A recently published comparative analysis of Member States’ customs authorisation procedures for the entry of products into the EU concludes that the EU is a customs union with common legislation, customs rules, procedures and a single development plan; yet, for a number of objective reasons and considerations, each Member State manages and develops its customs activities at its own pace and according to its own interpretation of the Union Customs Code (UCC). We overview some aspects of the analysis.

Objectives of the analysis

In December 2022, a Comparative Analysis of Member States’ Customs Authorisation Procedures for the Entry of Products into the European Union was published by the request of the European Parliament’s committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO). 

The main objective of the analysis is to compare the application of UCC for the entry of goods into the EU customs territory at operational level in a selected sample of Member States in several main areas:

• application of customs control;
• penalties for customs noncompliance and infringements;
• IT systems.

The study also aims to demonstrate good practices, identify weaknesses and provide recommendations and guidance for improving customs control activities in the Union.