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EU Waives VAT, Tariffs for Imported Medical Gear

Posted on Apr. 6, 2020

The European Commission has approved requests from all EU member states to temporarily suspend VAT and customs duties on imported medical equipment in its latest effort to combat the growing coronavirus crisis.

In an April 3 release, the commission said the move will ease the financial burden on hospitals and healthcare professionals within the EU and allow them to import more life-saving equipment.

"In this emergency it is vital that medical equipment and devices get quickly to where they are needed,” said Paolo Gentiloni, commissioner for economy, in the release. “By waiving customs and VAT duties on imports of these products from outside the EU, the European Commission will help make those products more accessible.”

VAT and tariffs will be waived for masks and other protective equipment, testing kits, ventilators, and other medical gear, according to the release.

In an April 3 video address, commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the VAT and tariff waivers will make important medical equipment more affordable.

“To give you an example, in Italy, [a] customs duty of 12 percent and a value added tax of 22 percent is levied on some face masks or protective garments that we import from countries like China,” von der Leyen said. “Our decision will make them one-third cheaper. For ventilators, the average value added tax rate is at 20 percent.”

The waiver, implemented by a March 3 commission decision, will last for the next four months, “or longer if necessary,” von der Leyen said. It will be applied retroactively from January 30, according to the release.

Since March 20, at the invitation of the commission, all EU member states plus the United Kingdom have submitted requests to suspend customs duties and VAT on imported medical equipment.

The commission has already implemented several measures to increase supply of medical gear to fight the coronavirus, including harmonized standards for personal protective and sterilization equipment and postponement of regulations that might slow approval of medical devices.

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