0 · Verdict
Amber · there are European names that cannot be usedThe product enters the European Union duty-free.
Recommended action: make sure origin can be proven, because without proof of origin the preference does not apply and the MFN duty is paid.
Sunflower-seed › For technical or industrial uses other than the manufacture of foodstuffs for human consumption (CN 1512 11 10) enters the European Union duty-free today under the EU-Mercosur Agreement, instead of 3.2% without it. There is no quota, so it applies to any quantity. Data as of 30 October 2026, from the EU-Mercosur Interim Trade Agreement and the Combined Nomenclature 2026.
1 · Classification
The product in the three nomenclatures
This sheet is built on the EU tariff line 1512 11 10, which is the code the importer declares in the European Union. In Argentina there are 2 NCM lines under the same 6 digits; the exporter's product is one of them. The classification should be confirmed by a customs broker.
| Nomenclature | Code | Version | Official description |
|---|---|---|---|
| NCM (Argentina) | 1512.11.10 | NCM in force 2026 | De girasol |
| NCM (Argentina) | 1512.11.20 | NCM in force 2026 | De cártamo |
| CN (European Union) | 1512 11 10 | CN 2026 (annex in CN 2013: 1512 11 10) | Sunflower-seed or safflower oil and fractions thereof: crude oil: for technical or industrial uses other than the manufacture of foodstuffs for human consumption |
| HS (worldwide) | 1512.11 | Harmonized System | Sunflower-seed, safflower or cotton-seed oil and fractions thereof, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified |
2 · Duty and schedule
The duty today and when it reaches zero
The preferential duty today is 0%. The MFN duty, without the agreement, is 3.2%. It has been at zero from the start of the agreement (1 May 2026). On the Argentine side, the export duty today is between 0% and 4.5% (Decrees 423/2026 and 38/2025).
Importing this product from Europe into Argentina
The agreement also lowers what Argentina charges on European goods. Appendix 2-A-2 mirrors the one used in the rest of this sheet. It sets the duty Argentina charges on EU goods entering the country, and lowers it on the same timetable. For an EU supplier selling this product to Argentina, this is the duty that applies.
Import sheet, laid out for buyers sourcing from Europe
| Annex line (NCM 2012) | Base rate | Category | Reaches zero |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1512.11.10 Aceite de girasol, en bruto Declared today as 1512.11.10 · Same code, unchanged | 10% | 8 | 1 January 2034 |
| 1512.11.20 Aceite de cártamo, en bruto Declared today as 1512.11.20 · Same code, unchanged | 10% | 0 | from the start of the agreement (1 May 2026) |
How this line was reached. The annex writes its list in NCM 2012, while imports are declared in the edition in force. This line did not change between the two editions (the official correlation tables do not list it). This EU line corresponds to more than one Argentine code, each with its own line. Look for the declared one in the table. All of this covers only the duty. If the purchase falls within a quota, an import licence is also needed (it is below, in the authorisations block). What other Argentine agencies require for entry is below, as the VUCE publishes it. Which ones apply depends on the SIM subdivision declared, set by the customs broker.
Argentine agencies involved in the import
The duty comes from the agreement, the rest is required by each agency. The VUCE assigns 6 interventions of other agencies to the import of this position. Each one is shown with the agency’s own text, in Spanish and unabridged, and with the conditions under which it applies. Several only apply in certain cases (wooden packaging, used goods, goods for consumption), and each one says so. Where the origin changes something, each one also states what applies to goods from the EU.
