Importing Custom Inflatables into Spain: EORI, Tariff and 21% IVA

An importer established in the EU, with an EORI number, is responsible for the customs declaration, and the goods are classified under a commodity code in the EU tariff. Import VAT is charged at the Spanish standard rate of 21% in addition to any duty.

For a brand that already imports this is short. For an agency producing a campaign it is the step that sets the schedule, and the usual routes are the client's importer or an importer of record service. Consignee details are not something to correct while goods are in transit.

Duty follows the classification; import VAT is charged on top at the Spanish standard rate. A goods price is therefore not a landed cost, and on a bulky, light shipment the freight sitting inside the VAT base is a bigger share than buyers expect.

Ask for the CIF value and the intended incoterm in writing. DDP is reviewed by quotation rather than offered as standard.

The fabric body, the blower, any lighting and the accessories can each sit under a different commodity code. The importer or a customs agent confirms classification from materials, construction, use and photographs, and it is worth having in writing before the goods move.

Freight is charged on volume as much as weight, so ask for packed dimensions, carton count and gross weight in the quotation.

The outdoor and fiesta season is long, with peaks in spring and summer. Las Fallas in Valencia runs from 15 to 19 March, and 12 October is the Fiesta Nacional de España, set by Ley 18/1987.

A long season is not the same as a relaxed one. Las Fallas in March sits at the front of the year, which means the ordering for it happens over the winter, while the October date competes with the tail of the summer season for the same production slots.

Work back from the installation date. Bulk production typically takes 3–8 days for simple items, 7–15 days for standard custom work and 15–25 days for complex or large pieces, counted from final design approval. Working back from the Fiesta Nacional on 12 October, that means approving artwork by late July for a complex piece shipped by sea, or by late August for air freight.

For a March installation the same arithmetic puts approval before the end of the previous year, which is the part buyers most often discover too late.