Who can import biocides into Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Do you know who can be an importer of biocides in Bosnia and Herzegovina? If you don’t then this post might be for you.
Now in Bosnia and Herzegovina regulations on biocides exist only in the Republika Srpska. And according to the currently valid procedure, biocides are registered in the Programme of technical dossier submission. This is the first stage of obtaining a license to place biocides on the market, and at the same time the only one that is currently being carried out.
However, there are lots of questions in terms of who carries out this procedure and who can be an importer of biocides registered in the Programme.
According to the Law on Biocides, the application for the entry of biocides into the Programmeis submitted by the domestic producer of biocides or the authorizedrepresentative of the foreign producer - the importer. According to the procedure carried out, the decision on the inclusionof biocides in the Programme of technical dossier submission is issued to the applicant - domestic producer or importer.
These persons are considered to be permit holders for placing biocides on the market.
When it comes to the importing biocides, the Law stipulates that imports can only be carried out by holders of permits, that is, of decisions on the inclusion of biocides into the Programme. This means that biocides can only be imported by persons who have completed the process of inclusion of the biocides in the Programme of technical dossier submission.
The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare of the Republic of Srpska publishes on its website a list of biocides included in the Programme of technical dossier submission. There you can see which biocides can be placed on the market, as well as who is the permit holder for each of the biocides.
If you thought that a biocide registered in the Programmecan be imported by any person, this is not the case. Only the permit holder can be an importer of biocides and is responsible for the product he place on the market.
The law does not foresee the possibility that registration of biocides is carried out by the administrative representative of a foreign manufacturer, and that biocides registered in such procedure is imported by other persons.
It is necessary to pay attention to this if you plan to import biocides or start negotiations with a foreign manufacturer.
One more thing is very important if you plan to manufacture or import biocides.
According to the Law on Biocides, the manufacturer or importer of biocides can only be a legal entity.
This is not the case with other chemicals. The Law on Chemicals of the Republika Srpska provides that the production or import of chemicals can be carried out by legal entities as well as entrepreneurs - registered natural persons. The same situation regarding chemicals is in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The difference stems from the time gap between the adoption of the current laws: the Law on Biocides was adopted in 2009, while the Law on Chemicals is from 2018.
We can expect that when the Law on Biocides is amended or a new law is passed, this provision will be changed. Giving entrepreneurs the opportunity to produce or import biocides would be in line with the rules in force in the European Union.
Since there are no specific regulations on biocides in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the procedure for importing poisons is still applied. If the biocidal product contains poisons, it is necessary to obtain the prescribed permits.
If you have any questions concerning the application of regulations on biocides, contact me at nina.pajovic@bens-consulting.eu.
Author of original photo Willfried Wende portal Pixabay
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