Fruits and vegetables: standard import values and additional import duties

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2184 of 10 September 2025 amending Delegated Regulations (EU) 2016/232 and (EU) 2017/891 as regards certain rules on producer organisations, notification obligations of producer prices and implementation of certain import mechanisms in the fruit and vegetables sector

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2185 of 10 September 2025 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/892 as regards certain procedures, the calculation of standard import values and additional import duties

Update

Standard import values

The European Union (EU) has updated its procedures for setting standard import values, which are used to set entry prices for 15 categories of fruit and vegetables during certain periods of the year. These import values will be set on a weekly rather than a daily basis, with the possibility to establish these values on the basis of customs data.

Additional import duties

The EU has amended the rules regarding additional import duties (tariffs) to clarify under which conditions these duties can be applied.

Impacted Products

Tomatoes, cucumbers, globe artichokes, courgettes, oranges, clementines, satsumas, mandarins, tangerines, lemons, table grapes, apples, pears, apricots, cherries, peaches, nectarines, plums

What is changing?

For some fruits and vegetables (see “Impacted Products”) during certain periods of the year, the EU has established an entry price system (Regulation 2017/891) – a minimum price threshold that must be met when these products are imported into the EU. This system is based on standard import values, which are the estimated customs values of imported fruit (based on average prices of imported fruit and vegetables). An additional import duty can be applied to these products in these periods if specific volumes (set out in Regulation 2023/2110) are exceeded.

Under Regulation 2025/2185, the European Commission has amended the system for calculating standard import values and applying additional import duties (Regulation 2017/892). The new rules:

• set standard import values for the relevant fruit and vegetables on a weekly rather than a daily basis, and provide an alternative method for establishing import values based on Member States’ customs data (Art. 38)
• make the volume of imports the only criterion for setting an additional import duty (currently account is also taken of whether imports are disturbing the EU market, and whether additional import duties are a disproportionate response) (Art. 39(1))
• clarify that the additional duty to be applied is one third of the Most Favoured Nation tariff (see Import tariffs and tariff rate quotas explained) (Art. 40)
• clarify that an additional import duty can be applied to a preferential tariff quota (established with a non-EU country under a Free Trade Agreement), but not to a non-preferential tariff quota (open to all non-EU countries) or to fruits and vegetables imported under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) (Regulation 978/2012) (Art. 41)
• amend the customs codes for fruits and vegetables to which additional duties can apply and the periods in which they can apply (see Annex to Regulation 2025/2185).

The change from daily to weekly notification of average prices of imported fruit and vegetables also required an amendment to the rules on how EU Member States collect and notify these prices (under Regulation 2017/891, Art. 74). These changes are set out in Regulation 2025/2184.

Why?

The new Regulations simplify and reduce the administrative burden by setting standard import values on a weekly rather than a daily basis, and making better use of existing data collection systems. Other changes align rules with the EU’s World Trade Organization (WTO) Tariff Schedule and updated customs codes classifications.

Timeline

These Regulations apply from 24 December 2025.

Background

Where imports of certain fruits and vegetables are particularly high, the European Commission can apply additional import duties. These import volumes are set at 125% of average imports of each product during the application period for the previous 3 years (Regulation 1308/2013, Art. 182(1)). The trigger volumes for 2024 and 2025 are based on the volume of imports notified by Member States for the years 2020–2022.

Any additional import duty introduced would be equivalent to one third of the import duty normally applied to that product (Regulation 2017/892, Art. 40).

Prior to these new Regulations, additional duties could not be imposed where imports were unlikely to disturb the EU market for a product, or where the impacts of additional duties would be disproportionate (Regulation 1308/2013, Art. 182(2)).

Resources

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