This is the recording of a live webinar provided by the EU Recognition Expert Group on 27 January 2025 with participants from universities with recognised Customs Academic Programmes and from interested universities. The agenda of the webinar was 1) Welcome, 2) Outcome of recognition cycle 2025 3) Research projects (LV, DE, EE) 4) Educational perspectives and success stories (AT, LV, DE) 5) Preparation for the live WS 2026 6) The way forward and closing event

Regulation (EU) 2022/2399 on the EU Single Window Environment for customs came into effect in December 2022. This Regulation establishes the EU customs Single Window Certificates Exchange System (EU CSW-CERTEX). Member States are obliged to connect their national Single Window Environments (SWE) for customs to the EU CSW-CERTEX by March 2025 for certain non-customs formalities. One of these non-customs formalities, as defined in Regulation (EU) 2024/573 on fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases), relates to the requirements for the import, export, and transit of F-gases and F-gas containing products and equipment. These formalities are processed and maintained via the F-gas Portal, which has been available for connection to the Member States' national Single Window Environment for customs via EU CSW- CERTEX since 1 January 2022. This is an eLearning module on the enforcement of the F-gas Regulation via EU CSW- CERTEX, based on the updated TARIC integration. The content of this module is aligned with the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2024/573, which were in force on 1 November 2025.​

The EU CCI system ensures the digitalisation of the centralised clearance process for import (CCI) at European level as defined in the Union Customs Code. It allows trusted traders to submit a customs declaration at the supervising customs office in the Member State of their establishment, for goods physically presented to a customs office in any other Member State, enabling customs declaration processing and release of goods electronically in an efficient, predictable and coordinated way among the customs offices located in different Member States. All contacts take place with the supervising customs office, acting as a ‘one-stop shop’. The EU CCI system ensures seamless electronic exchange of information between customs offices involved, allowing economic operators to benefit from a simplified and faster process for bringing goods into the EU and streamlining their customs clearance. This is achieved by reducing the number of customs procedures (for instance, by avoiding transit) for the actors involved, through a harmonised and automated exchange of information at EU level and by enabling economic operators to centralise their customs operations in the Member States of their establishment.

NCTS is an European wide system, based upon electronic declaration and processing, designed to provide better management and control of Community and Common Transit. It involves all countries comprising the EU Member States and all Common Transit Convention contracting countries. Based on the transit declaration, NCTS also covers the processing of safety and security data at entry and at the exit.. The "All as One" strategy adopted by the National Administrations (NA) aims to maintain the seamless "one system" and "end-to-end" experience for transit movements facilitated by a combined declaration. This approach will be implemented through a fair distribution of responsibilities between Opt-in and Opt-out National Administrations.

NCTS is an European wide system, based upon electronic declaration and processing, designed to provide better management and control of Community and Common Transit. It involves all countries comprising the EU Member States and all Common Transit Convention contracting countries. Based on the transit declaration, NCTS also covers the processing of safety and security data at entry and at the exit.. The "All as One" strategy adopted by the National Administrations (NA) aims to maintain the seamless "one system" and "end-to-end" experience for transit movements facilitated by a combined declaration. This approach will be implemented through a fair distribution of responsibilities between Opt-in and Opt-out National Administrations.

The EU Pillar 2 Directive implements the OECD’s global minimum tax rules across EU Member States. It ensures that large multinational companies pay a minimum effective tax rate of 15% in each country where they operate, aiming to reduce tax avoidance and promote fairer taxation globally.

BTI decisions provide legally binding commodity codes for goods, ensuring consistency and reducing risk. SURV3 analyses BTI and SDR data to help customs monitor compliance and streamline border procedures.

Operating in environments like airport security, field inspections, or laboratories often requires the ability to identify unknown substances quickly and accurately. Whether dealing with chemicals, drugs, or precursors, the stakes are high — potentially involving hazardous materials that pose risks to safety and security.  In these critical moments, Raman spectroscopy emerges as a powerful solution. The handheld Raman spectrometer is a key device used for fast and accurate substance identification in customs control.​ To use it effectively, officers must understand when, why, and how to apply it safely in different inspection scenarios.​​

The handheld backscatter device detects hidden objects by capturing X-rays reflected off surfaces. Results can vary depending on the power of the device, thickness of the material and closeness of the object behind the surface under analysis. This non-intrusive technology helps security teams find contraband like money, weapons, drugs and explosives behind different types of walls like metal, wood and plaster boards.

Serving as a hazardous materials responder or a customs officer means being prepared to identify and neutralise a wide range of chemical threats. Among these threats, unknown substances pose a significant risk. Whether solid, liquid, or powder, these substances can be harmful, reactive, or even explosive, and their dangers are often invisible to the naked eye. In such situations, immediate and accurate identification of these substances is critical. The infrared handheld spectrometer serves as a vital tool in the field. Designed for rapid, on-site analysis, it empowers responders to identify unknown chemicals, toxic industrial materials, or explosives within seconds, enabling informed decisions to mitigate risks effectively.