Anyone on Lanzarote who regularly buys things over the internet will have come across suppliers who do not supply to the Canary Islands. “Not available on the Canary Islands”, or “No delivery to the Canary Islands” are phrases that pop up time and time again.
However, on July 1st, the Canary Islands Tax Agency will introduce a new system that aims to simplify the procedures for delivery of items with a value of less than €150 euros.
The new method gives the consumer the option of making their own customs statement himself requiring only a form of electronic ID – such as a digital certificate, electronic DNI or Cl@ve code- and the shipping or tracking number of the package provided by the seller.
This system, called H7, will replace the current Low Value Declaration system, which places the onus of declaration on the carrier. The Canarian Government has stated that this system leaves the consumer vulnerable, as extra costs are often added on by the supplier.
The H7 declaration will be possible via VEXCAN, the website of the Canary Islands tax agency, which handles import and export declarations in the Canary Islands.
IGIC (Canarian VAT equivalent) will continue not to be charged on items valued less than €150 – a notable difference to the rest of Spain, where the limit of €22 will be abolished on the 1st July.
The changes are part of a new EU-wide regime, the Import One Stop Shop, which will require all importers from non-EU countries to work through an established intermediary within the EU. At the moment, we don’t know precisely how this will work in relations to UK imports to the Canaries, which has a special tax and customs status, but we’ll attempt to find out more once the measures are in place.
For regular updates, pictures and videos of Lanzarote be sure to like and follow our Facebook page “Gazette Life Lanzarote”.
