Furniture made in Türkiye enters the EU without customs duty because it is covered by the EU–Türkiye customs union, provided the shipment travels with an A.TR movement certificate. The import is not free of obligations, though: you still pay import VAT, you become the EU operator responsible for product safety under the GPSR, and from 30 December 2026 wooden-framed seating and wooden furniture fall under the EU Deforestation Regulation.
This guide is written by ellda mobilya, a furniture manufacturer in Kayseri, Türkiye, producing sofa sets, corner sofas, bed base sets and mattresses since 2010. It is for wholesalers, retailers and importers looking at Turkish furniture wholesale. Europe is the simplest destination on the customs side, but there is more to it than the duty rate: this guide covers what changes at the EU border and what stays the same as any other import.
The customs union in one paragraph
The EU–Türkiye customs union covers industrial products; agricultural products and certain steel products are outside it. Furniture of Chapter 94 is an industrial product, so sofas, corner sofas, bed bases and mattresses from Türkiye are not charged EU customs duty when the customs union applies (European Commission).
The customs union is different from a free trade agreement. Under a free trade agreement the goods must meet rules of origin. Under the customs union what counts is that the goods are in free circulation in Türkiye, and the document that proves it is the A.TR.
What is an A.TR movement certificate?
An A.TR is the movement certificate that proves goods are in free circulation in the customs union. It is not a certificate of origin: where the goods were made plays no role for the A.TR (IHK Koblenz). Three practical points follow:
- It is needed for every shipment. There is no minimum value below which the A.TR can be left out.
- It is issued in the exporting country for the goods on the invoice, so the description and quantities must match the commercial invoice and the packing list.
- Electronic A.TRs are accepted. EU member states agreed to accept A.TR certificates issued electronically with a QR code and no wet-ink signature, pending a formal decision of the EU–Türkiye Customs Cooperation Committee (European Commission).
What happens without an A.TR? The goods are treated as an ordinary third-country import and the duty in the EU tariff applies to each line. Some furniture lines carry a zero rate anyway, but bedding lines may not, so a missing A.TR can cost money on a mixed container. Check the rate for each commodity code in TARIC with your broker.
If you also buy for the UK, note that the UK left the customs union arrangement in 2021. A.TR is an EU document; UK shipments use an origin declaration instead.
Last verified: 24 October 2026.
Duty-free does not mean tax-free
The customs union removes customs duty, not VAT. Import VAT is charged at the rate of the member state where the goods are released for free circulation, on the customs value plus costs to the first destination in the EU. Whether you pay it at the border or account for it in your VAT return depends on the rules of that member state; your customs broker or forwarder will tell you which applies.
You also need an EU EORI number to lodge the import declaration, and each product type in the order needs a commodity code. Upholstered seating is generally in heading 9401, bed bases and mattresses in heading 9404, and some wooden bedroom items in heading 9403. An upholstered storage base can be classified in more than one way depending on its construction, so agree the codes with your broker before the first order, not when the container is at the port.
GPSR: you become the responsible person
The General Product Safety Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/988, has applied since 13 December 2024. It covers consumer products for which no specific EU safety law applies, which includes most domestic furniture and bedding (EUR-Lex).
For an importer buying from a factory outside the EU, the key rules are:
- An EU-based economic operator must be responsible for the product. When the manufacturer is outside the EU, that is normally the importer.
- Identification on the product. The product, its packaging or an accompanying document must carry the manufacturer's name, trade name and postal and electronic address, and the importer's name and contact details.
- Traceability. Each product needs a type, batch or serial number or other element that identifies it.
- Safety information in a language consumers in the member state of sale can easily understand, where it is needed for safe use.
- Online listings must show the manufacturer, the responsible person, product identification and warnings.
In practice, decide before production where your name and address will appear (on a sewn-in label, a carton label or a leaflet) and send the wording with the order. Labels added at the factory are cheaper than labels added in your warehouse.
Fire safety and other national rules
The EU has no single fire safety regulation for domestic upholstered furniture. Some member states and many contract tenders (hotels, offices, public buildings) set their own requirements. If you sell into a market with national rules or into contract projects, name the requirement in the enquiry so it can be confirmed per model and fabric in the quote.
EUDR: the next deadline for wooden furniture
The EU Deforestation Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, requires that products made from wood placed on the EU market are deforestation-free, legally produced and covered by a due diligence statement. Annex I lists upholstered seats with wooden frames (ex 9401 61) and the wooden furniture subheadings of 9403 among the covered products (EUR-Lex).
As of 24 October 2026 the dates set by Regulation (EU) 2025/2650 are (European Commission, Access2Markets):
| Who | Applies from |
|---|---|
| Large and medium operators, and all downstream operators and traders | 30 December 2026 |
| Micro and small enterprises (most products) | 30 June 2027 |
The operator who first places the product on the EU market, which for imported furniture is usually the importer, files the due diligence statement. Downstream operators and traders keep the reference number of that statement and records of their suppliers and customers for five years.
What this means for a sofa order shipping in early 2027: ask the factory now what information it can provide about the wood in the frames (species, supplier, country of harvest), and whether it can supply what you need for your due diligence. Check every commodity code against Annex I, because bed bases and mattresses under heading 9404 are classified differently from wooden-framed sofas. We confirm what we can supply for a given order in the quote.
Last verified: 24 October 2026.
Who does what on an EU shipment
| Step | Usually handled by |
|---|---|
| Model list, quantities, fabrics, sizes | You, from the catalogue |
| Quote with price, delivery terms and lead time | The factory |
| Commercial invoice and packing list | The factory |
| A.TR movement certificate | Prepared on the export side for each shipment |
| GPSR labels with your name and address | You supply the wording; applied at the factory if agreed |
| Freight booking (depends on the agreed delivery term) | The factory or your forwarder |
| Commodity codes, import declaration, EORI | You and your customs broker |
| Import VAT | You, through your broker |
| EUDR due diligence statement (from 30 December 2026) | You as first operator in the EU, with information from the factory |
Checklist before your first EU order
- EU EORI number in place and a customs broker or forwarder chosen
- Commodity code agreed for each product type, and the TARIC rate checked in case an A.TR is missing
- "A.TR movement certificate required" stated in the enquiry
- Import VAT treatment in your member state confirmed with your broker
- GPSR label wording (manufacturer, your name and address, product identification) sent with the order
- Safety information and warnings translated for the countries where you sell
- National or contract fire requirements, if any, named in the enquiry
- For orders arriving from 30 December 2026: the wood information you need for EUDR due diligence requested from the factory
- Bed base and mattress sizes checked against your market (our bases are 160 × 200, 180 × 200 and 90 × 200 cm)
How ellda handles EU orders
We make sofa sets, corner sofas, bed base sets and mattresses in our 10,500 m² factory in Kayseri Organized Industrial Zone, and all four groups can be combined in one shipment. Our guide to mixed container furniture explains how to plan that load, and the baza guide translates Turkish bed base terms into European ones. Every order is checked for dimensions, stitching, surfaces and mechanisms before export packing; the steps are on our production page.
Price, minimum quantities, lead time and delivery terms depend on the models, fabrics and destination, so we state them in the quote, together with what we can provide for the A.TR, labelling and EUDR information on that order. Our team works in English, and buyers can visit the factory by appointment.
Next step
Shortlist models from the catalogue, for example sofa sets with sofa widths from 220 to 295 cm or corner sofas, and send the list with the checklist above through our export page or request a quote. For the full process from shortlist to shipment, read importing furniture from Turkey; to compare factories and trading companies, see furniture suppliers in Turkey.