Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status enables any company involved in international trade to acquire a quality label for the customs and security safety processes it implements. Specifically, AEO status aims to “label” certain companies as safe and reliable, with guarantees transparency, financial soundness and security.
Following a request from the company, the customs authorities carry out an in-depth analysis of the application, either via the relevant departments or with the external services of a specialist firm, based on the criteria laid down by the customs authorities and the company’s declarations. In light of the analysis results, a response is sent to the company to accept or refuse eligibility for this status.
With label status, the company can submit declarations of origin for exports of its products in place of the certificates issued by customs for each operation. For import operations, authorised operators will no longer be obliged to pay customs before the goods leave the country, as was the case in the past. Instead, they will be able to regularise their situation once the goods have left the country.
The Directorate General of Customs has announced that this measure will come into force soon, and that it “should enable selected operators to take their goods off the ship as soon as they are unloaded, subject to completing customs formalities at a later date”.
Under the EPA with the EU, however, this status is operational. Enforcing this provision is a customs formality that forms part of the package of facilitation measures granted by customs to companies to improve relationship with these foreign trade players.
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