2.V.1. General provisions
Pursuant to Article 39(e) of the UCC, an AEO authorized for safety and security must have adequate levels of safety and security, which will be deemed to be satisfied when the applicant demonstrates that it maintains appropriate measures to ensure the safety and security of the international supply chain, including in the areas of physical integrity and access controls, logistics processes and the handling of certain types of goods, personnel and the identification of business partners. Furthermore, Article 28 of the AE CAU determines the requirements that must be met. It should be clearly stated that the safety and security criterion is only relevant if the economic operator requests an AEOS.
At the same time, it is important to know that the safety and security criteria will be examined in all facilities related to the applicant's customs activities. For example, a warehouse where goods are stored that are not subject to customs surveillance, but will be destined for export (and therefore will form part of the international supply chain), must be secured. On the other hand, a warehouse where only goods in free circulation for sale within the customs territory of the Union are stored may not be relevant for security purposes. In this regard, when preparing their application, operators must be trained to identify the activities at all their facilities.
Only in the case of a large number of installations, if the time limit for issuing the authorization does not allow for the examination of all relevant installations and the customs authority has no doubt that the applicant applies the same safety standards to all of them, may the EAA decide to examine only a representative proportion of them. Such a decision may also be reviewed during the monitoring process. Thus, facilities that have not been previously visited can be included in the monitoring plan.
Since companies differ structurally from each other and each implements its own business model, customs authorities must consider the security and protection measures adopted by applicants individually. The purpose of this section is not to provide an exhaustive list of all the security and safety measures that an applicant may implement to meet the requirements for an AEO in this area, but rather to provide guidance to help understand the concept of AEO security and safety. Examples of possible solutions through the adoption of measures can be found in the explanatory notes to the CAE and in the relevant section of Annex II to the Guidelines.
The applicant's safety and security standards will be considered appropriate only if the customs authorities can verify all the conditions set out in Article 28(1) of the CAU and these are considered to be fulfilled. However, for the purposes of determining compliance with Article 28, paragraph 1, letters a) to c) of the AE CAU, minor deficiencies with respect to one of the conditions may be offset by the positive aspects of another. The meaning and purpose of the provision must be taken into account in all cases, and in particular, that appropriate control measures have been adopted to reduce the level of risk to an acceptable level. For example, there may be deficiencies in the background checks that temporary staff undergo. However, the Applicant recognizes and effectively manages this risk by adopting appropriate access controls to ensure that such temporary staff do not have unsupervised access to goods within or entering the supply chain, or to security-sensitive areas of the company. In this regard, it is also worth considering that adequate awareness of the concept of AEO and its practical application by the applicant and its employees can prevent minor risks due to the lack of physical controls. On the other hand, the best physical security and protection measures can fail if the necessary awareness of competent personnel is not guaranteed.
While some of the criteria presented in Part 2, "Criteria for obtaining AEO status," of these Guidelines may be verified based on submitted documentation or on-site, the safety and security criteria should always include physical checks at the applicant's premises.
A tiered approach should be considered depending on the risk associated with the different areas (layered approach principle).
The provisions of Article 28, paragraphs 2 and 3 of the AE CAU shall be duly taken into account:
Where the applicant holds a safety and security certificate issued on the basis of an international convention, an international standard of the International Organization for Standardization, or a European standard of a European standardization body, that certificate shall be taken into account when verifying compliance with the criteria set out in Article 39(e) of the Code.
The criteria shall be deemed to have been met to the extent that it has been established that the criteria for issuing such a certificate are identical or equivalent to those set out in Article 39(e) of the Code.
The criteria will be deemed to have been met when the applicant holds a safety and security certificate issued by a third country with which the Union has concluded an agreement providing for the recognition of such a certificate.
Detailed information on mutual recognition is included in Part 6 of these Guidelines.
Where the applicant is an accredited agent or a known consignor as defined in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council(10), and meets the requirements set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) No 2015/1998 of the Commission(eleven), the criteria set out in paragraph 1 shall be deemed to have been met in respect of the premises and operations for which the applicant has obtained the status of accredited agent or known consignor to the extent that the criteria for issuing the status of known consignor or accredited agent are identical or equivalent to those set out in Article 39(e) of the Code.
(10) Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2008 on common rules for civil aviation security and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2320/2002 (OJ L 97, 9.4.2008, p. 72). (Back)
(eleven) Commission Regulation (EU) No 2015/1998 laying down detailed measures for the implementation of the common basic standards on aviation security. (Back)