18. 4. 91 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 102/5 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision on the adoption of a programme of 
Community action on the subject of the vocational training of customs' officials (the 
MATTHAEUS programme) (x) 
(91/C 102/03) 
On 15 January 1991 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 100A of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the 
abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Social, Family, Educational and Cultural Affairs, which was responsible for 
preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 14 February 1991. 
The Rapporteur was Mr R. Miiller. 
At its 284th plenary session (meeting of 27 February 1991), the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following Opinion unanimously. 
The Committee fully endorses the aims of the 
MATTHAEUS programme in the context of the Single 
Market. Whilst it broadly approves the draft Council 
Decision, it would nevertheless draw attention to the 
following with regard to implementation. 
1. General comments 
Customs officials of all grades should, if they so wish, 
have access to the programme and receive adequate 
language training. 
The Committee doubts whether the planned exchange 
of 1 200 officials is sufficient to enable the programme's 
objectives to be achieved. This number should be 
increased. 
2. Specific comments 
2.1. Language courses 
Effective service in another Member State presupposes 
an adequate knowledge of its language. Insofar as they 
do not already possess such knowledge, officials selec­
ted for the programme must be sufficiently instructed 
in the Community language concerned prior to their 
departure to enable them to participate actively in the 
work of the host office. Since the Commission wants 
this to be a Community-wide programme, full training 
will be necessary in the case of some languages. 
The Commission should arrange for the Member States 
to fund courses open to all national customs officials, 
in the less widely-used Community languages, in par­
ticular Danish, Dutch, Portuguese and Greek. 2.2. Legal status of exchange officials 
In many cases, national legal or constitutional pro­
visions (e.g. Article 33(4) of the Federal Republic's Basic 
Law) will deny exchange officials the right to exercise 
all the powers assigned to officials of the host country. 
Although the draft Decision allows powers to be lim­
ited, there are grounds for fearing that such restrictions 
will have to be imposed extensively. The Commission 
still appears to prefer national arrangements, a harmon­
ized solution would require the adoption of a generally 
binding Community arrangement. 
2.3. Civil liability 
It is currently impossible to assess the civil liability of 
exchange officials employed in another Member State. 
Article 4(3) of the draft is unsatisfactory. In cases 
involving redress, the equivalent legal status of national 
and exchange officials could mean that the latter are in 
a worse position than they would be in their home 
country and thereby create problems with regard to the 
responsibility of the customs official's home Member 
State for the welfare of its employees. The Commission 
has accordingly been asked to conduct a survey of 
national legislation in this field: it is not known whether 
it has done so. 
In this context, it would seem advisable for the Com­
mission to provide insurance cover for cases where 
exchange officials have more liability than in their home 
country. Exchange officials should at least be informed 
of any difference in their status as regards civil liability 
etc. (where appropriate, by means of a leaflet). As the 
only body able to carry out a rapid survey of the 
different national rules, the Commission should draw 
up a list of the particular aspects of civil liability to be 
borne in mind by exchange officials. 
i1) OJ No C 13, 19. 1. 1991, p. 12. An official working in another Community country 
under the exchange programme must not have to carry 
No C 102/6 Official Journal of the European Communities 18. 4. 91 
greater civil liability than would apply in similar cir­
cumstances in his or her home country. 
If this were to be the case, most customs officials would 
be deterred from participating in the programme. 
A system should therefore be developed guaranteeing 
exchange officials treatment at least equivalent to that 
which they would receive in their home countries. 
2.4. Criminal-law aspects 
The legal position of customs officials vis-a-vis their 
administration varies throughout the Community. 
Action in ignorance of statutory national offenses could 
give rise to legal proceedings against exchange officials. 
As in the case of civil liability, clarification is necessary 
and should again be provided by the Commission for 
the abovementioned reason. 
2.5. Social aspects 
The elimination of controls at internal frontiers with 
the completion of the Single Market will have radical 
social consequences for many customs officials. 
Whilst customs officials usually cannot be made redun­
dant owing to their civil servant status, the elimination 
of border controls will, for many of them, mean transfer 
to other, frequently very distant, offices or having to 
take on entirely new duties. 
The need to leave a home acquired at great personal 
sacrifice, the lost employment of members of the 
official's family and the breaking of direct personal and 
family ties will create major social strains. 
The proposal for the MATTHAEUS programme pro­
vides an opportunity for drawing attention to these 
consequences with a view to enabling the Commission 
to devise socially acceptable solutions for the officials 
concerned in conjunction with their national adminis­
trations and ensure that officials hit by these develop-
Done at Brussels, 27 February 1991. ments receive fair compensation if they are forced to 
transfer. The numerous problems involved cannot be 
considered solved if officials are profoundly unhappy 
about their situation. 
2.6. Involvement of trade unions and professional 
associations 
The Committee thinks it necessary for the trade unions, 
the European Public Services Committee (EPSC) and 
professional associations representing customs officials 
to be closely involved in the framing and development 
of the MATTHAEUS programme and the extension of 
Community customs machinery. Such consultations are 
part of the European social dialogue. 
2.7. Further training or retraining of other parties to 
customs clearance 
The Committee calls on the Commission to take appro­
priate steps for the adequate preparation of other par­
ties to customs operations, such as carriers and customs 
agencies, in order to ensure problem-free operation of 
the Customs Union. 
Appropriate retraining facilities must be provided for 
employees of these firms who are made redundant. 
The associated costs should be covered from national 
resources or the Community Social Fund. 
3. Conclusion 
The Committee considers that the MATTHAEUS pro­
gramme is an excellent first step along the path towards 
Community vocational training for customs officials. 
The programme is a concrete start towards implement­
ing the guidelines set out in the Commission Communi­
cation to the Council on customs union. Other steps 
should follow, and lead to the setting-up in the relatively 
near future of a 'European Centre for the training of 
Customs Officials' which would be the keystone of the 
training systems in each Member State. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois STAEDELIN