Portugal is known as the “gateway to Europe”, with chances of becoming even more of a gateway with the agreement between Mercosur and the European Union (EU). However, importing products is not an easy business, and some mistakes can be fatal.
In an interview with DN BrazilBrazilian consultant Rogério Tadeu explains that one of the main mistakes made is setting up a business without knowing the rules. “Many think it’s just a matter of ordering the products, but no, there are a series of rules”, explains the immigrant, who has been working on the topic in Portugal since 2017.
For now, the EU’s agreement with Mercosur is not yet in force. However, there is a lot of prior preparation. “When we have the agreement consolidated, what will make things much easier are the health rules and the rules that we have to follow to place the products here. There will be standardization in this process and there will also be a reduction in tax rates”, he details. “This will certainly make things much easier and will allow us to have a greater number of people carrying out this import”, adds the consultant, founder of Outbox Trade.
Will products that are not available here today, such as sausages (the famous Brazilian sausage and mortadella), be on Portuguese shelves? It’s not yet known. “The health issues related to the EU-Mercosur Agreement are still poorly defined. Today, there are limitations in relation not only to meat, but mainly, for example, to cheese and eggs that come from Brazil. These products are prohibited from entering here, precisely because Brazil, as a matter of strategy, decided not to comply with the health rules that Europe requires for these products to enter. With the signing of the agreement, these rules can, perhaps, be made more flexible so that the country can follow them. And Then we can have these products available”, he points out.
Furthermore, the value of the quotas that exist today, without the agreement being in force, is high. “The company needs to access these quotas to be able to pay less tax and be competitive when placing the product here. Today, what makes it very difficult for products of animal origin to enter here, for example, are precisely the quotas, which make the import tax very high.”, analysis.
To “kill the nostalgia” for some Brazilian products, Portuguese brands are increasingly investing in versions manufactured on European soil. “It is strategic for the so-called saudade market, but, without a doubt, it shows the quality that the Brazilian product has”evaluates.
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Questions faced by those who import goods
In these almost ten years, Rogério has already lost count of how many consultancies he has provided in this area. In most of them, however, common customer questions appear. In the case of those who want to bring products from Brazil, the question is where to start the process. “Often, he has the idea, he has the product, but what is missing is precisely the information on how to get this product here so that he can import it legally and develop the business. It’s not simply a matter of ordering the goods from there. We have a series of rules that we need to comply with”, he details.
Another common question It’s how to develop your business in Portugal. In many cases, the error starts right after purchasing the merchandise. “The entrepreneur purchases products there in Brazil to send them here and buys them in the name of a family member or in their own name, but using the CPF. However, in an international transaction, the product has to leave directly from the origin to the destination. In other words, when this direct purchase is made, whether through a family member or with the CPF itself, the commercial export of these products is impossible”, he highlights.
Another mistake, warns the Brazilian, is “not worrying about the needs related to the requirements of foreign trade or even the facilities it may have”. One of them, for example, is not to pay VAT on the first load. “The importer here in Portugal can import and not pay VAT as soon as the merchandise arrives, we are talking about 23% of the value of the merchandise, which is quite significant. But, for this, there are rules to comply with”, he points out. The rules are to have organized accounting, be a monthly VAT declarant and make a request to Finance at least 15 days before the goods arrive here. “The lack of knowledge about this possibility shows that being well planned is essential in business”, he concludes.
amanda.lima@dn.pt
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