Can a company temporarily import machinery to Andorra?
Director of Augé Grup’s Tax Department Marc Urgell Díaz answers:
Undoubtedly.
Temporary importation corresponds to the regime of temporary admission of goods that remain in the country for a given period of time before being re-exported abroad.
An example of temporary imports can be found in the construction sector for companies that carry out constructions in Andorra and therefore need such machinery for a certain period of time.
All goods (machinery) that are imported into the Principality of Andorra are subject to payment of the IGI (general indirect tax) at the time of import. However, in the case of imports linked to a temporary admission regime, there is an exemption from such taxation under certain conditions set out by the IGI Regulation.
The temporary admission regime is defined by the customs legislation (Llei 5/2004, del 14 d’abril del Codi de Duana), but to benefit from said exemption the conditions set out by the legal framework on IGI must also be met (Art.5.2 RIGI and Art.17 LIGI).
In order to benefit from the exemption of IGI for a temporary importation, the purchaser of the goods or the recipient of the services must inform the Customs of the exempted operations in a standardized document “DUA de Importació” approved by the Customs.
In order to finalize the temporary admission, the importer must make a deposit equivalent to the amount that would be payable for a final importation: that corresponds to the applicable IGI rate (general rate of 4,5%) applied to a taxable base (value of the imported goods). The aforementioned deposit will be returned when the goods are re-exported, as long as all other taxes are settled. If not, the importation will be considered as a final importation.
