Our Chairman of the Board Mehmet Altay YEGİN's article titled Our Association's New Route: Spain was published in the newspaper "Nasıl Bir Ekonomi"

         OUR ASSOCIATION'S NEW ROUTE: SPAIN

The "Authorized Economic Operator Certificate" (AEO), which was put into practice to simplify foreign trade and customs procedures, is an internationally valid certificate. The AEO program is implemented in 97 member countries of the World Customs Organization, and there are 87 "Mutual Recognition Agreements" signed by the relevant countries. In this way, it is possible to benefit from the opportunities provided by the AEO certificate issued in one of the countries where the agreement is signed, in the other country.

The Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Association in Turkey was established in 2019. Our Board of Directors and committees have adopted the principle of carrying out result-oriented work since its establishment. In this context, one of the most important steps it has taken was becoming a member of the “International Authorized Customs and Logistics Economic (AEO) Operators Association” as of 2022.

The AEO Association continues on its way with confident steps to become an international non-governmental organization that conducts research abroad, compares and questions simplification practices, and also acts in line with the demands of its members.

Our association charter grants us the authority to work on the following issues:

• To participate in international meetings through its representatives,
• To conduct research on different countries implementing the Authorized Economic Operator System (AEO), to collect all kinds of information and statistical data and to share this information with its members,
• To hold meetings with the World Customs Organization and the European Union, and to follow up on implementation and legislation with foreign organizations.

The idea of ​​the necessity of an International Authorized Customs and Logistics Economic (AEO) Operators Association was formed in the Barcelona Customs Brokers Association and with the initiatives made in this field, the AEO Operators Association was established in 2014.

The increase in the efficiency of global logistics chains means an increase in the welfare of the global society. Since the first formation of the AEO system, it has been thought that international trade, which is becoming increasingly global and competitive, needs reliable companies in different customs administrations so that the global logistics chain can respond to its immediate needs.

The establishment of the said association was first proposed at the end of 2014 in Mexico at a meeting held between the General Council of Spanish Customs Representatives and their Mexican and Colombian counterparts.

The founding members of the International Association of Authorized Customs and Logistics Economic (AEO) Operators have been all member countries of ALACAT representing Latin American and Caribbean Cargo Agencies, the United States, Portugal, Spain, and customs representatives of various countries.

As of today, the idea of ​​becoming a member of the “International Association of Authorized Customs and Logistics Economic (AEO) Operators” representing more than thirty thousand companies in the field of customs and logistics excites us for new projects. In this context, a delegation consisting of our Board members will visit the AEO Operators Association headquartered in Spain in September. During the meeting, a comparison of simplification practices and information exchange on mutual recognition agreements will be made. On this occasion, a current AEO certificate holder company will visit its facility in Spain. The process regarding the movement of goods within the facility will be monitored in practice and the process flow will be shared with all our members.

It is obvious that such a strong international Union visit, which we are sure will contribute to our Association, will add strength to our future goals and vision. Strengthening the AEO Association will contribute to the enlightenment of both the sector and the public in terms of accelerating foreign trade transactions.