Import of rough diamonds

Import of rough diamonds

"rough diamond" means a diamond that is unworked or simply sawn, cleaved or bruted and falls under the Harmonised Commodity Description and Coding System 7102 10, 7102 21 and 7102 31 (hereinafter "HS code")

Art. 2 lit. i) Council Regulation (EC) No 2368/2002

The importation of rough diamonds into the European Union (EU) is subject to strict regulations, and there are specific requirements that must be met when importing diamonds into the EU. It is believed that the diamond trade is often associated with illegal activities such as money laundering, corruption, and conflict financing. For this reason, the EU is a member of a diamond trade regulation system known as the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme to ensure that diamonds are acquired legally and do not contribute to conflict financing.

Anyone wishing to import rough diamonds into the EU must ensure that the diamonds originate from a Kimberley Process certified exporting country and that the required certificate is in place. In addition, the required customs and tax regulations must be complied with and all necessary documentation and permits must be presented.

Illegal importation of rough diamonds is punishable under the Foreign Trade and Payments Act. Those who import rough diamonds without the required permits or certificates face heavy fines, confiscation of the diamonds, or even imprisonment.

The Kimberley Process was created to prevent the trade in conflict diamonds, also known as blood diamonds. These are diamonds mined in war zones and sold to finance armed conflicts against governments. The scheme was launched in 2003 and is supported by governments, diamond industry representatives and civil society organizations.The Kimberley Process sets out a series of requirements that all rough diamonds must meet before they can be exported or imported, including the issuance of a certificate guaranteeing that the diamonds are conflict-free. Under the certification process, diamonds are monitored and tracked from point of origin to export or import to ensure they have not been used to finance armed conflict. The Kimberley Process has been successful in curbing the trade in conflict diamonds, and today over 99% of diamonds worldwide are certified conflict-free.