Bonded Warehouse

A bonded warehouse (also called a customs warehouse) makes it possible to store goods - including physical precious metals such as gold and silver - as though they were still outside the customs territory of the European Union. As long as the metals remain in the warehouse, no import charges and no import VAT arise. Only on release into free circulation - that is, on actual import into the EU - do these charges fall due.

Legal basis

The legal basis is the Union Customs Code (UCC), Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, supplemented by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447. Customs warehouses must be authorised by the national customs authorities (in Ireland: the Revenue Commissioners). Operators require an appropriate authorisation and are obliged to keep proper records of all stored goods.

Types of warehouse at a glance

For private investors, the public customs warehouse operated by specialist precious-metal dealers or banks is chiefly relevant.

Advantages for precious-metal investors

1. Tax deferral: import VAT (23 % on silver, platinum and palladium in Ireland) falls due only on removal from the warehouse - not on purchase.
2. Flexibility: precious metals can be traded, repackaged or reassigned within the warehouse without changing their customs status.
3. International tradeability: bars can be sold to other buyers who may re-export the metal to a non-EU country - in which case EU charges are avoided entirely.
4. Secure custody: professional customs warehouses are generally equipped with high-security vaults, insurance cover and complete inventory documentation.

Distinction from home storage

In contrast to home storage, physical control rests with the warehouse operator, not the investor. The investor holds a documented entitlement to a specific quantity of precious metal (with allocated storage, to identifiable, numbered pieces). With unallocated storage there is merely a contractual claim, which represents an increased risk in the event of the operator's insolvency.

Tax specifics (Ireland)

Investment gold is already VAT-exempt in the EU under the VAT Consolidation Act 2010 - so a bonded warehouse offers no additional VAT benefit on purchase within the EU. The advantage comes chiefly with physical silver, platinum and palladium, which carry the full VAT rate of 23 %, and with metals imported from non-EU countries (for example Switzerland or the USA). Gains on the sale of privately held precious metal remain subject to Irish tax law: Capital Gains Tax at 33 %, after the annual personal exemption of EUR 1,270, with no holding-period relief (unlike Germany's one-year rule). A bonded warehouse does not change this.

Note: this entry does not constitute tax or investment advice. Individual tax questions should be clarified with a tax adviser or the Revenue Commissioners. You can follow the current gold price and silver price on this site at any time; the tax effect on sale is estimated by the tax estimator.

Known locations and providers

Leading locations for precious-metal bonded warehouses in Europe are Zurich (Switzerland, outside EU customs territory), Singapore and London. Within the EU, specialist precious-metal dealers and custodian banks operate authorised customs warehouses in Frankfurt, Munich and Amsterdam, among other places.

In short

The bonded warehouse is a proven instrument for institutional and high-net-worth private investors who wish to store larger quantities of physical precious metals cost-efficiently and with legal certainty, without paying import charges immediately. Anyone holding smaller quantities, or who values direct access, is often better served by home storage or a bank safe-deposit box.