EU Customs Reform Marks a Major Step Forward for IP Enforcement

The European Union has adopted the most extensive reform of its customs framework since 1968. The revised Union Customs Code responds to the rapid growth of e-commerce, fragmented national systems, increasing volumes of small parcels, and the need for customs authorities to enforce a growing range of EU requirements at the border. INTA has been involved in the consultation process over the past four years, helping to shape the provisions of the new code.

The reform establishes a new EU Customs Authority in Lille, France, and creates a single EU Customs Data Hub to replace at least 111 existing customs systems that are in use across the 27 EU Member States. The new authority will coordinate customs governance, support common risk management, and oversee the Data Hub. The legislation also increases the responsibility of non-EU sellers and platforms facilitating direct sales to EU consumers, introduces stronger penalties for repeated non-compliance, and creates a new handling fee for direct-to-consumer parcels.

For brand owners, the reform contains important advances. The final text expressly recognizes intellectual property (IP) rights among the public interests that customs authorities must protect. It also identifies the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) IP Enforcement Portal (IPEP) as a source of risk information that the new Customs Data Hub should use, providing a valuable foundation for better integration of rights-holder intelligence into customs risk analysis.

Several provisions align closely with recommendations advanced by INTA. Most notably, the final destruction provision includes the “holder of the goods” among the parties that may bear destruction costs. INTA had specifically proposed this wording. The final framework also strengthens importer and exporter compliance obligations, introduces escalating penalties for systematic distance-sales violations, improves supply-chain traceability, and recognizes the need to consider the position of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Sustained Advocacy and Member Engagement

The outcome follows more than four years of engagement by INTA and its members. INTA first responded to the European Commission’s Call for Evidence in September 2022. During 2023, input was gathered through the Anticounterfeiting Committee’s Western Europe Subcommittee, the Enforcement Committee, and the Sustainable Destruction Project Team. This member expertise informed detailed comments to the European Commission and concrete amendment language submitted to the European Parliament.

That advocacy combined broad policy priorities with precise legislative drafting. INTA addressed e-commerce accountability, data interoperability, SME proportionality, information sharing, sustainable destruction, and consistent enforcement. At the same time, it proposed article-level wording on destruction costs and customs infringements. The inclusion of the “holder of the goods” demonstrates the value of moving from operational member experience to a specific legislative need.

INTA also engaged across the institutions shaping the reform. This included dialogue with the European Commission and the Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD), meetings with customs attachés from EU permanent representations, and engagement with the European Parliament, including the offices of rapporteur Dirk Gotink and shadow rapporteur Jeannette Baljeu. Senior INTA leadership and member experts supported engagement at different stages of the legislative process.

For INTA, this work produced value beyond the final legal text. It highlighted how members contribute to significant policy issues, strengthened relationships with EU decision-makers, and demonstrated INTA’s ability to monitor a complex legislative file and contribute at both strategic and technical levels.

Implementation Is the Next Priority

Important issues remain. The Code does not establish the dedicated national IP rights coordinator proposed by INTA, nor does it create a counterfeit-specific sustainable destruction standard. Questions also remain concerning liability, operational data sharing, specialist IP capacity, and consistent enforcement across Member States.

INTA will now focus on implementation. Priorities include building relationships with the new EU Customs Authority, promoting designated IP enforcement contact points, ensuring practical interoperability between the Data Hub and the IPEP, contributing to implementing guidance, and monitoring whether the new framework produces measurable enforcement improvements.

The Association will of course rely on members’ practical experience in these areas. The reform represents a significant achievement. It also provides a strong platform for continued cooperation between customs authorities, rights holders, and other enforcement partners in addressing counterfeit and other IP-infringing goods.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest.

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