HSI takes care of the import of horses from around the world almost daily. We do that from stable to stable. Most of the horses land at Schiphol. HSI has its own office here with experienced staff. The horses often have a long journey behind them. It is therefore important to have the import procedure done as quickly as possible so that the horses can continue to their final destination very fast. The health of the horses is also inspected with care. Everything gets done for your horse in order for it to feel comfortable in Europe quickly.

The process
The horses arrive at Schiphol with a health certificate that was issued by the authorities in the country of origin. This certificate is controlled by the NVWA. Then the customs technical input is done. HSI has its own customs license, which makes it possible for us to arrange all possible imports, such as final, temporary, re-importation and transits. HSI also has a current account at customs. We can therefore arrange the financial business quickly.

As an extra service, HSI can act as a Limited Fiscal Representative (BFV) for our EU-based customers (except for the Dutch) who have a VAT number. No VAT needs to be paid then. Instead the VAT accounting gets settled. A lot less work for you as a client.

Permanent importation
VAT (21%) and Import Duties (11,5%) must be paid to customs for final importations into the EU. We can request a declaration from the Studbook for thoroughbred breeding animals for mares and stallions. The import duties get cancelled on the issuance of this declaration by the studbook

Temporary importation
HSI can temporary import horses that come for training/competitions and thus stay temporarily in the EU. This temporary importation is valid for 1 year and may be extended if so desired. A deposit is paid to customs for this temporary importation. When these horses leave the EU again, a correct re-export customs document should be drawn up. Based on this, the deposit will be credited.

Re- importation % Transit
A re-importation could be done for horses coming back into the EU. The original seller must then take the horse back into the accounting. No import duties are levied for return-horses. Whether VAT is charged depends on the situation. HSI will gladly advise you about this.

HSI can provide a T1 (Transit) document for horses travelling to a non-EU country from Schiphol, for example: Switzerland, Norway and Russia. This allows the horses to travel within the EU. The import gets them done with customs in the country of destination.

Within the EU
Horses travelling from a non-EU country (for example, Switzerland) to the Netherlands must have a health certificate, microchip and a horse passport. In the country of departure a T1 document will be added, which HSI will clear using an import declaration at customs in the EU.

Other airports
Horses come in regularly at other airports, such as Frankfurt, Liege, Luxembourg and Maastricht. These horses often come to the Netherlands with a T1 document, after which HSI takes care of the customs technical input in the EU.