Just send us the documents and we will do the rest.

Customs clearance of import is the most complex and the longest customs procedure to clear, therefore we do not advise to go through this procedure on the border as queues could get longer than expected and customs clearance itself can take a lot longer. This often can be going on during the night hours and you will have to be awake during the procedure. We advise to use transit procedure from the border to the place of unloading. This way you will be able to customs clear your cargo whenever and however is convenient to you.