REX registered 0% duty into the EU, UK, Canada & Japan — see current status
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Nepal and Italy: friends since 1959
Nepal and Italy established diplomatic relations on 31 August 1959. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Nepal (source: Nepal–Italy Relations: diplomatic relations established on 31 August 1959, opens in a new tab)
Buying from Nepal into Italy
Italy specifics
Duty is set at EU level, so the 0% applies at an Italian port exactly as it does in Hamburg or Rotterdam, with the same paperwork. What is Italian is the VAT rate, the label language and a textile EPR scheme still being finalised. This is an overview, not tax or legal advice: your customs broker (spedizioniere doganale) and commercialista confirm the details for your business.
Clothing is taxed at Italy’s standard VAT rate of 22%, and import VAT is charged on the customs value plus any duty, which from Nepal is 0% under EBA. How and when your business recovers it depends on your VAT position, so check it with your commercialista before the first shipment. European Commission (source: VAT rules and rates: Italy standard rate 22% (reduced 5% / 10%, super-reduced 4%), opens in a new tab)
Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 requires the fibre composition in the official language of the country where the garment is sold to consumers. For Italy the fibre names must be in Italian and written in full, such as “cotone” for cotton, and breaches are penalised under Legislative Decree 190/2017. With the manufacturer outside the EU, the importer answers for the label. We sew in labels to your artwork, in Italian or in several languages. EUR-Lex (source: Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 on textile fibre names and labelling: Art. 14 (label required), Art. 15 (importer ensures label if manufacturer is outside the EU), Art. 16(3) (official language(s) of the member state of sale), Annex I fibre names, opens in a new tab) Camera di Commercio di Firenze (source: Prodotti tessili: fibre names under Regulation (EU) 1007/2011 must be given in Italian for products sold in Italy, in full; penalties under D.Lgs. 190/2017, opens in a new tab)
Italy’s environment ministry consulted on a textile extended producer responsibility decree in 2025, and the Conferenza Unificata gave it a favourable opinion on 23 July 2026, with further approval steps before publication. The producer under the draft is whoever first places the textiles on the Italian market, which for a direct import is usually you. The EU requires every member state to run such a scheme under Directive (EU) 2025/1892; we supply per-style fibre composition and garment weight for the reporting. MASE (source: Al via la consultazione pubblica per definire il regime di responsabilità estesa del produttore per la filiera del tessile (public consultation on a textile EPR decree, April 2025), opens in a new tab) European Commission (source: Revised Waste Framework Directive enters into force (Directive (EU) 2025/1892, 16 October 2025): EPR schemes for textiles and footwear in every member state within 30 months, opens in a new tab) +1
Containers from Kolkata or Visakhapatnam can discharge at Genoa or La Spezia for the north-west and centre, or Trieste for the north-east; air freight routes via Kathmandu to Milan. Once released for free circulation in Italy, the goods move within the EU without further duty. We ship FOB Kolkata by sea or FCA Kathmandu by air, and your forwarder books the main leg.
While Nepal is a least-developed country (LDC), knitwear cut and sewn in Nepal enters Italy at 0% under the EU’s Everything But Arms scheme instead of the standard 12%, even when the fabric is imported, because the EU’s garment rule for LDCs is single transformation. The claim rests on a statement on origin that we, as a REX-registered exporter, write on the commercial invoice; no Form A or stamped certificate is needed. European Commission (source: TARIC measures for CN 6109 10 00 (cotton knitted T-shirts), origin Nepal, opens in a new tab) EUR-Lex (source: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 – Annex 22-03 (GSP product-specific rules, separate LDC column), opens in a new tab) +1
See and verify our REX numberClothing (HS chapters 61 and 62) was 41% of everything Italy bought from Nepal in FY 2082/83 (Rs 665 million of Rs 1.60 billion), with knitwear (HS 61) alone at 29%, ahead of carpets. Nepal’s knitwear exports to Italy grew 36% on the year before, in rupee terms. Department of Customs, Government of Nepal (source: Foreign Trade Statistics FY 2082/83 (mid-July 2025 to mid-July 2026), preliminary: Table 6 exports and Table 4 imports by commodity and partner country. Exports to Italy Rs 1,600.9m, of which garments (HS 61+62) Rs 665.1m (41.5%) and knitwear (HS 61) Rs 469.2m (29.3%); garments to the US Rs 2,846.2m, to Germany Rs 2,786.2m; knitted-fabric imports (HS 60) Rs 13,269m, of which China Rs 11,919m (89.8%), opens in a new tab) Department of Customs, Government of Nepal (source: Foreign Trade Statistics FY 2081/82 (mid-July 2024 to mid-July 2025), Table 6 exports by commodity and partner country: the base year for FY 2082/83 growth (garments to the US +13.0%, to Germany +15.1%, to Italy +26.6%; knitwear to Italy +36.4%, in rupees), opens in a new tab)
1,000 pieces per style per colour, samples in 7–14 days and bulk in 40–50 days: small enough for an Italian label to test one or two styles before committing.
Most knit fabric used in Nepal is imported, about 90% of it from China by value. You choose: our regular mills, OEKO-TEX-certified fabric, or a mill you nominate. We confirm the mill and its country before you order and keep the records per fabric lot. Department of Customs, Government of Nepal (source: Foreign Trade Statistics FY 2082/83 (mid-July 2025 to mid-July 2026), preliminary: Table 6 exports and Table 4 imports by commodity and partner country. Exports to Italy Rs 1,600.9m, of which garments (HS 61+62) Rs 665.1m (41.5%) and knitwear (HS 61) Rs 469.2m (29.3%); garments to the US Rs 2,846.2m, to Germany Rs 2,786.2m; knitted-fabric imports (HS 60) Rs 13,269m, of which China Rs 11,919m (89.8%), opens in a new tab)
GSM, shrinkage and colour-fastness tolerances on the spec sheet, documented samples, and dates we commit to in writing. If we cannot do something, we say so and offer what we can do.
Standard duty into European Union: 12% · from Nepal: 0%
You keep, per year
$7,680
Questions from Italy buyers
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