Customs in the Balearic Islands: is DUA required from Palma de Mallorca?

The difference in one line: the VAT territory

Both archipelagos are within the customs territory of the Union, so neither pays tariffs. The difference is in VAT:

• The Balearic Islands are WITHIN the common VAT territory. A shipment from the Peninsula to Palma is a normal inland Spanish delivery: it is invoiced with VAT, there is no DUA, no customs declaration and no processing to handle.
• The Canary Islands are OUT. A shipment to the Canary Islands is treated fiscally as an export: it carries an export DUA at origin, an import DUA upon arrival, leaves VAT-exempt and at destination IGIC and, if the item carries it, AIEM are settled.

That's why in the Balearic Islands there is no «customs agent» for traffic with the Peninsula: there is nothing to process. What there is is maritime transport, and that's another matter.

From the Balearic Islands to the Canary Islands: here there is customs

This is the case that really brings us: someone who lives in Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza or Formentera and moves to Tenerife or Gran Canaria. There the shipment does cross the fiscal border and needs the complete process, just as if it left Madrid.

Operatively, the cargo leaves Palma for the Peninsula and embarks to the Canary Islands from Valencia or Barcelona, which are the ports with frequencies to the archipelago. The export DUA is presented at the peninsular port of loading and the import one at the Canary Islands port of arrival. With accredited change of residence, personal effects travel with exemption: affidavit, inventory valued at customs value and proof of new address.

What is particular about sending from the Balearic Islands

Having no customs doesn't mean there are no complications. Sending from an island has its own rules, and the same as in the Canary Islands:

• Double leg. Palma-Peninsula and Peninsula-Canary Islands are two different loadings, with two schedules that must fit together. If they don't fit, the cargo waits somewhere, and it's best if that place is a warehouse and not a dock.
• The deadline is set by the worst link, not the best. A good transit Valencia-Tenerife is useless if the departure from Palma is four days later.
• Access and historic centers. In Palma, Ibiza or Ciutadella pickup is scheduled with the truck that fits and with loading permit, not with whichever is free.
• Foreign residents. Like on the Costa Blanca, there is a large German and British population, and there the exemption depends on having residence settled.

And in the opposite direction: from the Canary Islands to the Balearic Islands

This operation surprises almost everyone. Taking something out of the Canary Islands is an export, so it carries an exit DUA at the Canary Islands port, and upon entry into VAT territory —the Peninsula or the Balearic Islands, it doesn't matter— VAT is settled, except for exemption for accredited change of residence.

That is: moving from Tenerife to Palma involves customs, and moving from Valencia to Palma doesn't. The same company, the same truck and the same sofa, with completely different paperwork. We explain it fully in our guide on customs between the Canary Islands and the Peninsula.

Delivery times from the Balearic Islands to each Canary Island

They are two chained journeys: Palma-Peninsula and Peninsula-Canary Islands, with loading through Valencia or Barcelona. These are the realistic total timeframes:

We collect in Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The timeframe is determined by how the two loadings fit together, so we confirm both departures before giving a date; if they don't fit, the cargo waits in our warehouse and not at the terminal.