European Union Customs Union

Monaco and the British Overseas Territory of Akrotiri and Dhekelia are integral parts of the EU's customs territory.[2][4]

State / territory	Agreement	Entry into force
Monaco	Franco-Monegasque Customs Convention[5][6][7]	1968
Akrotiri and Dhekelia (United Kingdom)	Treaty of Accession 2003[8] Brexit withdrawal agreement[4]	1 May 2004

Andorra, San Marino and Turkey are each in a customs union with the EU.[2]

State	Agreement	Entry into force	Notes
Andorra	Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Economic Community and the Principality of Andorra – Joint Declarations[9]	1 January 1991	Excludes agricultural produce
San Marino	Agreement on Cooperation and Customs Union between the European Economic Community and the Republic of San Marino[10]	1 April 2002
Turkey	Decision No 1/95 of the EC-Turkey Association Council of 22 December 1995 on implementing the final phase of the Customs Union[11]	31 December 1995	Excludes agricultural produce

The United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020 and the withdrawal period ended on 31 December 2020. Northern Ireland is no longer a member of the European Union Customs Union. Trade is now regulated by the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement and the European Union (Future Relationship) Act 2020. This includes special provisions for trade in goods between Northern Ireland and the EU which for many purposes are similar to those within the Customs Union.

Gibraltar was never part of the Customs Union. A political agreement has been reached between the EU, the UK and Gibraltar to negotiate a new treaty which will include provisions for trade on goods between the EU and Gibraltar.[12] These will be "substantially similar" to those within the Customs Union. The agreement has not been signed.

While all EU member states are part of the customs union, not all of their respective territories participate. Territories of member states which have remained outside of the EU (overseas territories of the European Union) generally do not participate in the customs union.[13]

However, some territories within the EU do not participate in the customs union for tax and/or geographical reasons:

• Büsingen am Hochrhein (a German exclave within Switzerland, part of the Switzerland–Liechtenstein customs area)[14][15]
• Heligoland (a small German archipelago in the North Sea with VAT free status)[14][13]
• Livigno (an remote alpine town in Italy with VAT free status)[14][15]
• Ceuta and Melilla (Spanish territories in Africa with VAT free status).[14][15]

The Union Customs Code (UCC), intended to modernise customs procedures, entered into force on 1 May 2016.[16] Implementation will take place over a period of time and full implementation is anticipated by 31 December 2020 at the latest.[17] The European Commission has stated that the aims of the UCC are simplicity, service and speed.

The EU Customs Union sets the tariff rates for imports to the EU from other countries. These rates are detailed and depend on the specific type of product imported, and can also vary by the time of year.[18] The full WTO Most Favoured Nation tariff rates apply only to those countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement with the EU, or are not on a WTO recognised exemption scheme such as Everything but Arms (an EU support arrangement for Least Developed Countries).

Union transit, formerly called "Community transit", is a system generally applicable to the movement of non-Union goods for which customs duties and other charges due on import have not been paid, and of Union goods, which, between their point of departure and point of destination in the EU, have to pass through the territory of a third country.[19]

The 'common' transit procedure is used for the movement of goods between the EU Member States, the EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland), Turkey (since 1 December 2012), the Republic of North Macedonia (since 1 July 2015) and Serbia (since 1 February 2016). The operation of the common transit procedure with the UK is ensured as the UK has deposited its instrument of accession on 30 January 2019 with the Secretariat of the Council of the EU.[19] The procedure is based on the Convention of 20 May 1987 on a common transit procedure. The rules are effectively identical to those of the Union transit.[19]

Edward Kellett-Bowman MEP, as rapporteur for a European Parliament Committee of Inquiry, presented a report to the Parliament in February 1997 [20] which identified the removal of border controls and a lack of co-operation by member states as being responsible for a rise in organised crime and smuggling.[21] Kellett-Bowman's report led to the European Union setting up a customs investigation body and computerising transit-monitoring systems.[22]

• Community preference
• EU VAT area
• European Customs Information Portal
• European Economic Area (EU and EFTA except Switzerland)
• European Free Trade Association (EFTA)
• European integration
• European Single Market
• European Union–Turkey Customs Union
• Free trade areas in Europe
• Free-trade area
• Market access
• Non-tariff barriers to trade
• Rules of origin
• Tariff

• TARIC database enquiry system, gives current tariff rates applicable by exporting country and season – European Commission: Communication and Information Resource Centre for Administrations, Businesses and Citizens.
• TARIC and Quota Data & Information: user guides for the TARIC database above – European Commission: Communication and Information Resource Centre for Administrations, Businesses and Citizens.
• "Turkey border gridlock hints at pain to come for Brexit Britain". Financial Times, February 16, 2017