Voluntary use by non-EU countries of the Electronic system for Agricultural Non-customs formalities (ELAN)

Draft Commission Implementing Regulation on amending Implementing Regulations (EU) 2016/1239, (EU) 2020/761, (EU) 2020/1988 and (EU) 2025/1272 to allow issuing authorities of third countries to use ELAN on a voluntary basis during the transitional period [scroll down to download]

Draft Annex

Update

The European Commission’s new Electronic system for Agricultural Non-customs formalities (ELAN) was established in 2025. ELAN will allow authorities in European Union (EU) and non-EU countries to process and store documents relating to agri-food trade. These include documents issued by non-EU authorities to secure tariff rate quota licences. Use of ELAN for issuing these documents will be mandatory from 17 January 2028.

Since July 2025, non-EU authorities have been able to test the ELAN system, but the documents it produced during this transition period have had no legal value for the purpose of clearing goods through customs. This proposed Regulation will now allow authorities to issue documents with legal value in ELAN.

The Regulation also revises the template to be used by non-EU authorities when issuing documents.

Stakeholders have an opportunity to comment on the draft Regulation via the EU’s Have your say consultation until 20 August 2026.

What is changing?

When does ELAN come into force?

From 17 January 2028, non-EU countries will have to issue the following using the Electronic system for Agricultural Non-customs formalities (ELAN):

• documents that support imports into the EU under tariff rate quotas referred to in Regulations 2020/761 (Annexes II–XII) and 2020/1988 (Annex II)
• documents required to export under tariff quotas in the sheepmeat and goatmeat sectors in Regulation 2020/1988 (Art. 31)
• authenticity certificates related to the export of basmati rice, referred to in Regulation 2023/2834.

Transition period: voluntary use of ELAN and legal status of documents

Since July 2025, to allow authorities in non-EU countries to get used to the new system, they have been able to issue documents through ELAN on a voluntary basis. However, these documents have not had any legal value for performing customs clearance. This new Regulation will allow such documents to have legal value during the transition period before 17 January 2028, allowing EU Member State customs authorities to use them as a basis for releasing agricultural products onto the EU market. If the documents issued in ELAN are used in another context outside the electronic system (e.g. to complete paper procedures), they will only have legal value if they bear the signature stamp of the issuing authority.

The Commission will publish on its ELAN webpage a list of countries using ELAN before January 2028 on a voluntary basis.

Revised template

This Regulation also slightly revises the ELAN1L-TCDOC template that sets out the information required by non-EU authorities to prove the origin or the conformity to certain standards of the product to be exported to the EU (Draft Annex, XIV.8).

Why?

As a number of non-EU countries have been successfully using ELAN on a voluntary basis, giving legal value to the documents generated will improve the efficiency of completing customs procedures.

The EU is moving towards an electronic information exchange system linking all customs authorities and other relevant bodies within and outside the EU. The new ELAN system will be connected with the EU Single Window Environment for Customs. See ELAN: Electronic system for Agricultural Non-customs formalities.

Timeline

The Regulation is expected to be published in September 2026.

What are the major implications for exporting countries?

Non-EU authorities that issue non-customs documents supporting preferential trade with the EU must ensure that they are in a position to use the ELAN1L-TCDOC template by January 2028, and that national electronic systems for collecting the relevant data and issuing origin certificates are compatible with ELAN.

Recommended Actions

All interested stakeholders are invited to give feedback via the European Commission’s Have your say platform until 20 August 2026.

Stakeholders wishing to respond must be registered. Those who do not already have an account will first need to Create an EU login account, then register their organisation on the EU Transparency register.

Background

For further information see ELAN: Electronic system for Agricultural Non-customs formalities and the European Commission’s ELAN webpage.

Resources

Sources