The European Union on May 10 published a report on its member states’ procedures for domestic and cross-border value-added tax (VAT) refunds, including for VAT on imports. An EU directive issued in 2006 entitles importers and other purchasers of goods subject to VAT in a member state other than the country where they are established to a refund of that VAT if the goods or services are used for certain purposes. According to the report, 20 EU member states fully comply with the directive, but eight countries -- Germany, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, and Spain – have procedures that don’t meet EU requirements. For example, Germany turns down some VAT refunds without explanation, while in some other countries, including Italy and Spain, national authorities can turn down VAT refund requests without explanation.

In the May 13 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

In the May 8 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

All unit packets of cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco manufactured in or imported into the European Union must meet new requirements by May 20, Malta Customs said in guidance announced May 10. That includes unique identifiers on packaging, five specific security features, and scanning at certain points in the supply chain, the guidance said. The new requirements do not apply to unit packets of cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco manufactured in the EU before May 20, or to unit packets that are imported into the EU and have left duty suspension before May 20, 2019. This existing stock may remain in free circulation until May 20, 2020, after which it too must comply with the new requirements. From May 2024, these requirements will apply to all products containing tobacco, Malta Customs said.

France plans to eliminate glyphosate use by 2021 with “limited exceptions,” according to a May 2 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture' Foreign Agricultural Service. France Agriculture Minister Didier Guillaume, who made the announcement, also said the country hopes to slash “pesticide, insecticide and fungicide” in half by 2025, saying the country should “revert to the farming methods used by their grandparents,” according to the report. The announcement was met with negative reaction from French farmers and farm unions, who claimed that “style of farming” could reduce production by 30 percent to 40 percent below today's levels, USDA said. In April, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue called Vietnam's recent ban on the importation of glyphosate “devastating” and said it could cause significant ramifications for global agricultural production (see 1904120011).

In the May 8 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

In the May 7 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

The United Kingdom on May 3 published guidance on several sanctions regimes, including the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida sanctions, the Democratic Republic of Congo sanctions, the Counter-Terrorism sanctions and the Zimbabwe sanctions. The guidance documents describe practices for sanctions compliance, including in financial- and trade-related sectors, and detail exceptions for the sanctions regimes. Licenses for trade exceptions may only be issued under the Zimbabwe sanctions and the Congo sanctions, according to the documents. Violating any of the sanctions in the financial sector can lead to a six-month prison sentence and a fine, while sanctions violations in the trade sector can lead to a maximum 10-year prison sentence and a fine.

In the May 3 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

Italy delayed the effective date of value-added taxes on “remote sales” of certain goods through “electronic interfaces,” including mobile phones, video game consoles, tablets and laptops, according to a May 2 notice from KPMG. The taxes will take effect Jan. 1, 2021, KPMG said, and VAT payments on remote sales are not required for the first quarter of 2019. However, KPMG said that beginning July 1, 2019, “taxable persons that make such remote sales have a reporting obligation for transactions conducted between” Feb. 13 and May 1 this year. The changes were announced as part of a decree regarding “urgent economic growth measures” published April 30, KPMG said. The decree also expanded the VAT reporting requirements for sales of all goods through “an electronic interface.”