The EU-Japan relations in the area of customs are based on the Agreement on Cooperation and Mutal Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters (CCMAAA) that entered into force on 1 Februari 2008.

This Agreement calls for the EU and Japan to make co-operative efforts in order to develop trade facilitations actions in the field of customs in accordance with international standards.

The EU-Japan Joint Customs Cooperation Committee (JCCC) was established by the CCMAAA in order to consult the interested parties and assess the impact of mutual recognition of EU and Japanese AEO programmes.

Mutual recognition of AEO programmes and security measures both enhances end-to-end supply chain security, and facilitates trade. It consolidates internationally the approach agreed in the WCO SAFE Framework of Standards. It also addresses the concern of the business community in Europe and around the world to avoid proliferation of requirements and to standardise customs security procedures.

At the first meeting of the JCCC on 11 February 2008, the EU and Japan confirmed that such mutual recognition between the EU and Japan is a priority.

The second meeting of the JCCC on 17 September 2009, confirmed that the AEO legislations in the EU and in Japan are equivalent and are implemented in a compatible manner. Therefore the JCCC invited the European Commission and Customs and Tariff Bureau of Japan to develop a proposal which achieves this mutual recognition and provides equivalent benefits to each other’s operators.

This proposal is ready for Council Decision. It is not yet know when the mutual recognition of AEO programmes in the EU and in Japan will be effective. The decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Incoterms or international commercial terms are a series of standard trade definitions, published by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and widely used in international commercial transactions. They are used to divide transaction costs and responsibilities between buyer and seller and reflect state-of-the-art transportation practices.

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), introduced the first version of Incoterms in 1936. There are currently 13 Incoterms. Among the best known Incoterms are EXW (Ex Works), FOB (Free on Board), CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight), DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid), and CPT (Carriage Paid To).

The Incoterms have been revised six times in order to reflect international trade developments. The last update of the Incoterms entered into force on 1 January 2000. As the guardian and originator of Incoterms rules, ICC has a responsibility to consult regularly all parties interested in international trade to keep Incoterms rules relevant, efficient and up-to-date. ICC is currently revising Incoterms 2000. This revision is expected to be major on the seller-buyer cargo security obligations, which are linked to respective Custom-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) cargo security regimes.

After receiving a large number of comments from the ICC National Committees, the Incoterms Drafting Group recently completed a third draft of the revised version of Incoterms. After comments on the third draft are submitted by the ICC National Committees, the Drafting Group will meet in March 2010 to prepare a fourth version of the draft revisions to Incoterms. It appears that the new version of Incoterms will be entitled “Incoterms 2010”. This new edition is expected to enter into force on 1 January 2011.

Authorized economic operators enjoy a particular status. They are seen as particularly reliable and trustworthy in the context of their customs related operations and they have access to special benefits during customs clearance within the EU states. Since 1st January 2008, companies domiciled in the European Union and involved in customs activities can apply for this status, allowing them to benefit from facilitations of customs control relating to security.

For security reasons the EU introduced a provision as of 1st July 2009 for the cross-border transfer of goods from and to non-EU member states under which imports and exports will be subject to prior notification requirement – 24-hour rule. For Switzerland as a third country and significant trade partner, this regulation would have a considerable impact on procedures concerning the flow of goods to and from EU member states

At the same time, Switzerland is moving towards customs security standards consistent within the EU. The introduction of AEO in Switzerland grants certified entities customs privileges with companies located in EU-member states as well as in relation to non EU-countries, such as preferential treatment of cross-border shipments, reduced waiting time for customs clearance and less physical and documentary controls at customs borders

In order to benefit from these time and cost reductions, it is important that all parties involved in the supply chain hold AEO status. Moreover the applying company must be based in Switzerland or Liechtenstein and must be entered in the Swiss Commercial Register and/or the Public Register of the Principality of Liechtenstein.

The legal basis to apply for the AEO status in Switzerland exists (new articles 112a to 112g of the Ordinance 631.01 of November 2006 “Zollverordnung/Ordonnance sur les Douanes”). The AEO status will not be obligatory in Switzerland and currently has no influence on other preferential status, as authorized consignee or consignor. It is expected that AEO will be introduced during the third quarter of 2010 making it possible to grant the status to all companies, after the completion of the pilot phase. The pilot project with 4 selected economic operators, which started in February, will be finalized by the summer of 2010. The “pilot Swiss enterprises” are Kolb Distribution AG, Laible AG, Dachser Spedition AG and Clariant Produkte AG.

The self assistent questionnaire and program requirements are currently available in draft form (re. website Swiss Federal Customs Administration – www.ezv.adm.ch)