This topic was the focus of the All-Ukrainian round table titled "Authorised Economic Operator: European Experience and Ukrainian Realities" held on May 28, 2025, at the State University of Trade and Economics. The event was organised by the Department of Commodity Science and Customs Affairs in cooperation with the NGO "Ukrainian Society of Commodity Science and Technology".

The event became an important part of the implementation of the Erasmus+ Jean Monnet project "EU AEO Program: Implementation in Ukraine" (EUAEOUA) and brought together over 130 participants, including top-level civil servants, leading experts in the field of AEO, business representatives, scientists, and higher education students from different regions of Ukraine.

Thanks to the highly respected speakers, their practical experience, and professional discussion, the event was held at the highest level.

In particular, Oleksandr MOSKALENKO, Director of the Customs Policy Department of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, outlined the current EU regulatory framework in the field of AEO and key areas of its implementation into Ukrainian legislation.

Oksana NIKANOROVA, Customs Reform Coordinator of the Reform Support Office under the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, emphasised the importance of further implementing EU customs legislation norms, especially regarding AEO, into the new Customs Code of Ukraine.

Andriy TEPLYI, Deputy Director of the Department of Authorisation, Provision of Administrative Services and Control of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, focused on the procedural aspects of obtaining AEO authorisation in Ukraine, existing challenges and ways to overcome them.

Representatives from Kyiv Customs (Inna EYSMONT, Bohdan HRYTSENKO and Ivan BEREZHNYUK), Khmelnytskyi Customs (Oleh LAZUNIN) and Vinnytsia Customs (Oleksandr MAKOVIY) shared practical insights about the cooperation between the customs offices of the State Customs Service of Ukraine and enterprises regarding authorisation acquisition and the role of AEOs in ensuring supply chain security amid wartime and Ukraine’s reconstruction.

The EUAEOUA project implementers (Taras KARAVAYEV, Oksana ZOLOTAROVA and Ganna DUGINETS) highlighted the leading EU experience in the field of AEO and its implementation in Ukraine, as well as the prospects for mutual recognition of AEO with countries worldwide.

Ilya ZIBNYTSKY and Daria TSVITSYNSKA provided valuable comments on the experience of obtaining AEO status, digitalisation, and the role of microbusiness in the implementation of customs procedures.

Following the discussion, the roundtable participants reached a common understanding of the importance of adapting Ukrainian legislation to the provisions of the EU Customs Code (UCC, Regulation No. 952/2013). It was emphasised that adaptation should not only cover the technical alignment of procedures but also a deeper institutional restructuring according to EU standards, particularly concerning authorisation criteria, simplification mechanisms, and the implementation of trusted trader functions within the Trust & Check Traders model.

The event confirmed the strong interest of government bodies, the scientific community, experts, and business representatives in jointly developing solutions that will facilitate the successful implementation of European experience in the customs sector and AEO issues in Ukraine.

Taras KARAVAYEV,
Doctor of Sciences (Technical), Professor of the Department of
Commodity Science and Customs Affairs,
coordinator of the EUAEOUA project