Simplified procedures

Simplified procedures are an important legal tool for speeding up customs formalities during the customs procedure. They are considered to be part of the Union’s customs policy, which facilitates trade in the supply chain between economic operators in a form strictly regulated by the Union Customs Code and its related rules.

The nature of customs simplifications is to speed up international trade without disrupting the proper conduct of customs procedures. Simplifications can usually be used on the basis of a structured authorisation issued by the customs authorities. The authorisation shall define the conditions for the use of the simplification, such as the transfer of certain authorisations of the customs authorities to the holder of the authorisation or the reduction of the obligations of the authorisation holder. However, this transfer cannot be considered to be absolute, as the customs authorities always retain the possibility to intervene in the ongoing customs procedure. This possibility is also based on the results of risk management by the customs authorities using various analytical procedures related to the transfer of goods from the customs territory of the Union and vice versa, when the customs authorities exercise their powers to intervene in the customs formalities process in a legally relevant manner. These are often simplifications that can only be available to Authorised Economic Operators. The economic operator, to whom the customs authorities delegate part of their powers, must be verified in a relevant manner and the customs authorities must trust him. Not all types of simplifications are subject to the fulfilment of the criteria for Authorised Economic Operators, but there are also some simplifications that are decided directly during the customs procedure.

Simplifications (simplified procedures) were already an immanent part of the Original Community Customs Code, which created the conditions for an incomplete customs declaration, a simplified declaration and a local clearance procedure. These simplifications are redefined in the Union Customs Code legislation and are extended to other types.

The Union Customs Code recognizes the following types of simplifications: 

1. simplified declarations,
2. simplification of the drawing-up of customs declarations for goods falling under different tariff subheadings,
3. centralised clearance,
4. entry in the declarant’s records,
5. self-assessment.