Turkish Machinery Exporter Opens Irish LTD with EORI — Customs Lead Times Cut, EU Distributor Compliance Restored
Background: Turkey–EU customs friction was killing distributor relationships
The exporter shipped industrial machinery directly to EU distributors under DAP Incoterms. Post-2022 customs and VAT enforcement at EU borders introduced unpredictable delays of 2–6 weeks on Turkish-origin shipments. The German distributor’s compliance team flagged the relationship as high-risk because there was no EU-resident party of record on customs declarations. The export business needed an EU consignee company with an EORI îumber to bring shipments in, clear customs, and re-invoice EU distributors — restoring predictability.
The challenge: standing up a real EU importer of record
An Irish LTD that acts as importer of record needs more than a CRO certificate. It needs an Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) number issued by Revenue Commissioners Customs, an Irish VAT number, a registered office that the Customs authorities can write to, and Section 137 EEA-resident director compliance. Without the EORI ópecifically, the entity cannot file customs declarations and the importer-of-record role does not work.
The solution: integrated incorporation, EORI and VAT setup
Chern & Co ran the project as a single workstream:
- A1 incorporation with founder as shareholder + nominee director under Section 137 — days 1–10
- RBO declaration filed — day 12
- EORI application submitted to Revenue Customs — day 13, issued day 18
- VAT registration with Revenue (including OSS for any B2C activity) — day 14, number issued week four
- Customs broker introduced and customs declaration template aligned with the LTD’s EORI:
- Re-papered distribution agreements so the Irish LTD is consignee, importer of record, and re-invoicer for EU distributors
The outcome: customs delays resolved, distributor relationships saved
Within month two, shipments cleared at Rotterdam and Hamburg routinely within 48 hours, against the 2–6 week pre-Irish-entity baseline. Distributors received compliant intra-EU VAT invoices from the Irish LTD instead of Turkish-origin invoices with import-duty surprises. The Turkish parent retained its German and Dutch distributor relationships and reclaimed an estimated €420k of working capital previously tied up in delayed shipments.
“Three months of customs delays evaporated once we had an Irish LTD with EORI and Irish VAT. We now ship into Rotterdam under EU origin rules and our German distributor’s compliance team is happy.”
— Operations Director, Istanbul exporter
Why an Irish LTD is the right importer of record for non-EU exporters
Ireland is one of the few EU jurisdictions where a non-EU founder can incorporate, get an EORI, register for VAT and run customs declarations under one English-language regulatory stack — without local presence beyond a registered office and an EEA-resident director. As a TCSP and EORI-experienced agent, Chern & Co delivers the full importer-of-record setup as a single fixed-fee project.
Need an EU importer of record? Book a free 15-minute consultation — full scope and EORI roadmap within 24 hours.
