Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee on the state of the Customs Union

The European Union's (EU) customs union is one of the most successful examples of European integration and European policy. It has served as a stable foundation for economic integration and growth in Europe for over four decades. Its legal basis has proved robust and flexible in terms of both expanding geographical area and scope of tasks. It has been one of the frontrunners in the public sector to begin a full-scale modernisation with a view to pan-European e-government services. In international rankings, certain EU customs administrations regularly rank among the top globally.

However, rankings also reveal that not all links in the chain are performing equally well. Furthermore, while the legislation to be applied is the same, the outcome of its implementation is not. Signs have emerged that the customs union is facing serious challenges in the way that it functions. These challenges translate into potentially dampening the overall effectiveness of the customs union in protecting and serving the EU. They translate into inefficiencies, waste and mismatch of needs and availability of resources. They translate into an uneven service level and suboptimal overall protection of EU borders.

The objectives of this Communication are to:
– Highlight the value added and fundamental importance of the services that the customs union provides as a foundation for growth, competitiveness and security of the Single Market and the European Union;
– Acknowledge that the customs union is facing challenges that require a European response;
– Outline a course of action to counter these challenges and provide a more performing, robust and unified customs union by 2020.

EUR-Lex: COM(2012)791: Follow the progress of this document through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2012:791:FIN

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