Our Chairman of the Board of Directors Mehmet Altay YEGİN's article titled If the Safe Working Group Meeting was published in the " A First : AEO Follow- Up Program " newspaper.

Our Chairman of the Board of Directors Mehmet Altay YEGİN's article titled If the Safe Working Group Meeting was published in the " A First : AEO Follow- Up Program " newspaper.

"Authorized Economic Operator" (AEO) status is an internationally recognized status that grants certain privileges and facilities in customs procedures to reliable companies that fulfill customs obligations, have a regular and traceable record system, possess financial adequacy, safety, and security standards, and are able to conduct their own self-control.

Foreign trade and customs regulations are also periodically influenced by external factors. After the terrorist events known as the “Twin Towers Attacks” in 2001, customs administrations worldwide implemented a series of new regulations under the principle of "security first, then trade."

The attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon in the U.S. created an atmosphere of global insecurity. Countries began to adopt stricter border controls and foreign trade options prioritizing security. Subsequently, global supply chain disruptions and delays began to emerge as a result.

In response to this situation, members of the World Trade Organization and the World Customs Organization recognized the need for a new regulation that would allow “trusted traders” to carry out their customs procedures more quickly, without compromising security checks. The “Authorized Economic Operator” (AEO) regulation was introduced under this understanding and became effective in many countries. The AEO concept is based on a cooperation from "customs to business" initiated by the World Customs Organization (WCO).

The legal basis for the EU AEO program was established through "security amendments" to the "Community Customs Code" (CCC) (Regulation (EC) 648/2005) in 2008. The program, which aims to increase international supply chain security and facilitate legitimate trade, is open to all supply chain actors. It covers authorized economic operators for customs simplification (AEOC), security and safety (AEOS), or a combination of both (AEOF).

This practice, aimed at facilitating international trade, was implemented in Turkey under the name "Authorized Economic Operator Status" (AEO Status or YYS) in 2013. The "Regulation on Simplification of Customs Procedures" published in the Official Gazette on January 10, 2013, marked the start of the distribution of AEO certificates. As of the first half of 2025, the number of companies holding the AEO status has exceeded 750, and the number of businesses seeking to obtain this status is increasing day by day.

Obtaining such a challenging certification is difficult, and it is just as easy to lose or suspend it. In this regard, our association has launched the “YYS Follow Up” (YYS Sustainability) program to ensure the continuity of the certificate. So, what is “YYS Follow Up”?

It is an innovative tracking and reminder platform designed to facilitate the management of companies' Authorized Economic Operator Certification (AEO) processes.

The added value this platform provides to companies can be summarized as follows: