A foreign partner is ready to ship, but there is no telling how the range will sell. Buying the whole batch up front is a risk, and consignment is designed for such cases.
How does the scheme work?
Consignment means holding goods in someone else's warehouse: until sold they stay the consignor's property. The Civil Code sets out two participants: the consignor, who owns the goods, and the consignee, who stores and sells them. Consignment services build on this.
- the consignee stores the goods separately, as the consignor's property
- goods taken out for sale fall under the rules on sale and purchase
Differences from ordinary import and resale
- in the ordinary scheme title passes on purchase; under consignment, only on sale
- in the ordinary scheme the importer carries the risk of not selling; here the consignor does
- payment follows the report of actual sales, not the shipment
- Incoterms allocate cost and risk, not title — the moment it passes belongs in the contract
Who benefits from consignment and who does not?
The scheme works where demand is not yet measured: a new brand, seasonal goods, sample collections, spare parts. Where turnover is steady, ordinary import is simpler: consignment adds storage and extra accounting.
What needs attention on the customs side?
Consignment is not a separate customs procedure: no procedure of that name appears among the special procedures of the Customs Code. The goods must still go under a procedure.
- customs value: with no sale at the moment of importation, the transaction value method cannot be used; value is set by the other methods in the order set by law
- warehousing: the goods may be held under the customs warehouse procedure, chosen according to what they are for, for the periods set by law
- payments: duty and import VAT are not cancelled but, under the customs warehouse procedure, payment falls due on release for free circulation
- unsold goods: re-exportation is a separate procedure, requiring an application to customs, a permit and goods that can be identified
What has to be set out in the contract?
- the moment title passes, how the price is set and the reporting period
- storage charges: nothing is payable unless separately agreed, so state it plainly
- insurance: the consignee insures the goods at the consignor's expense on request
- how unsold goods are returned, who bears the costs, which documents support value
The difficulty lies not in the scheme but on the customs side. We read the contract from that angle, settle which procedure applies and prepare the customs declaration. The draft contract and invoice are enough.
Still have a question?
Get in touch to discuss your specific customs clearance situation — our team will explain it within the framework of the law.