To import and sell in Argentina
- ARCASistema de Información Simplificado Agrícola (SISA)Customs regime: definitive · Goods: new · Origin: ArgentinaEl Sistema de Información Simplificado Agrícola (SISA) centraliza los datos de productores y operadores comerciales de la cadena de granos bajo la administración de ARCA, a efectos de optimizar la gestión de información, simplificar trámites y reducir costos en el sector agropecuario.When it applies: El Sistema de Información Simplificado Agrícola unifica registros y trámites de SENASA, INASE y ARCA para facilitar la carga de datos y mejorar el control fiscal. Reemplaza múltiples registros y declaraciones previas relacionados con la producción y comercialización de granos, semillas y legumbres secas.a administrativa y mejorar el control fiscal.Only for 1512.11.10, among the Argentine codes of this position.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Mandatory - SENASAAviso de Importación de Alimentos, UPEI, Envases y Muestras - Alta Vigilancia.Customs regime: definitive · Goods: newFor goods from the European Union: This is the one that applies if the food or packaging comes with certification from an EU country. The sworn import declaration is enough, and the health authority may not impose additional requirements. The certificate of free sale, the marketing authorisation or a similar document from the competent health authority must be attached. Source: Decree 2126/71, Annex I, Art. 2, and Annex II, Art. 4(a), as worded by Decree 697/2026, and Annex III to Decree 35/2025.When it applies: Se necesitará realizar la solicitud de "Aviso de Importación de Alimentos y Envases" de aquellas mercaderías que hayan sido elaborados en los países listados en el Anexo III del Decreto 35/2025:Only for 1512.11.20, among the Argentine codes of this position. In 1512.11.20, only for SIM subdivisions 1512.11.20.900U.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Mandatory - SENASAEmbalajes de Madera de Importación*Customs regime: definitive/temporary · Goods: newFor goods from the European Union: It is the same for any origin: it covers all wooden packaging entering the country. Source: SENASA Resolution 614/2015.Todos los embalajes de madera de mercaderías que ingresen al territorio argentino debe estar descortezado, libre de insectos y/o signos de actividad biológica, tratado y certificado en concordancia con lo estipulado en la Norma Internacional para Medidas Fitosanitarias (NIMF N° 15) de la Convención Internacional de Protección Fitosanitaria.When it applies: La mercadería es acondicionada con embalajes de madera o madera de acomodación.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Mandatory - SENASAProductos de Origen Vegetal. Importación de Productos de Origen Vegetal que contienen OGM*Customs regime: definitive · Goods: newEvaluación de aptitud alimentaria de organismos genéticamente modificados (OGM)When it applies: Solicitud de autorización de importación temporaria de productos de origen vegetal que puedan contener OGM, para su industrialización y posterior exportación del producto transformado.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Mandatory
Only for temporary imports, transit or other regimes
- SENASALibre circulación de importaciones temporales - alimentos y materiales en contactoCustoms regime: temporary, in transit · Goods: newPermite el ingreso temporal de mercadería al país con la obligación de reexportarla para consumo en un plazo determinadoOnly for 1512.11.20, among the Argentine codes of this position. In 1512.11.20, only for SIM subdivisions 1512.11.20.900U.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Mandatory
Optional: tools, not requirements
- Secretaría de Industria, Comercio y de la Pequeña y Mediana EmpresaSolicitud Resolución Anticipada de OrigenCustoms regime: definitive · Goods: new/usedWhen it applies: El origen de las mercaderías determina, principalmente, el tratamiento arancelario aplicable a su importación. La Resolución Anticipada de Origen (RAO) permite al importador conocer, antes de llevar adelante sus respectivas importaciones, qué origen va a considerar el Estado Argentino a los fines de aplicar el tratamiento arancelario.
The agency's text (in Spanish)
Optional
Source: VUCE, tariff position finder, checked on 6 October 2026. Agencies change their interventions often, so each one links the VUCE page it comes from, to be checked on the day of import.
Year-by-year table and how it is calculated
| From | Stage | Ad valorem | Specific (€) | Applies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 May 2026 | 1 of 1 (year 0) | 0% | — | Duty-free |
How it is calculated. This line has been duty-free since the first day of the agreement. It is already at zero.
Additional refund. Certified organic products, products bearing the Alimentos Argentinos una elección natural seal and products with a registered designation of origin or geographical indication get an additional 0.5% (Decree 1341/2016, Arts. 3 to 5, maintained by Art. 11 of Decree 557/2023). They do not add up: a product that meets more than one condition still gets 0.5% (Resolution 90-E/2017, Art. 9), and each condition is proven with a certificate per shipment (Arts. 1 and 2).
On the Argentine side. Today's export duty is set by Decree 423/2026, Art. 2 and Annex II (IF-2026-53831692-APN-SSMAEII#MEC); Decree 38/2025, Art. 1 and Annex I (IF-2025-08161099-APN-SAGYP#MEC), and it is the rate the VUCE applies (checked on 17 October 2026).
Duty savings calculator
EU import duty is calculated on the customs value, which in practice is the CIF value (goods plus freight and insurance to the EU port). Enter what you export in a year, in euros or in dollars.
With the agreement it already enters duty-free. You save €3,200 a year against the MFN duty.
Only have the FOB value? Estimate the customs value
The EU customs value is, in practice, the CIF value (FOB plus freight and insurance to the EU port). Enter the three amounts and carry the result up.
Estimated customs value: €4,500
3 · Tariff-rate quota and access
This line has no tariff-rate quota
The agreement opens no tariff-rate quota (TRQ) for this line. The preference therefore applies to every shipment, with no volume limit and no quota procedure.
Where to check it
- Section B of Annex 2-A lists the 23 quotas the European Union opens for Mercosur. None covers this line.
| Period | Volume | Status |
|---|
If the product may fall under one of them, write to us and we will review it.
4 · Rules of origin
Whether the product qualifies as originating
To benefit from the preference the product has to be originating. The applicable rule is the one for 1512.11 – 1512.19, which requires that the product be wholly obtained in Argentina or in the European Union. Answer the questions to see whether the product qualifies.
