Expert Group on Customs Cooperation and Border-Crossing Aspects

The last meeting of the CBSS Expert Group on Customs Cooperation and Border Crossing Aspects took place on the 14-15th June 2010 in Vilnius. The Group is now chaired by Norway.

The Group was established following the decision of the Directors General of Customs Administrations of the Baltic Sea Region, according to the Final Declaration of the Fifth Baltic Sea Customs Conference held in Riga in October 2003, and conclusion from the meeting of Directors General of 1 June 2004 in Helsinki, with the support of the Council of the Baltic Sea States.

The EG continues Baltic Sea customs cooperation, on the basis of the legislation in force in the countries concerned, in the following main fields:

• Harmonization of the customs administrative procedures in the logistic chain, both at the border crossing points and at the final places of destination for goods transported in the Baltic Sea Area.
• Improvement of regional border-crossing cooperation of all services involved in border operations, with a view to meet maximum 2 hour border crossing objective formulated in the Bergen Declaration and reiterated in the Moscow Action Plan, thereby ensuring a smooth trade in goods in the Baltic Sea Area.
• Monitoring of customs control and controls of other trade related measures in order to ensure that they are well -coordinated, relevant, selective and based on available information and results of risk assessment.
• Ensuring standardized information on customs and border clearance requirements to trade and transport operators.