2026 Customs Reforms: The Complete Schedule to Anticipate Every Deadline

The year 2026 concentrates an unprecedented volume of regulatory changes for international trade operators. Between the end of legacy IT systems, the entry into the definitive phase of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, the overhaul of the national Customs Code, and the EORI identifier switch, operators face a calendar of rare density. At Customeo, we handle these developments daily on our declarations. Here is a complete overview of the 2026 customs reforms, deadline by deadline, with their operational implications.

End of Regime 42 and New VAT Obligations

The Ponctual Fiscal Representation (PFR) scheme ended on December 31, 2025. Companies established outside the European Union can no longer use their freight forwarder's VAT number to import goods into France via another Member State under customs regime 42.

Since January 1, 2026, any non-EU company wishing to benefit from the import VAT exemption must have its own French VAT number and an accredited tax representative. Without this registration, 20% VAT must be advanced on each import, with a direct impact on cash flow. Import VAT self-assessment remains a mechanism to master in this new context.

For freight forwarders who managed these flows on behalf of their non-European clients, the administrative burden has changed in nature. The principal must now be compliant, otherwise clearance cannot be completed.

DELTA IE Replaces Legacy Systems

Definitive Closure of DELTA G on January 19, 2026

The DELTA G system, used for years for export filings in traditional freight, closed definitively on January 19, 2026. All operators must now go through DELTA IE, the new customs declaration digitalization system that replaces both DELTA G (export) and DELTA X.

The transition is not without difficulties. The switchover of the last special regimes under DELTA IE is causing recurring service interruptions and numerous fixes in the S)one and CI5 systems. In February 2026, the switchover rate reached 75% for cargo freight but only 36.5% for express freight. TLF Overseas, France Chimie and Odasce published a joint statement on February 2 to alert about declaration validation delays, which vary from a few minutes to several days.

The three professional organizations point to the prolonged immobilization of goods on logistics platforms and the absence of return messages from the system, preventing identification of errors.

A backup procedure has been put in place by the DGDDI, and the next corrective release is scheduled for February 24, 2026.

ICS2 Version 3 Mandatory from February 3, 2026

The transition to version 3 of the ICS2 system (Import Control System) has been mandatory since February 3, 2026 for the safety and security of incoming flows. Operators must submit an Entry Summary Declaration (ENS) in the ICS2 application for all non-Union status goods destined to enter the safety/security zone via an entry point located in France.

CBAM Enters Its Definitive Phase

Authorized CBAM Declarant Status Becomes a Blocking Prerequisite

Since January 1, 2026, the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) has moved from the transitional phase to the definitive phase. To import carbon-intensive goods such as steel, aluminum, cement, fertilizers, electricity or hydrogen, the importer's EORI must be linked to a valid CBAM authorization.

The system checks this authorization automatically when the customs declaration is submitted. If the EORI is not linked to an authorization, the clearance release is refused and clearance cannot proceed. Importers of tariff-rate quotas on steel and aluminum imports are at the forefront.

Operators importing more than 50 tonnes per year of CBAM goods must have submitted their provisional authorization application before March 31, 2026. Clearance remains possible during processing, provided the application was submitted before the declaration was filed.

Two new codes must appear on customs declarations: Y128 (authorization number issued) and Y238 (status application under processing).

Certificate Purchases from February 2027

The first actual payment deadline will be February 1, 2027 to cover 2026 emissions. Importers must start collecting intrinsic emission data from their non-EU suppliers now. Without verified data, European default values will apply, and they are significantly more penalizing.

New National Customs Code on May 1, 2026

France is undertaking a complete overhaul of its national Customs Code (CDN). The text goes from 478 to approximately 1,200 articles, integrating provisions previously scattered across the Tax Procedures Book, decrees, and overseas texts.

Among the major changes, the new code legally secures digital investigations and revamps the right of inspection provided for in Article 60. Customs officers will legally be able to require access to remote servers (Cloud) during an inspection. Companies must ensure that their digital archiving is accessible and compliant.

Training of customs officers is scheduled between January and March 2026, followed by a national rollout from May. On the IT systems side, around thirty customs applications will need to be updated, including BANACO, SILCF, DALIA and CANOPEE.

EORI Switch from SIRET to SIREN

With the deployment of DELTA IE, the EORI customs identifier is evolving. The establishment EORI based on the 14-digit SIRET will gradually disappear in favor of the headquarters EORI based on the 9-digit SIREN.

The Delta H7 system, dedicated to low-value e-commerce imports, already operates exclusively with the EORI SIREN. DELTA IE and other national applications continue to accept SIRET EORIs for now, but SIRET-based numbers will be deactivated during the second half of 2026. The exact date will be communicated by the DGDDI.

The impact is direct for multi-site companies: if your ERP still sends the EORI of a secondary warehouse (SIRET), DELTA IE will reject the declaration once the switchover is in effect. Updating master data to use only the headquarters EORI-SIREN must be planned now.

Taxation of E-Commerce Parcels from July 2026

The European Union is eliminating the customs duty exemption for shipments under 150 euros. From July 1, 2026, a flat-rate tax of 3 euros per parcel will apply to all low-value shipments sent from a third country to a European consumer.

In France, this European tax is combined with a national management fee provided for in the 2026 Finance Bill, estimated between 2 and 5 euros per parcel, to which VAT is added. For an item imported at 10 euros, the delivered cost could exceed 17 euros. The dropshipping business model from platforms like Shein, Temu or Aliexpress is directly affected: 4.6 billion parcels are targeted, 91% of which come from China.

This measure is transitional and is part of the outlook for the reform of the European Customs Union expected for 2028.

EUDR: The Anti-Deforestation Regulation Delayed to End of 2026

After a one-year delay, the European anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR) will enter into application on December 30, 2026 for large companies, then June 30, 2027 for SMEs.

Seven categories of products are concerned: timber, coffee, cocoa, soy, rubber, palm oil and livestock, as well as their derived products. The regulation requires demonstrating, through a due diligence declaration, that the imported products did not contribute to deforestation after December 30, 2020.

When filing the customs declaration, the representative will need to provide the DDS reference number proving that the harvested plot has been geolocated and has not been deforested. Without this number, the container remains blocked at the port. The one-year delay provides an additional window to implement supply chain traceability.

What Lies Ahead for 2027 and 2028

The regulatory agenda does not stop at 2026. Several structural deadlines are emerging for the years ahead.

February 1, 2027 will mark the first actual purchase of CBAM certificates to cover 2026 emissions. June 30, 2027, the EUDR regulation will extend to SMEs. December 14, 2027 will see the entry into application of EU Regulation 2024/3015 prohibiting the placing on the market of any product resulting from forced labor, with the creation of a European database of risk zones. Companies sourcing in identified regions will need to prove the absence of forced labor, under penalty of having their stock become unsellable.

In 2028, the commissioning of the Customs Data Hub and the full deployment of the Trust & Check status will complete the transformation of the European customs framework.

DELTA IE switchover, new CBAM codes on declarations, EORI migration to SIREN, adaptation to EUDR requirements: each reform translates into direct modifications in the handling of customs operations. Customeo centralizes all your declarations (import, export, T1, T2L) on a single platform covering more than 150 customs offices in France and Europe, with real-time tracking and complete status traceability. For operators managing flows across multiple countries, unified customs supervision in 7 countries (FR, UK, BE, NL, ES, IT, EE) enables managing these transitions from a single space, in EDI/API or manual mode.