The power of your customs data

19/04/22

The Belgian customs authorities recently rolled out PLDA reporting via the MinFin portal for all economic operators (PDLA is the Belgian customs system). This gives economic operators a straightforward and easy way to request PLDA data and puts an end to manual requests by email. These PLDA data enable operators to perform cross checks against their own datasets allowing them to spot potential irregularities.

What can this possibly mean for your company?

All economic operators can consult PLDA data (a company’s import and export transactions reported to the Belgian customs authorities) via the MinFin portal. Operators will need a log-in and an assigned role to be able to automatically access and download the data.

The reports containing the data will be available to operators with at least 500 import or export article lines per annum. The data will be available to all economic operators, i.e. Belgian AEO accredited (authorised economic operator accredited) and non-AEO accredited companies as well as foreign companies. However, the means to access the reports may vary depending on the category to which you belong:

Belgian AEO accredited companies can access the MyMinFin portal and automatically download the PLDA reports. Hence nothing changes for these companies, as the Belgian customs authorities had already implemented automated PLDA reporting for AEO accredited companies in 2021;
Belgian non-AEO companies wishing to access the MyMinFin portal, must first send a one-off request to da.marketing@minfin.fed.be stating their EORI and VAT number. The reports will then be made available in the MyMinFin portal;
Foreign companies (non-Belgian companies) will not be able to generate automatic reports in the MyMinFin portal. Therefore, they will have to request the reports from the customs authorities by email at da.marketing@minfin.fed.be stating their EORI number and the Belgian VAT number linked to the EORI number.

Other countries

Germany

It is more difficult to procure import and export customs data in Germany. There is no central customs office from which the data can be requested. The information must be requested from each individual main customs office where clearance has taken place.

Due to the fact that requests for information may be opposed by higher administrative efforts, the most promising option here seems to be to request the import and export data in the form of an Excel overview.

The Netherlands

It is possible to obtain import and export customs data (OGA – Overzicht Gedane Aangiften) in the Netherlands. However, the information included in the overview is unfortunately very limited and as such does not lend itself to extensive analysis. An overview can be easily obtained by sending an email to NHD.vergunningen@douane.nl including your EORI number.

Switzerland

The process to obtain import and export customs data from the customs authorities in Switzerland is quite straight forward. The data can be requested via e-mail from the central office. It will be provided within 2-3 days in the form of an Excel spreadsheet. The spreadsheet will contain all the information that was declared in the various boxes of the import and export declaration.

How can we help?

PwC can represent you as a fiscal representative and can thus request the PLDA reports via MyMinFin or directly from the customs authorities. We can also walk you through the data, perform a review and highlight any risks.

Moreover, PwC has developed a tool called ‘Trade Activator’. This tool can help you visualise the cross-border business transactions of your company based on customs (or broker) data in multiple jurisdictions. It can also help you visualise and subsequently analyse your cross-border trade to detect future cost-saving opportunities and to mitigate risks. It can even support you in classifying your products. For more information see our page on customs and trade analytics.

It’s good to talk!

If you need any advice on this matter, don’t hesitate to get in touch with your usual PwC customs and international trade specialist at PwC, who will be happy to help.