Develop further the cooperation arrangements between customs and other competent authorities, with a view to ensuring complementarity of roles in supply chain risk management

For the development of multi-agency cooperation 10 main areas of cooperation have been identified: Law Enforcement; Intellectual Property Rights; Transport (maritime and aviation security); Animal, food, feed and plant health and safety; Product safety and compliance; Health protection; Environment; Tax; Non-proliferation and conventional weapons; and Cultural goods. Outcomes from actions ongoing under the objectives 3 and 4 deliver an important input in establishing cooperation arrangements between customs and other authorities. Law Enforcement: A Customs 2020 High-Level Seminar on cooperation between border authorities was organised by the Latvian Council presidency in Riga (May 2015). This seminar on passenger controls identified an agenda for further work and cooperation between customs and other border authorities, e.g. to ensure that advance passenger data are also available for customs use. For cash movements controls an analysis and evaluation of current information sharing mechanisms is being conducted against the backdrop of the ongoing revision of Regulation (EC) 1889/2005. Intellectual Property Rights: A High-Level Conference on cooperation between the authorities in the fight against infringements of IPR took place in February 2016 and highlighted the difficulties in the area of systematic exchange of information between all law enforcement authorities, prosecutors and judicial authorities. For the linking of COPIS with AFIS the inception activities are ongoing. The date for launching the production is estimated for Q2 2017. Transport (maritime and aviation security): Concerning aviation security see the details on development of common risk criteria outlined under action 4.4.1. For the maritime domain, the Commission launched a study (March 2016) in order to analyse risk assessment capacities within Coastguard functions including Customs in the area of maritime security. The study is expected to contribute to a better overview of multi-agency cooperation in conducting risk assessment tasks of individual authorities, and to provide recommendations in this area. The results are expected for spring 2017. In the area of maritime transport the Commission has launched the DTLF in 2015. This Forum aims at the further digitalisation of freight transport and logistics. It brings together Member States and stakeholders from transport and logistics communities in order to identify areas where common action in the EU is needed. (Further details are mentioned under Objective 2, Action 3). Within the framework of the EU Maritime Security Strategy various initiatives are ongoing in the area of improving multi-agency cooperation and exchange of information. At EU and national level customs actively contributes to improving supply chain security and supports risk-based surveillance of goods movements in the maritime domain in the fight against terrorist and organised crime activities such as the smuggling of goods and the trafficking of arms and narcotics, along with cross-border movements of cash as proceeds of this illegal trade. The development of a Common Information Sharing Environment (CISE) promotes the exchange of relevant information among the different authorities involved in the maritime area. CISE has been developed as a meta-project for enhanced cooperation and information exchange between civil and military authorities with a view to further enhance a common maritime situational awareness picture and data exchange. With the aim of improving supply chain security and supporting the risk-based surveillance of the movement of goods in the maritime domain, CISE promotes the exchange of information between the different authorities involved in the fight against terrorist and organised crime (e.g. smuggling of goods, trafficking of arms and narcotics and cross-border movements of the cash proceeds of illegal trade). In the context of CISE, relevant EU agencies (e.g. EMSA, EFCA, FRONTEX, EDA and EUROPOL) and other European agencies (e.g. ESA) are invited to reinforce cooperation between those agencies. Also, the Pre-Operational Validation project 'EUCISE2020' is to test CISE at large scale by 2017-2018, followed by a step-by-step implementation until 2020. Animal, food, feed and plant health and safety: A workshop with customs and veterinary authorities was held in March 2016, further workshops should be planned with other sanitary import control authorities. See further details under action 4.4.1. To handle requests for cross-border cooperation in cases of non-compliance in the food and feed chain, each Member State has appointed a contact point within the EU Food Fraud Network (FFN). The network has been operational since July 2013; and since its creation the Commission has observed a marked increase in the number of exchanges from 30 in 2013 to more than 100 in 2015, adding up to more than 200 cases in total since the creation of the network. A dedicated IT tool, the Administrative Assistance and Cooperation (AAC) system, was launched on 18 November 2015 to facilitate the exchange of administrative information between national authorities. At a later stage, it will be made available also to the liaison bodies working on cases of Administrative Assistance and Cooperation not related to fraudulent practices. Only Member State Authorities can introduce information on fraud cases into the AAC system, not the Commission. A project initiated by the Commission integrating electronic Certificates of Inspection (COI) certifying the organic status of agricultural products exported from third countries to the Union in the TRACES is ongoing. The pilot creates an interface including risk management information giving input to customs’ automated systems for import declarations. EU Single Window CVED: Synchronised communication with TRACES is already working with the national customs authorities in the Czech Republic, Ireland, Slovenia, Latvia and partly in Poland. With other Member States (AT, CY, NL and LT) conformance testing is planned. Notifications from the RASFF data base are regularly transformed in RIFs. Product safety and compliance: In the framework of the support to Member States for the implementation of common guidelines for customs and market surveillance authorities, 25 visits took place from 2012 until October 2015. Two more visits will be carried out in 2016. These visits provide customs authorities with a better view on the objectives of market surveillance authorities and other organisations at national level as well as EU level. There is a specific reference to the treatment of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises. With the use of RAPEX relevant notifications are selected which are then transformed in a RIF and uploaded in CRMS on a regular basis. However, specific information requested by customs related to routing, means of transport, goods description is not always available to market surveillance authorities’ (MSA) activities. This is understandable where MSA take measures within the EU and customs enforces controls at the external border at the moment of entry and import of goods. See also details mentioned under action 4.4.1. Health protection: Commission services are closely working together on the draft official control regulation which should repeal Regulation (EC) No 822/2004 to ensure appropriate cooperation structures between customs and sanitary import control authorities. The new draft regulation is still in discussion at the Council in the frame of the co-decision procedure. It is expected that the new regulation will be adopted at the end of 2016. The development of the tobacco traceability solution required under Article 15 of the Tobacco Products Directive is important. Commission services cooperate to make certain that there is customs input and advice on customs risk management needs: notably access to the data for CRM processes, and referencing of the solution at the relevant moment in the customs declarations (including pre-arrival/pre-departure and NCTS). Environment: In response to the problem of illegal logging and related trade, the European Commission launched an Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT), setting a range of measures for tackling illegal logging in the world's forest. Within the framework of FLEGT Regulation, the cooperation and communication between customs and other competent authorities is a key element of the implementation of border controls. For the support of customs in effectively carrying out their tasks, the European Commission Notice: Customs and FLEGT Implementation Guidelines - Public Summary, was published in 2014. Furthermore, FLEGIT (IT system) has been developed by Commission services for the electronic management of FLEGT licences by Member States competent authorities and customs authorities. Those authorities have also received training on FLEGIT in Brussels in the first half of 2016, while onsite training sessions have been scheduled for the second half of 2016 in interested Member States The EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) is the key instrument for the implementation of the FLEGT Action Plan, to address the problem from the demand side. EUTR prohibits the placing by operators (i.e. any (natural or legal) person first placing timber on the EU market) of illegally harvested timber on the EU market. Although the regulation does not stipulate measures for border control measures, a better access to customs data, regarding the identification of operators and relevant import data from competent authorities is essential. This information exchange will facilitate checks using a - risk based approach- supporting more effective enforcement of EUTR. For 2017 a joint workshop is considered to be organised for customs and competent environmental authorities on Invasive Alien Species. This concerns enforcement to prevent such species, for example exotic algae or insects that can damage the environment, entering the EU. For the control of cross-border controls on shipments of waste between the EU and China, a set of recommendations has been endorsed by a mixed group of customs and environmental authorities (EU and China), including a recurrent data collection and analysis exercise to support risk management activities (first exercise to be completed by end 2017). Tax: Fiscalis 2020 Group No 10 issued its report at the end of 2015. The group provided recommendations on how to enhance the cooperation between customs and tax administrations. The multiple connection points between the two types of administration were identified as well as the specification of information to be exchanged. The group identified points for attention in the following areas of interest: Customs Procedure 42/63; Valuation of goods in customs procedures; Excise products and Tax collection. The proposals will be used as a starting point for further elaboration to improve tax and customs cooperation. Non-proliferation and conventional weapons: A joint simulation exercise (SIMEX) with involvement of customs authorities as well as licensing authorities was organised in 2015. Also a Priority Control Action (PCA) was carried out in 2015 to support and complement a joint action initiated by the WCO. The objective was to streamline the information from EU customs and to underline the complementarity of actions. Cultural goods: It has been widely reported that illicit trafficking of cultural goods is a source of terrorist financing. To enforce restrictions on the import of cultural goods from Iraq and Syria, a RIF for imports has been created. To further identify the parameters of the problems related to the import of cultural goods and determine an appropriate risk management approach, the Commission has launched a study to map the situation in the EU, the conclusions of which are expected by the end of September 2016. The study should also suggest solutions (binding measures, coupled perhaps by ‘soft-law’) on how the problems can be best tackled. A Commission proposal for a legal instrument regulating the import of cultural goods is expected by mid-2017.