The new version 5.1 of the EU Customs Data Model has been on display for browsing and reading as a source of information for national customs authorities and all other interested parties since December 2019.
UCC regulates and modernizes customs procedures of EU member states
The European Union is a customs union for their member states and defines the legal framework for customs rules and the associated customs procedures. The relevant and binding basis for the implementation of these customs rules and procedures is the Union Customs Code (UCC). For some time now, the member states of the EU have been implementing the updated customs law and modernising their procedures. This includes the fact that in future all customs procedures will be carried out via electronic data exchange and thus paperless.
What is the EU Customs Data Model?
The EU Customs Data Model (EUCDM) represents the data requirements specified in the EU customs regulations in a data model. It is thus the implementation of the customs code and the model for trans-European customs systems such as NCTS, AES, ICS and for the national customs clearance systems of the EU Member States. Its overall objective is to provide a common methodology and approach that models the data requirements according to European Union customs law and the Union Customs Code (UCC). Important for the Member States: They can supplement the EUCDM with their national or regional specifics, while fully complying to the customs legislation of the European Union.
What is new in version 5.1 of the EUCDM?
The EUCDM version 5.1 has been amended on account of the Receipt Declaration information as published in the regulation of the EU based on the legal text of the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1131 as of 02 July 2019. In comparison to the EUCDM Version 5.0, the change is the addition of the rules, regulations and the data set section for the “Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Receipt Declaration”. The “EEZ Receipt Declaration” includes the definition “receipt of a product concerned on an artificial island, a fixed or floating installation or any other structure in the continental shelf or in the exclusive economic zone of a Member State shall be declared by the recipient by means of a receipt declaration”.
New in version 5.1 is the change in the addition of the rules, regulations and data set section for the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Declaration of Entry based on the Regulation, which is slightly outside the scope of the UCC customs legislation.
How else can the EUCDM be accessed to document adjustments?
The Taxation and Customs Union Directorate-General of the European Commission (DG TAXUD) publishes the EUCDM in a user-friendly HTML version to facilitate the understanding and use of the European Customs Data Model. The hyperlinked data model allows convenient navigation through data objects and structures using standard Internet browsers. As a service provider to the European Commission, GEFEG has supported the technical development work of the EUCDM publications and provides a data mapping tool for publication.
The EU also publishes the data model in the format of the data mapping tool, via a repository. Using the data mapping tool, interested users can access all previous versions of EUCDM. Planners and implementers of EU member states or private companies can use the software to document the specific requirements and features of member states or private sector companies, compare the changes between different EUCDM versions and publish their own HTML documentation that includes the specific requirements. Especially important for all EU member states and companies: all specific changes and adaptations are implemented in full compliance with EU customs regulations.