Materials questionnaire
Only the questions the case needs are shown. The result applies the Annex 3-B rule for this line.
Check the materials one by one with the origin assistant, with their tariff code and their share of the price.
The rule as published, the tolerance and the proof of origin
The rule, as published in the agreement: «Manufacture in which all the materials of headings 12.06 and 15.12 used are wholly obtained» (for «Sunflower-seed oil»)
Tolerance. Article 3.5 tolerates materials that do not meet the rule up to 10% of the ex-works price.
Cumulation. The agreement allows bilateral cumulation: originating materials of the other Party count as originating (Chapter 3 of the iTA).
How it is proven. Origin is proven with the exporter's statement on origin (Annex 3-C). At the start, the transitional certificate of origin of Annex 3-D also applies (notice 2026/875).
Edition. Annex 3-B is written in the 2017 Harmonized System and this sheet uses the edition in force. At four and six digits they almost always match. If the product changed heading between editions, the rule should be confirmed with the customs broker.
For now the certificate of origin is still accepted. Until 1 May 2029 the European Union also accepts the traditional certificate of origin, besides the exporter's own statement on origin. In the Spanish text: «Durante un período no superior a 3 (tres) años a partir de la fecha de entrada en vigor del presente Acuerdo, la Unión Europea aceptará también como declaración de origen un «certificado de origen» que indique que los productos importados en la Unión Europea cumplen los requisitos de origen establecidos en el presente Acuerdo.» (iTA, Annex 3-D, paragraph 1). The period may be extended by 2 more years at Mercosur's request.
There is more than one rule for this heading. The annex splits it into several descriptions («Aceite de girasol», «Aceite de cártamo»). The first is shown above; the customs broker can confirm which one describes the product.
5 · Health, technical and labelling requirements
What the product must meet to enter the EU
This line is not on the veterinary border control list of Regulation 2021/632. Nor is it in Annex XI of the plant health regulation, which requires the certificate for plant products. This product class has 26 protected European names, names that cannot be used in the European Union. The Commission's portal (Access2Markets) assigns 3 EU product requirements to this line (technical, labelling or marketing rules). It assigns them to the whole line, and the table lists each one with its act and the link to check whether it applies to the product.
- Name · EU GI26 protected European names in this product classConfirmedthere are names that cannot be usedThis position falls in the class Aceites, aceites comestibles y grasas animales, which the annex defines by code. Those names cannot be used in the European Union, not even with «type», «style» or «imitation». For example, Steirisches Kürbiskernöl, Štajersko prekmursko bučno olje, Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià; Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià, Aceite del Bajo Aragón, Antequera, Baena, among others. Search the name used to sell the product.
- Name · Mercosur GI1 Mercosur name is protected in the European UnionConfirmeda protection in the exporter’s favourA product from one of those areas that meets its specification is protected by the name in the EU. See which ones.
EU requirements for this line (3)check which ones apply to the product
The European Commission assigns them to the whole line, so each one should be checked against the actual product.
- EU · healthHealth control of feedingstuffs of non-animal originRegulation 183/2005, Regulation 2024/2104, Regulation 2017/625 and 4 more acts
- EU · marketingMarketing standards for feedingstuffsRegulation 767/2009, Regulation 2017/1017, Regulation 2018/848 and 3 more acts
- EU · specific requirementWaste controlRegulation 2024/1157, Regulation 1013/2006, Regulation 2025/1290 and 3 more acts
Source: Access2Markets (European Commission) · checked on 1 September 2026
6 · Authorisations and registrations
What must be approved before exporting
The European Union's list of authorised countries and its approval of establishments apply to products of animal origin. They do not apply to this product.
7 · Cross-cutting EU regulations
EUDR, CBAM and safeguards
These are the rules that stop a shipment for reasons unrelated to the duty. Neither of the two covers this line, according to the list of codes in the annex of each regulation.
EUDR · deforestation
Prohibits placing on the EU market products linked to deforestation. It covers seven commodities (cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya and wood). It does not cover this line, because it is not in the list of codes of Annex I.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Annex ICBAM · carbon border adjustment
Charges at the EU border for the carbon embedded in certain energy-intensive goods (cement, electricity, fertilisers, iron and steel, aluminium and some chemicals). It does not cover this line, because it is not in the list of codes of Annex I.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/956, Annex ISafeguards
Chapter 9 of the agreement allows either Party to suspend the preference for a product if increased imports cause injury to its industry. It is a mechanism, not a list, and nothing applies unless a specific measure has been imposed. Check in TARIC whether any measure is in force for 1512 11 10.
