Export documents

Published by:
Netherlands Chamber of Commerce, KVK
Netherlands Chamber of Commerce, KVK

International trade involves, amongst other things, origin documents. You can request some of these origin documents directly from the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce KVK. Read here which export documents are available and in which situation you might need them.

Which documents are needed, depends on factors like product, destination country, and the means of transport. Several parties may ask for these documents. For example, customs organisations, government bodies in the destination country, the bank, or the buyer.

Origin documents via KVK

The European Commission's Access2Markets database offers information on which documents you need per country. View the document overview for more information on these documents. KVK can provide you with the following export documents.

  • Certificate of Origin - a Certificate of Origin (CoO) proves where a product was made.
  • EUR.1 / EUR-MED Movement Certificate - the EU has trade agreements with several countries and groups of countries. With a EUR.1 or EUR-MED certificate, your foreign customer will pay less or no import duties.
  • Legalisation of export documents - Having a signature legalised or authenticated is sometimes required abroad.
  • ATA carnet - Are you temporarily exporting products to a country outside the EU? With an ATA carnet, you can easily file an export declaration in the Netherlands and a declaration for temporary import in the other country. This saves you time and money.

There are fixed tariffs for applying for export documents from KVK.

Other types of invoice declarations

There are also statements on the origin of products that you can prepare yourself. Sometimes you need a licence to use these.

  • Invoice declaration for small shipments - You use an invoice declaration instead of a EUR.1 or EUR-MED certificate if the value of the products of preferential origin is less than €6,000.
  • Invoice declaration with AE permit (Approved Exporter) - This authorisation allows you to make your own invoice declaration. Do you frequently export with a EUR.1 or EUR-MED? If so, you can apply for this licence.
  • Invoice declaration with REX (Registered Exporter) - Some countries do not have the AE, but they do have REX. REX is a registration for businesses that want to use a preferential invoice declaration when exporting to those countries.

Before using these declarations, check which additional arrangement (AE or REX) is required in the overview on KVK.nl.

Other export documents

Other important export documents are:

  • ATR-certificate - A customs document for trade between EU countries and Türkiye. Under an EU-Turkish treaty, goods can be imported or exported duty-free, so long as they have been produced in the EU or Türkiye. The ATR certificate documents this.
  • Documents for certain products and/or certain countries - For example, export licences, export declarations, veterinary certificates, and phytosanitary certificates. Read more about exporting with the right documents on KVK.nl.

Questions relating to this article?

Please contact the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce, KVK