Authorised Economic Operator
View connections →An AEO´s customs and logistics operations have a security certificate granted by Customs and they are therefore entitled to benefits across the EU.
Published by: Finnish Customs · Government organisation
Description language: English
Coverage: All Finland
About this service
Description
The abbreviation AEO comes from the expression Authorised Economic Operator. An AEO is a business whose customs clearance and logistics operations have been granted a security certificate by Customs and is therefore entitled to benefits across the EU. Customs is legally obligated to streamline the foreign trade of AEO companies. For example, Customs has decreased the number of physical and document-based inspections for AEO companies. The objective of the AEO programme is to guide companies to continuously improve the procedures and safety of their customs operations. There are two kinds of AEO authorisations: AEOC (Customs simplifications) and AEOS (security and safety). A company can have both authorisations valid at the same time, in which case the applicable abbreviation is AEOF. An AEO authorisation can be applied by a company subject to customs legislation; the company may e.g. handle goods, goods data or documents under customs supervision. The requirements for granting an AEO authorisation include the following: * The company is established within the Union. * The company has not repeatedly violated customs legislation or tax regulations in the last three years. * The company is financially stable. * The company has an adequate accounting and logistics system that enables customs inspections. Further requirements may include practical competence or professional qualifications related directly to the activity carried out, and the applicant may be required to meet the security norms regarding security management, security of facilities and personal security, logistics and production security as well as the security of the supply chain. All companies with AEO authorisation must perform in-house controls, i.e. monitor their own operations regularly. The aim of the controls is to ensure that each AEO company controls the risks of the supply chain, identifies error situations and deviations and corrects the activity when needed. Predicting risks and their effects is usually most efficient when the in-house controls are integrated as a part of the company’s risk management and control systems. The authorisations are granted in either Finnish or Swedish.
How to use it
You can find Instructions for applying for an authorisation under Authorisations on the Customs website.