Council Resolution

of 30 May 2001

on a strategy for the Customs Union

(2001/C 171/01)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

RECALLING:

1. that the Lisbon European Council on 23 and 24 March 2000 set a central strategic goal for the Union to become, within a decade, the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion,

2. that the Tampere European Council of October 1999 stated that serious economic crime increasingly has tax and duty aspects,

3. the Interinstitutional Agreement of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 22 December 1998 on common guidelines for the quality of drafting of Community legislation(1),

4. that the customs authorities carry out controls to ensure compliance with regulations in many central policy areas, i.e. consumer security and protection of the financial interests of the Community and the Member States; that they play a fundamental role in combating smuggling, counterfeit, fraud and other illicit activities which comprise cross-border movements of goods; that an important contribution in the customs field to this combat is made within the scope of Article 30 of the Treaty on the European Union; that the Conventions on Mutual Assistance and Cooperation between Customs Administrations (Naples II) and on the use of information technology for customs purposes (Customs Information System) are important new tools for this purpose, and

5. that, while collecting duties and indirect taxes remain an important task, customs work is progressively shifting emphasis to enforcing international trade regulations and developing and applying procedures to promote trade and to enhance the competitiveness of Europe;

CONFIRMING the goals and measures recommended in the Council Resolution of 25 October 1996 on the simplification and rationalisation of the Community's customs regulations and procedures(2) and Decision No 105/2000/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 1999 amending Decision No 210/97/EC adopting an action programme for customs in the Community (Customs 2000) and repealing Council Decision 91/341/EEC(3);

RECOGNISING:

1. that a well-functioning system for customs clearance can contribute effectively to strengthening the competitiveness of the Union and is a precondition for a good business climate; the increasing volume of international trade and the need to ensure expeditious clearance mean that new methods for customs clearance and customs controls have to be developed, in which computerisation, risk analysis and cooperation with economic operators are essential tools,

2. that the forthcoming enlargement of the European Union will entail new challenges for customs authorities as well as new opportunities for economic operators,

3. the importance of close cooperation with customs authorities in third countries and, in particular, that an extended cooperation with customs authorities in countries bordering on the Union can contribute actively to smooth border crossing and a successful fight against infringements in the customs field, and

4. that it is important for the functioning of the Internal Market that both customs officials and economic operators have access to adequate and relevant training in Community legislation, information technology and modern working methods, and noting, in this context, that a feasibility study has concluded positively on the establishment of a European Customs Academy;

WELCOMES the Commission's communication on a strategy for the Customs Union;

ENDORSES its general thrust and LOOKS FORWARD TO receiving concrete proposals;

AGREES:

1. that there is a need for such a strategy, based on mutual values of openness, flexibility, efficiency and cooperation between customs authorities, to further the vision of them functioning as if they were one,

2. that the full use of information technology in the Customs Union is essential and that it therefore is necessary:

(a) to develop a credible, comprehensive strategy for the use of information technology in customs activities and to establish an interface between information networks;

(b) to provide mutual access to data bases, with due regard for the relevant provisions concerning data protection in the Community and in the Member States;

(c) to develop and implement a broad-based programme for computerisation of customs procedures; and

(d) to develop and implement programmes aimed at exchanging information between customs authorities, such as the new computerised transit system (NCTS) and the Customs information system (CIS), as soon as possible; and

3. that, in view of the role that customs authorities play in collecting indirect taxes, coherent customs and tax actions are of great importance, not least in combating tax fraud;

AGREES FURTHERMORE:

that a main objective must be to improve cooperation between the customs authorities themselves, between customs authorities and economic operators, and between customs authorities and other agencies, in order to guarantee equivalent results from the application of customs legislation, and to increase their ability to combat fraud and other acts threatening the security of persons and goods efficiently;

NOTES WITH SATISFACTION:

1. that the Commission intends to pursue its work to simplify customs regulations and procedures, and that a decisive part of this work is continued computerisation and use of electronic means,

