Even Kosovo's minimal exports to Serbia have declined by nearly 50 percent since the imposition of 100 percent customs tax on imported products originating from Serbia. Within one month from the imposition of the tax initially 10 per cent and then 100 per cent, Kosovo exported Serbia goods worth 2.7 million euros, meanwhile in the same period last year Kosovo had exported to Serbia products in excess of 4.5 million euros.
The products Kosovo exports to Serbia, according to Kosovo Customs data, are mainly agricultural. On November 6th, the Government of Kosovo on the grounds for protection of domestic products imposed a 10 percent tax on imported products originating from Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, until on November 21th decided to increase this tax by 100 percent.Kosovo Government officials and business representatives say no reports have been reported by businesses that they may have caused a problem while importing Kosovo products in Serbia, but according to them, the attempts by Kosovo businesses to export to Serbia continue to be minimal. Haki Shatri, Kosovo Prime Minister's Economy Advisor, told Radio Free Europe that the exports to Serbia' is low due to the barriers that this country has posed to businesses from Kosovo.
"Prime Minister Haradinaj has occasional meetings with business associations, business association discussing problems that may eventually remove the 100 percent tax, but businesses have not highlighted problems during their export to Serbia. It seems Serbian authorities have been determined not to take action, but it should be noted that this export is small and symbolic compared to imports," says Shatri. According to official data, Kosovo's exports to Serbia in 2017 were € 48,246 million, while imports were € 449 million.
Meanwhile, chairman of the Kosovo Business Alliance Agim Shahini says that Serbia continuously sets barriers to businesses that import in Serbia by not recognizing the documents issued by Kosovo authorities.