Turkey and the EU customs union: what A.TR actually does
Textiles from Turkey enter the EU at zero duty with one document. Here is what that document is, who issues it, what you still pay at import, and the three European markets where none of it applies.
Updated 2026-10-07
One document, no duty
Turkey and the European Union have been in a customs union for industrial goods since 1996, and textiles are industrial goods. A fitted sheet made in Denizli enters Germany, France, the Netherlands or Poland at zero customs duty. Not a reduced rate, not a quota — zero. The paper that proves it is the A.TR movement certificate, and it travels with the lorry. This is the single largest difference between buying from Turkey and buying from Asia, and it is a legal fact rather than a supplier's claim. You can check it with your own customs agent before you speak to us.
What A.TR is, and what it is not
A.TR is a movement certificate, not a certificate of origin. It says the goods are in free circulation within the customs union, which is what the duty exemption depends on. The exporter applies for it and the Turkish customs authority stamps it; we issue one with every shipment and it costs you nothing. It is not the same as EUR.1, which is a preferential origin document used with countries outside the union. If a supplier offers you an EUR.1 for a shipment into the EU, something about the route is unusual and it is worth asking why.
What you still pay at the border
Duty is zero; import VAT is not. You pay your own country's rate at import — 19 % in Germany, 21 % in the Netherlands, 22 % in Italy, 23 % in Poland — and if you are VAT-registered you reclaim it in the ordinary way. It is cash flow, not cost. Your customs agent will also charge a clearance fee. It is a small fixed amount per shipment, which is why it matters more on 350 pieces than on 3,000, and it is the one line we cannot quote for you because it is your agent's price, not ours.
Where the customs union stops
The United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland are outside it. Goods going there need an EUR.1 rather than an A.TR, there is a customs declaration to make, and duty may apply depending on the tariff line and the agreement in force. That is why our price calculator quotes those three markets instead of printing a figure. We would rather tell a British buyer that we will confirm freight and duty in writing than show a number on screen and invoice something higher. The sixteen markets on the site are not all the same, and the page says which.
Why this changes the lead time, not just the price
A container from East Asia is four to six weeks on the water before it reaches Rotterdam or Hamburg. A lorry from Denizli is about seven days to Germany, and it carries its own customs paper. The number that matters is not the first order — it is the second. When a listing sells faster than you planned, a four-week repeat order from Turkey is a different business from a ten-week one from Asia. That is usually the argument that decides it, long after the per-piece price has stopped being interesting.
Orientation from a factory that ships into the EU every week, not legal advice. The rules below are named so you can look them up, and your own advisor should confirm anything you are about to print on a label.