The Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between the European Union and Georgia began applying provisionally from 1 September 2014, as part of the broader EU-Georgia Association Agreement signed in June 2014. It entered into full legal force on 1 July 2016. Under the DCFTA, tariffs on the large majority of goods traded between EU member states and Georgia have been progressively reduced or eliminated, creating genuine commercial opportunities for businesses moving products in both directions — including between Latvia and Georgia, which has become an increasingly active trade corridor.

What the agreement covers

The DCFTA covers industrial goods, agricultural products, processed food, and a range of services. For industrial goods — including machinery, electronics, textiles, construction materials, and most manufactured products — tariffs have been largely eliminated on both sides of the trade. Agricultural products operate under a more complex framework of tariff rate quotas and phased reductions, with some sensitive product categories still subject to protection. Georgia has also committed to progressively aligning its regulatory environment with EU technical standards in areas including food safety, product certification, and intellectual property protection.

  • Industrial goods: majority of tariff lines now at 0% under DCFTA preferential treatment
  • Agricultural goods: partial tariff reductions; some categories governed by quotas or exclusion lists
  • Georgia joined the WTO in 2000 — MFN (most-favoured-nation) rates apply where DCFTA preferences don't
  • Georgia's standard import VAT rate is 18%, applied at the border on customs value plus any applicable duty

To claim DCFTA preferential tariff rates, goods must genuinely originate in the EU or Georgia under the agreement's rules of origin. Products merely transshipped through one of the territories — without substantial transformation — do not qualify and are subject to standard MFN tariffs.

Documentation and the claiming process

To benefit from preferential treatment at the border, exporters use one of two mechanisms: the EUR.1 movement certificate, issued by the customs authority of the exporting country and presented by the importer at the destination border; or a declaration of origin on the commercial invoice, made by a registered exporter under the REX (Registered Exporter) system for shipments above the applicable value threshold. Your customs broker or freight forwarder will advise on which applies to your shipment. Standard documentation — commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading or airway bill — is required regardless of which origin certification route is used.

N3XTLV's distribution team, working from Riga and Tbilisi, coordinates the complete logistics chain for EU-Georgia trade flows: freight sourcing, export customs clearance, import clearance at the Georgian border, and domestic delivery to the final destination. For businesses new to this corridor, we also handle supplier and buyer introductions on both sides.