What's Involved In Becoming Authorised For AEO?

There are 3 AEO authorisations available – the authorisation you need to apply for will depend on your business.

Applicants can become:

• Customs AEO authorised
• Security and Safety AEO authorised, or
• Combined AEO authorised

For many businesses it will be beneficial to obtain Combined AEO Status due to the combined security and Customs benefits. We will always provide honest, impartial advice on what will be most valuable for your company.

The authorisation process is very involved because the aim is that, once granted, the AEO status will mean businesses are permitted to import and export with minimum interruption from officials as they have already been officially declared as safe operators. As a result, HMRC examine all aspects of the Customs and/or security procedures within a business and they test these extensively. Although the length of the authorisation process depends on the complexity of the business and application it will usually take 9 - 12 months. It is vital that if you think your business may be affected you should act now.

We have 5 stages to our AEO service. These are:

1. Assessing AEO Readiness – undertaking an assessment review and gap analysis on systems in line with AEO criteria.
2. Implementing recommended changes utilising the gap analysis and our combined experience in tax, VAT and Duty.
3. Applying for AEO authorisation when we are confident of success.
4. Liaising with HMRC using our professional experience and expertise to maximise the chance of authorisation being granted.
5. A post authorisation verification programme to ensure systems are adhered to.

Watch our video to find out more about AEO