Report on the IT strategy for customs

In its Communication of 21 December 2016 (the Governance Communication) the Commission recalled the fundamental objective of the Union Customs Code (UCC) to create seamless and efficient customs processes across the Union based on harnessing the power of digital tools. Customs is to become fully paperless. The aim is to facilitate legitimate trade, and at the same time to enable customs administrations to ensure compliance.

This report constitutes the Commission's reply to the invitation of the Council to report on progress and includes an explanation of the current delivery approach to follow-up on implementation of the UCC. It also seeks to inform the debate that will come on the multi-annual financial framework by setting out how EU level financing is relevant to the development and operation of customs IT systems.