The European Commission has set out how electricity importers can use an existing EU customs simplification without a presentation notification when the electricity is released. In a notice dated 6 November, the Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union said businesses using Centralised Clearance for Import should record the import in their own systems, follow with a supplementary declaration and be ready to substantiate it through documentary checks. The notice describes guidance intended to bring differing national practices into line.
How an electricity import is declared
Centralised Clearance for Import already allows an authorised business to lodge a declaration at the customs office where it is established when the goods are presented to customs in a different EU member state. For an importer, this can concentrate declarations at one office while another authority remains involved at the place where goods enter the procedure. The Commission lists centralised clearance under Article 179 of the Union Customs Code. Its document register lists the electricity and natural gas guidance on 22 October, before the 6 November notice explaining how it applies to power imports. The replacement customs code adopted in September generally applies from 21 September 2027 under Article 287 of Regulation (EU) 2026/2108, with exceptions for specified provisions.
Key facts
- The Commission describes how to use centralised clearance with entry in the declarant’s records, known as EIDR.
- The importer enters the details in its own records and follows with a supplementary declaration through the centralised system.
- The trader does not send a presentation notification at the time the electricity is released for free circulation under the described procedure.
- Customs checks can use invoices, contracts, records and evidence from transmission operators.
The authorities and the importer still need to know which operations the authorisations cover. The Commission says the centralised clearance and EIDR authorisations should align on matters including the geographical area in which they are valid and the location of the goods. That matters when the customs office receiving the declaration is in a different member state from the point identified in the authorisation. These are two steps in a single declaration process. Article 167 of the Union Customs Code treats the entry in the records and the supplementary declaration as one legal instrument taking effect from the date of the entry.
What customs can check after release
Because electricity cannot be physically presented or inspected like a consignment of goods, the Commission says supervision should rely mainly on documentary controls after release. An invoice or contract records the commercial transaction, while evidence from a transmission operator may help support the declaration about the power delivered. The notice also identifies origin, customs duties, VAT and excise duties as separate matters addressed by the guidance. The centralised route therefore changes where and how an importer submits information while leaving those checks to be dealt with under the applicable rules.
For power generated in and imported from outside the EU, the guidance also addresses the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, known as CBAM. The Commission describes checks on the status of the authorised CBAM declarant and how to declare and validate the CBAM account number. It also points to two questions with practical consequences for traders: what quantity to declare when transmission capacity is allocated explicitly, and how to distinguish a customs transit procedure from electricity in transit for CBAM purposes.
For an importer preparing a declaration, the first step is to check the geographical scope of both authorisations and the location they identify. The business can then match its records and supplementary declaration to the commercial and transmission evidence customs may request after release. The Commission’s centralised-clearance page lists national contacts for questions about the authorisation and local requirements.
