In the EU context, importing goods means moving them from outside the EU into the EU customs territory. However, this term only describes the process up to the point when the goods arrive at the border (at customs).
Before the goods can actually enter the market in EU countries, they then need to be cleared by customs. This procedure – release for free circulation – allows the goods to circulate freely throughout the EU customs territory in the same way as EU goods.
From a customs point of view, this step changes the status of non-EU goods to the same as those produced in the EU. It completes all the formalities required for importation.