Bosnian companies increasingly export to foreign markets, state introduces simpler customs procedures

Bosnia and Herzegovina will soon introduce simpler procedures for exporting domestic goods from the country, writes the Bosnian news agency Patria.

Ratko Kovačević, spokesperson for the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH, told the Bosnian news agency Patria that the procedure for exporting goods from our country had already been aligned with EU standards, but that this procedure should be further simplified.

On this occasion, the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH held a meeting today in Banja Luka with representatives of the state and entity chambers of commerce and representatives of the Foreign Investors Council in BiH.

The topic of the joint meeting was precisely the possibility of amending and expanding the so-called Instruction on simplified customs procedure by invoice, which came into force at the beginning of 2015.

If the Instruction were to be amended, said Kovačević, this should mean fewer steps for domestic exporters during export.

At the joint meeting at the ITA building today, it was concluded that the competent chambers of commerce will, within 15 days, submit to the Indirect Taxation Authority proposals for goods that could be additionally included in the Instruction on simplified customs procedure by invoice. The joint conclusion is that the possibility will be further considered of including in the said Instruction only those goods that are produced in BiH and exported outside our country, and which, by their appearance and packaging method, can be unambiguously identified in the shortened customs procedure at the border crossing.

In this regard, the ITA expects concrete proposals by tariff codes only for goods that are produced in Bosnia and Herzegovina and exported outside our country. In this way, the ITA will further accommodate and support export-oriented domestic production.

In the first ten months of last year, Bosnia and Herzegovina exported goods worth around 7.2 billion BAM, which is about 2.8 percent more than in the same period the previous year, writes Patria.

According to indicators from the Foreign Trade Chamber of BiH, the most significant products that BiH exports in trade with the world are electricity, goods falling into the category of metals, then ores, petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, footwear, wood, furniture... Exports in the automotive industry are also constantly growing, writes Patria.