Goods arriving by rail – Transit declaration

Goods not included by the transit procedure may be cleared after crossing the border by requesting customs clearance via an authority post box. This option will be discontinued on 1 October, 2024. If you need to store your goods, you should use the transit procedure.

With the transition to rail transport on 1 October 2024, operators needing to store goods will require an authorisation.

Which authorisations do you need?

To receive non-Union goods under the transit procedure, an operator must have the following authorisations:

• Authorisation as an authorised consignee for Union transit (ACE)
• Authorisation for a location approved by Swedish Customs
• Authorisation to use a comprehensive guarantee

Thus, your company will need to apply for authorised consignee status in combination with at least one of the following three locations, depending on the type of goods and the customs status of the goods:

• Other approved location
• Temporary storage facility
• Customs warehouse

Authorisation for at least one of these locations is a prerequisite for obtaining the Authorised Consignee for Union Transit (ACE) authorisation.

What area is suitable for you?

It is your company and your flow of goods that determines which type of location authorisation you need to apply for. The requirements and options differ between the different locations.

Find out more about the different location types below. Select the ‘+’ to read a summary of each location type’s requirements and options. Below, you will find more details about each location.

Other approved location

You run an operation with direct access to railway tracks. Consignments arrive by rail from outside the EU and are placed under the transit procedure. Union goods cannot be stored at an alternative approved location. Goods in the customs territory of the EU are presumed to be Union goods unless there is a reason to the contrary. The non-Union goods must be placed under another authorised customs procedure, such as free circulation, within 6 days of the discharge of the transit procedure.

To be granted an authorisation for an alternative approved location, you must be able to provide the necessary guarantees for the proper conduct of the operations. This includes being able to ensure that Union goods will not be stored at that location. To the extent that Union goods are expected to arrive at the site, you need to measures to prevent the storage of Union goods. This should be clearly stated in, for example, routine descriptions or similar documentation. Swedish Customs will make an assessment in each individual case whether there are the necessary measures in place to prevent the storage of Union goods. In this assessment, Customs will consider, among other things, to what extent:

• there is a need to store goods, regardless of customs status, at the location;
• non-Union goods are expected to be released for free circulation immediately upon arrival;
• there are clear procedures on how goods with different customs statuses are handled on arrival.
  

The operator of the facility should be the applicant for the authorisation to operate an alternative approved location. This authorisation, in combination with the authorised consignee authorisation, allows the holder to receive goods goods placed under the transit procedure. You may apply for an alternative approved location by submitting an application form.

To obtain an authorisation for an alternative approved location, you also need the comprehensive guarantee authorisation. A comprehensive guarantee entails providing a guarantee for customs and other charges for two or more events, declarations or customs procedures.

Comprehensive guarantee - Authorisation

Temporary storage facility

You run an operation with direct access to railway tracks. Consignments with non-Union goods or Union goods placed under the transit procedure arrive by rail. You need to store goods with different Union status, and these goods should be physically or administratively distinguishable. Non-Union goods may be stored for a maximum of 90 days, prior to being placed under a different customs procedure. There are limits to how the goods may be handled. For example, you are allowed to repair broken packaging. However, you may not break the packaging and repackage the goods.

The operator of the location should apply for the authorisation. This authorisation, in combination with the authorised consignee authorisation, allows the holder to receive goods placed under the transit procedure. Please apply via Swedish Customs’ online services.

To obtain a permit for a temporary storage facility to be used in combination with an authorised consignee, you also need the comprehensive guarantee permit. A comprehensive guarantee entails providing a guarantee for customs and other charges for two or more events, declarations or customs procedures.

Comprehensive guarantee - Authorisation.

Customs warehouse

You run an operation with direct access to railway tracks. Consignments with non-Union goods or Union goods placed under the transit procedure arrive by rail. In addition to receiving the goods and releasing them for free circulation, you also need to handle the goods or store goods with different customs statuses that can only be distinguished in the accounts. You can also store equivalent goods. Goods may be stored indefinitely in a customs warehouse.

The holder of the authorisation should be the operator of the customs warehouse.

You may place the goods under the customs warehousing procedure by lodging a customs warehouse declaration, either via the Customs Warehouse online service or via your system solution (EDI). A representative can be used to file this information.

Get started with declarations via EDI.

To obtain an authorisation for a customs warehouse, you also need the comprehensive guarantee authorisation. A comprehensive guarantee entails providing a guarantee for customs and other charges for two or more events, declarations or customs procedures.

Comprehensive guarantee – Authorisation.

Receiving goods under the transit procedure

To receive goods under the transit procedure, the consignee should be an authorised consignee (ACE) for Union transit.

Authorised consignee

You currently receive goods by rail that originate in a country outside of the EU, for example Norway. If you receive non-Union goods by rail and need to complete the transit procedure without bringing the goods to a customs office, you need to apply for an authorised consignee authorisation. If you hold an authorisation for an alternative approved location, temporary storage facility or customs warehouse, you may apply for an authorised consignee authorisation. This allows you to receive goods placed under the transit procedure, break the customs seal and discharge the transit procedure.

If you are the authorised consignee, you are responsible for the records pertaining to the transit movement. This means that you are required to personally keep the records, and show control over the flow of goods. When you apply for authorisation as an approved consignee, you are required to demonstrate your company’s control of your flow of goods. This should be done using clear documentation of how goods arriving at the approved location are handled and under what customs procedure these goods are placed. This ensures that no goods are withheld from customs supervision. The applicant should be the person who personally operates the business. Swedish Customs will then assess how well the applicant can guarantee and demonstrate a high level of control of the flow of goods. It should also be possible for Swedish Customs to conduct inspections without incurring an unreasonable workload.

As an authorised consignee, you will complete the transit in the NCTS system. If you do not wish to purchase the required system, you may hire a representative to handle any transit-related communications between you and the customs authority. You also need to be able to present this information in your own records, which means that the representative must send you the information from the NCTS system. You will then enter the information in your records. Your records must then be updated with current information from the representative. As an authorisation holder, you must demonstrate how you ensure that you have control over every transaction made for the physical goods under customs supervision. You must also describe how you communicate with your representative. The routine description should also present how information is sent between you and your representative. It should be stated clearly that the received non-Union goods are those that are inspected and counted, and that this is the information that is subsequently provided in the customs declaration.

Get started with declarations via EDI

Find out more about the updated transit system , NCTS, Release 5.

Things to consider

• It is permitted to reload from rail to road transport during the transport procedure. The transit procedure can then be discharged by an approved consignee at an approved location or a customs office. To discharge the transit procedure, all goods that are part of the transit movement must be presented at the same time, even if they are placed in multiple vehicles.
  
  
• If all the goods covered by the transit operation do not arrive at your authorised location at the same time, for example because a wagon has been disconnected from the train set, you should notify the customs office of destination without delay and request a partial discharge.
  
  
• If your goods are reloaded at an intermodal terminal, the train set needs to be covered by several different transit declarations, addressed to each authorised consignee. Another option is to discharge the ongoing transit movement and initiate new transit movements to the respective authorised consignees. This assumes that the terminal is an authorised location and has the required authorisations. It may be simpler to cover goods sent to the same consignee by a stand-alone transit procedure from the start.
  
  
• Swedish Customs cannot to grant an authorisation as authorised consignee and location authorisation at a location where there is no operator. Therefore, there it is not possible to unload non-Union goods placed under the transit procedure in such cases. You need to ensure that your goods are received by an authorised consignee, in order to complete the transit procedure.