Council adopts first-reading position on new Union Customs Code

The Council of the European Union adopted on 3 September 2026 its first-reading position establishing the Union Customs Code and the European Union Customs Authority, repealing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013. The position, published as Position (EU) No 10/2026 in the Official Journal of the European Union (C series, C/2026/4825, 15 September 2026), is the Council’s formal stance ahead of the European Parliament’s second reading.

The reform, based on Articles 33, 114 and 207 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, responds to weaknesses exposed by the 2013 Code, including limited capacity to handle e-commerce imports, outdated IT systems and divergent national practices. The Commission tabled its proposal on 17 May 2023, and the European Parliament adopted its first-reading position on 13 March 2024.

A new digital architecture

The Regulation establishes the EU Customs Data Hub, a centralised, secure and cyber-resilient digital platform that will replace national customs IT systems for collecting, processing and exchanging customs data. Its infrastructure will be located within Union territory and controlled solely by the Commission or the EU Customs Authority.

• Mandatory use of the Hub by importers for distance sales starts on 1 July 2028.
• Voluntary use by all other economic operators starts on 1 March 2031.
• Mandatory use for all economic operators is set for 1 March 2034.

A new agency and trader statuses

The EU Customs Authority is created as a new decentralised agency headquartered in Lille (France), with a Management Board, Executive Board, Executive Director and Customs Advisory Board. Its tasks include Union-level risk analysis, threat assessments, coordinating joint customs operations and managing the Hub.

The Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) scheme is reformed with tightened criteria and mandatory in-depth monitoring at least once every three years. A new Trust and Check (T&C) trader status grants streamlined procedures — including release without prior customs intervention and deferred customs debt payment — in exchange for near real-time access to traders’ electronic records.

Distance sales and enforcement

A new Union handling fee, a fixed amount per item for goods sold in distance sales, is introduced to cover the cost of handling release requests, with a lower fee for goods released from customs warehouses. A new concept of “importer for distance sales” makes the e-commerce operator, rather than the consumer, the importer responsible for compliance.

• A three-level risk-management structure spans the Commission, the EU Customs Authority and national customs authorities.
• A minimum list of infringements is set for Member States to transpose, with penalties that must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
• Only AEO or T&C representatives may act cross-border or handle distance-sales importations.

The Council’s position, detailed in the statement of reasons published as C/2026/4832, fully reflects the compromise reached in trilogues under the Danish and Cyprus Presidencies, with the provisional political agreement consolidated on 26 March 2026. Once adopted, the Regulation will simplify and strengthen customs procedures for the roughly 27 million traders and all customs authorities across the Union, harmonising digitalisation and enforcement ahead of the phased transition to the new system by 2034.

Source: Official Journal of the European Union, C series, C/2026/4825, 15 September 2026 (official reference: Position (EU) No 10/2026, CELEX C/2026/4825; statement of reasons CELEX C/2026/4832).