Measures in force · No data8 · Destination
Choose a destination country
The duty, the schedule, the quota and the rule of origin are the same in all twenty-seven Member States, so no country needs to be chosen for the above. What changes by country is the label language, VAT and local formalities.
Choose one of the destinations available
9 · EU market
How much of this product the EU imports
In 2025 the EU imported €79.4 million from outside the EU; Argentina is not among the suppliers.
Where the EU buys from (2025)
| Rank | Country | Value | Share | €/kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Ukraine | €78.3 million | 98.6% | €1.09/kg |
| 2nd | Moldova | €812,489 | 1.0% | €0.83/kg |
| 3rd | Serbia | €287,591 | 0.4% | €1.06/kg |
| 4th | North Macedonia | €21,869 | less than 0.1% | €0.43/kg |
| 5th | Russia | €85 | less than 0.1% | — |
Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay enter with the same cut (2025)
| Rank | Country | Value | Share | Quantity | €/kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Argentina | No sales | — | — | — |
| — | Brazil | No sales | — | — | — |
| — | Uruguay | No sales | — | — | — |
| — | Paraguay | No sales | — | — | — |
Under the agreement they pay the same duty as Argentina, so they compete on price and volume. The rank is among all suppliers from outside the EU.
Who imports within the EU (2025)
| Rank | Member State | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Bulgaria | €19.6 million | 24.7% |
| 2nd | Poland | €19.1 million | 24.0% |
| 3rd | Slovenia | €19.0 million | 24.0% |
| 4th | Netherlands | €12.3 million | 15.4% |
| 5th | Italy | €6.7 million | 8.5% |
It is the Member State that declares the import, which is not always where the goods are consumed: the ports of the Netherlands and Belgium receive goods for the whole Union.
What your competitors pay
Of the 13 countries on the list, today 11 pay the same. For the other 2 the duty cannot be compared in a single figure.
Country by country (13)
- Argentina, today0%Under the EU-Mercosur agreement
- Ukraine1st EU supplier0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0295/14, since 1 January 2016
- Moldova2nd EU supplier0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0492/14, since 1 January 2016
- Serbia3rd EU supplier0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0036/10, since 1 February 2010
- North Macedonia4th EU supplier0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0239/04, since 1 January 2009
- Russia5th EU supplierNo dataTARIC has no duty for this lineTARIC
- Chile0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 3016/24, since 1 February 2025
- Mexico0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0415/00, since 1 July 2016
- Canada0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0037/17, since 21 September 2017
- South Africa0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 1623/16, since 10 October 2016
- New Zealand0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0244/24, since 1 May 2024
- Vietnam0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Decision 0753/20, since 1 August 2020
- United States0%Pays the same as youEU preference for its originTARIC, measure 142 (tariff preference), Regulation 1455/26, since 1 July 2026
- ChinaDepends on a condition (see TARIC)No preference, pays the MFN duty of the line, which is under end-useThe condition, as TARIC writes it, is «Cond: B cert: N-990 (28):; B (08):; C cert: Y-155 (01):50.000 % ; C (01):3.200 %».TARIC, measure 105 (MFN duty under end-use), Regulation 1652/24, since 1 July 2024
The countries are the five largest non-EU suppliers of this line (Eurostat, Comext) and a fixed reference list, with an agreement with the EU (Chile, Mexico, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and Vietnam) and without one (United States and China). Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay enter under the same agreement as you.
Each figure is the TARIC measure in force today for that origin, in the edition of 1 October 2026. Before clearing goods, the importer checks TARIC with the date and the ten-digit code.
TARIC, European Commission, edition of 1 October 2026 (CIRCABC)
10 · What to do, in order
The steps, in order
4 steps, in the order they are taken. Each one comes from a block of this sheet.
- 1Confirm the tariff classification with a customs brokerThis whole sheet depends on the line being 1512 11 10. If the line changes, so do the duty, the quota, the rule of origin and the requirements. It is the one step that cannot be skipped.Customs broker
- 2Register as an exporter with ARCA (Argentina)On the Argentine side, the export is lodged with customs, which requires registration in the exporters' register. That registration comes before the first shipment.
- 3Check that the product is originating, and be ready to prove itThe rule for 1512.11 – 1512.19 requires that the product be wholly obtained in Argentina or in the European Union. Without proof of origin there is no preference, and the MFN duty is paid even if the product qualifies. Origin is proven with the exporter's statement on origin (Annex 3-C). At the start, the transitional certificate of origin of Annex 3-D also applies (notice 2026/875).The exporter makes the statement. A certifying body is involved if the transitional certificate of Annex 3-D is needed.
- 4Check the technical and labelling rules for the productComposition, additives, contaminants, packaging and label. The EU product requirements for this line are in block 5; the detail by destination country, in the Commission's search tool. See it in Access2MarketsEuropean Commission · Access2Markets