Export restrictions

The export of certain goods is restricted or completely prohibited by either EU or national regulations. In Finland, Customs is the supervising authority in matters concerning export restrictions. The restrictions are administered and export licences are issued by other authorities.

The exporter must find out if the goods are subject to export restrictions or if an authorisation is required for exporting the goods. If this is the case, provide e.g. the appropriate condition codes and TARIC additional codes in the customs declaration.

Customs supervises e.g. the following export restrictions:

• dual-use items
• ozone-depleting substances
• endangered species and their derivative products covered by the CITES Convention
• species covered by the Finnish Nature Conservation Act
• international shipments of waste
• hazardous chemicals
• narcotics
• precursors for narcotics
• firearms, firearm components and ammunition
• military equipment
• cultural goods
• radioactive substances
• international sanctions.

More information in the Customs restrictions manual

You can find more information about the current export restrictions in the Customs restrictions manual (in Finnish). The Customs restriction manual features the export, import and transit restrictions for which Customs is designated as the supervisory authority. The restriction manual consists of separate sections grouped according to the goods that are subject to restrictions. In each section, the restrictions on the particular goods are described with regard to different customs procedures.

You can check both the EU and national export restrictions by commodity code in the commodity code service Fintaric.

Apply for an export licence from the administering authority

The restrictions are administered and export licences are issued by other authorities, such as the National Police Board (firearms and firearm supplies), the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (dual-use items) and the National Board of Antiquities (cultural goods).

If the export of a certain item is restricted, the exporter must apply for an export licence from the authority administering these restrictions.

• Provide the licence number in the export declaration.
• The licence must be presented to Customs if so prescribed by the licensing authority or if so required by Customs.
• If necessary, the exported quantities can be entered in the licence in accordance with the licence conditions.
• Customs will not process export licences or make entries in them when the goods are no longer available for inspection.

How to provide the export restrictions in the customs declaration

The export restrictions are provided in the export declaration using codes. These codes can be

• negation codes (when the export goods are not covered by the restriction, even though they are classified under the same commodity code) 
• measure codes (when the goods are subject to an export restriction) or
• licence codes (providing the export licence).

You can check the codes by commodity code in the commodity code service Fintaric.

If a commodity code contains both goods subject to a licence and goods not subject to a licence, declare these two types of goods as separate goods items.

When you submit a customs declaration in the Customs Clearance Service, you can select the applicable condition code from the displayed options. This means that you don’t have to enter the condition codes required for the commodity code separately. For example, if you have a document or licence that must be presented upon export, select the code for the licence or document, and provide the number of the licence or document in the “Reference” field. If there are no export restrictions on the declared goods, select the negation code ”Y9xx”. 

Select the Taric additional codes, if any, from the drop-down menu, e.g. the additional code “4099”.

If you are submitting a customs declaration via message exchange, provide the condition code in the goods item details under “Additional reference”. If a licence or document must be presented for the export goods, provide the document code and the required details at goods item level under “Additional documents”. If there are no export restrictions on the declared goods, provide the negation code ”Y9xx” indicating no restrictions under “Additional reference”.

Provide the Taric additional codes and the classification type “TAN”. As the additional code, provide the Taric additional code.

Export bans and international sanctions

The UN and the EU have decided on certain regional export bans and sanctions that are valid until further notice on a case-by-case basis. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible for bringing into force, implementing and reporting on the decisions.