Licenses: Import/Export Licenses

Upon conclusion of the Agreement on the Electronic Submission of Applications for Import and Export Licenses (hereinafter referred to as the Agreement), applications for licenses (except for applications for extracts) shall be submitted electronically via the National Paying Agency’s Information portal (hereinafter referred to as the Portal). If the Agreement is not concluded, the applicant will not be able to submit applications or obtain electronic or paper licenses under which import or export procedures for agricultural products would be declared to the customs authorities of the Republic of Lithuania or the customs authorities of EU Member States.

Applicants who have submitted an application for an import/export license electronically via the Portal can check the status of their application/license in the “Mano duomenys” section, the reason for the application’s rejection, view data on the transfer of rights, and access the license report (in PDF format), which will display not only the data specified on the first page of the electronic license but also the breakdown of allocated quantities provided on the second page of the license.

To obtain an AGRIM import license or an AGREX export license, an application and a deposit must be submitted to the Agency. The date of submission of the application is considered to be the date on which the Agency receives it, by 2:00 p.m. Lithuanian time (1:00 p.m. Brussels time). For applications submitted by registered mail, the date of submission is considered to be the date of registration at the Agency by 2:00 p.m. Lithuanian time (1:00 p.m. Brussels time). Processing takes one business day, and the license is issued on the day of submission if the application is received by 2:00 p.m.; if the application is received after 2:00 p.m., it is processed on the next business day after 2:00 p.m.

Cases in which paper licenses are issued:

1. when the nominal license holder clears all or part of the quantity of goods specified in the license through customs outside the Republic of Lithuania;
2. issuance of an extract (in cases where the holder plans to clear part of the quantity specified in the license through customs outside the Republic of Lithuania);
3. issuance of an extract with transfer of rights (in cases where the license holder wishes to transfer the right to import/export part of the quantity specified in the license to a successor).

In the cases specified, paper licenses are issued only at the applicant’s request, i.e., by indicating “paper license” in box 21 of the application.

For assistance in determining the Combined Nomenclature code for a product, please contact the Customs Department under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania. The applicant is responsible for providing accurate information in applications for import/export licenses and in other documents related to import/export licensing.

Please note that specific EU regulations governing the import and export of certain products stipulate different deadlines for the issuance of AGRIM import licenses and AGREX export licenses, as well as their validity periods and the amount of the security deposit.

Information on submitting applications for agricultural products and the issuance of licenses can be found here.

In accordance with Article 6 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/761, applications for AGRIM import licenses under the tariff quota must be submitted during the first seven calendar days of the month. In November, applications may be submitted twice – from November 1 to 7 and from November 23 to 30. No applications are accepted in December.

The European Commission publishes the allocation coefficients on the 22nd of each month (on the 14th in December).

AGRIM import licenses are issued from the 23rd of the month until the end of the month. AGRIM import licenses for which applications were submitted between November 23 and 30 are issued between December 15 and 31.

In accordance with Article 8 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/760, operators must demonstrate that they have exported from the Union or released for free circulation in the Union a minimum quantity of products of the relevant sector, as specified in points (a) to (w) of Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013. Applicants may submit the following documents as evidence:

• customs data showing the release for free circulation in the Union and indicating, as required by the Member State concerned, that the operator is declared as referred to in Article 5(15) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 or an importer as referred to in Group 3 of Chapter 3 of Title I of Annex B to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and Group 3 of Title II of that Annex;
• customs data showing the export from the Union and indicating, as required by the Member State concerned, that the operator is declared as referred to in Article 5(15) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 or an exporter as referred to in Article 1(19) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446;
• a used licence duly validated by customs showing that the products were released for free circulation in the Union or exported from the Union and indicating that the operator is the nominal holder of the licence or, if the licence has been transferred, that the operator is its transferee.

All documents must be authenticated. Where customs data can only be generated or submitted in paper form, they must be certified by the customs authority of the Member State concerned as a true copy of the printed customs declaration, with the stamp and signature of the customs authority. Documents may also be submitted in electronic format, authenticated by an electronic signature.

The minimum quantities of products to be exported from the Union or released for free circulation in the Union in each of two consecutive 12-month periods ending 2 months before the start of the period during which the first licence for the tariff quota period may be submitted are set out in Annexes II to XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/761.