From 1 September 2026, European Union companies exporting originating goods to Pacific States covered by the Interim Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) must apply a new procedure to certify the preferential origin of their products.

The change results from the amendment of Protocol II to the EU-Pacific Agreement and mainly affects the document used to prove the origin of goods in order to benefit from the preferential tariff treatment provided for under the Agreement.

The EUR.1 certificate is no longer accepted as proof of origin for European Union exports to Pacific States covered by this preferential arrangement.

Consequently, from 1 September 2026, the customs authorities of these countries no longer accept the EUR.1 movement certificate as proof of the preferential origin of goods originating in the European Union.

Instead, exporters must include an invoice declaration using the wording set out in Annex IV to Protocol II of the Agreement.

Where the exporter has a REX number under the Registered Exporter System, this number must be included in the invoice declaration accompanying the transaction.

However, an exception applies to certain consignments. In accordance with Article 68(4) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447, where the applicable preferential agreement does not expressly establish a value threshold, a general threshold of EUR 6,000 per consignment applies.

Therefore, an EU exporter who is not registered in the REX system may issue an invoice declaration for originating products where the value of the consignment does not exceed EUR 6,000.

For transactions exceeding this amount, the exporter must comply with the relevant REX system requirements in order to correctly certify the preferential origin of the goods.

This change does not alter the criteria determining when goods may be considered as originating in the European Union. What changes is the documentary procedure used to prove that origin to the customs authorities of the Pacific States.

Companies exporting to these destinations should therefore review their internal procedures and ensure that invoice declarations issued from September 2026 comply with the new requirements.

At Manuel Samper Aduanas, we recommend reviewing each transaction in advance, as well as the exporter´s status under the REX system, particularly for consignments exceeding EUR 6,000, in order to avoid issues when applying preferential tariff treatment.

Further information

Notice concerning the valid proof of origin for EU exports to Pacific States from 1 September 2026

Decision No 1/2026 of the EU-Pacific Trade Committee of 30 January 2026

Interim Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Pacific States

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1183 of 2 June 2026

Taric Learning: Countries with preferential origin agreements