2. the Commission's objective to improve the quality and efficiency of customs controls and to develop control methods by increased use of risk analysis and audit techniques, while recalling that the execution of customs controls remains the responsibility of the Member States, and

3. the Commission's intention to continue work to improve the quality and accessibility of information to economic operators and the training of both customs officials and economic operators;

EMPHASISES:

1. that the forthcoming enlargement of the European Union increases the demand upon the Commission and the customs authorities of the current Member States to cooperate closely with the customs authorities of the acceding States, i.e. with a view to fostering equivalent results of controls in all Member States, current and future,

2. that an essential condition for the customs authorities to be able to fulfil their tasks in an efficient way is that there is a well-developed cooperation with customs authorities in third countries, in particular with those in neighbouring areas,

3. that the customs authorities, by virtue of the variety of tasks assigned to them, are required to work both in a Community context and in the context of customs cooperation in the framework of Title VI of the Treaty on European Union,

4. that customs plays a significant role in the fight against cross-border crime through the prevention, detection and, within the national competences of the customs services, through investigation and prosecution of criminal activities in the areas of fiscal fraud, money laundering, and trafficking in drugs and other illegal goods; that the customs authorities should further develop their operational cooperation and coordination, such as joint customs operations based on a strategic approach; and that customs, police and judicial authorities should cooperate effectively in order to maintain and develop the European Union as an area of freedom, security and justice,

5. that a clear and unambiguous legislation that is known to the users and applied by adequately trained officials is of fundamental importance, not only for legitimate trade to flow smoothly but also for the combat against fraud to be efficient,

6. that no steps towards outsourcing of the infrastructure of the Customs Union should be taken by the Commission without a thorough analysis of their consequences, including the distribution of responsibilities, and that work on any such externalisation must be done in close cooperation between the Commission and the Member States, with due regard for the sovereignty of the Member States as regards the organisation of their customs authorities, and

7. that the Community customs legislation must provide a framework for allowing economic operators in all the customs territory of the Community to benefit from equal conditions of competition;

POINTS OUT:

1. that it is very important that the strategy for the customs union remains in harmony with development and that the strategy therefore should be evaluated in due course in the light of experience gained, and

2. that experience shows that Community action programmes in the customs field, in particular the Customs 2002 and the OISIN programmes, are a good foundation for long-term work aiming to systematically improve and simplify customs regulations and procedures, while at the same time securing an effective protection of the customs territory, the citizens and businesses of the Union, the Community's own resources and the resources of the Member States;

INVITES THE COMMISSION:

1. to propose further simplification, modernisation and rationalisation of customs regulations and customs procedures, bearing in mind the need both to promote economic development and to ascertain effective controls, and taking into consideration that it is necessary to involve both customs authorities and economic operators at an early stage,

2. to develop a broad-based programme for computerisation of customs procedures and exchange of customs information, as well as a credible strategy for the development and use of information networks in customs activities, and

3. to make, within five years, an evaluation of the strategy for the customs union;

WELCOMES in this context that the Commission has recently made known its intention to make a proposal to the European Parliament and the Council for a prolongation of the Customs 2002 programme, with a view to further improving the functioning of the internal market;

INVITES THE MEMBER STATES to do their utmost for the strategy for the customs union to be successfully accomplished;

INVITES THE COMMISSION AND THE MEMBER STATES:

1. to participate in actions against criminal activities and, as appropriate, to coordinate their actions with those of other authorities, in particular police and judicial authorities, and to continue their efforts to reinforce the coherence between customs and fiscal regulations, and

2. to take steps to strengthen cooperation both between the customs authorities in the European Union and with customs authorities in third countries, in particular with those in neighbouring areas, with a view to facilitating smooth border crossing procedures and successfully combating fraud; and

ENCOURAGES the economic operators to make the best use of the information and training and the possibilities to cooperate that the customs authorities offer.

(1) OJ C 73, 17.3.1999, p. 1.

(2) OJ C 332, 7.11.1996, p. 1.

(3) OJ L 13, 19.1.2000, p. 1.