On 23 June 2014, the EU Council published a decision to prohibit the import into the EU of goods originating from Crimea or Sevastopol. The ban also extends to the direct or indirect provision of financing or financial assistance, as well as insurance and reinsurance services related to these goods.
These restrictions, however, do not apply to those goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol which have been made available to the Ukrainian authorities for examination, for which compliance with the conditions conferring entitlement to preferential origin has been verified in accordance with EU regulations or with the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. In addition, a carve-out for pre-existing contracts has been introduced, to the effect that the execution, until 26 September 2014, of trade contracts concluded before 25 June 2014 or of ancillary contracts necessary for the execution of these is permitted, provided that those seeking to preform the contract have notified the competent authority of the applicable Member State at least 10 days in advance.
The impact of this prohibition is yet to be tested. It has already been reported, however, that Vitaly Nakhlupin, who heads the Crimean government’s economic commission, stated that the EU ban would not have a significant impact on businesses in Crimea, as most Crimean exports were to Russia which are no longer “exports” but “domestic operations”.
The Council’s decision was formally adopted yesterday, through Council Regulation (EU) No 692/2014 (which will come into force on Wednesday, 25 June 2014).
See here for the press release and here for the full regulation.
