EU Customs reform, AEO and trusted operators scheme

The Commission working document “ Accompanying the document Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, and repealing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013…” finds out the need to implement the scheme of the AEO (trusted and checked operators) by following the following areas:

‒ AEO traders can operate under a trust and check approach if they have their electronic system interacting with the customs’ systems on a constant basis and thereby allowing customs to have access to all relevant data directly from the operators’ systems. They can self-monitor the compliance of their goods and calculate and pay duties periodically, without submitting transaction-based customs declarations per consignment. Pre-loading and pre-arrival information per consignment would still be required but carriers could rely on the information previously submitted by these trusted importers. Customs would be able to perform risk analysis and check information on a continuous basis and request a control whenever they estimate it necessary and even under certain conditions remove the traders’ ability to “self-release” goods. The quality, coherence and accuracy of the received information will allow monitoring the operator’s trustworthiness.

‒ In return for transparency and system-to-system exchange of information, the trusted/AEO+ operators would experience fewer and more targeted customs interventions in the supply chain, when these are necessary. Furthermore, subject to the prior agreement of the other competent authorities, these traders could carry out certain controls generally performed by those authorities.

‒ The existing possibilities to reduce guarantees for these traders would be enhanced.

In other words, from the mentioned report, seems very important to consider the AEO as an authorization based on the ongoing selfmonitoring of own compliance with Customs regulations.