Does your company import or export goods outside the European Union? Sooner or later, the question of customs control will arise. Whether it occurs at the time of clearance or several months later at your premises, this control can generate delays, extra costs, or even heavy financial penalties if your documentation is not in order.
Yet a well-prepared customs control is far from insurmountable. By understanding the different types of inspections, the expectations of DGDDI agents and the levers for securing your flows, you transform a source of anxiety into a controlled process. Here is everything you need to know to approach your next customs verifications with confidence.
What is a customs control for a business?
A customs control refers to all verifications carried out by agents of the General Directorate of Customs and Indirect Taxes (DGDDI) to ensure that import, export or transit operations comply with current regulations. Unlike controls targeting travelers at airports or borders, those concerning businesses focus on commercial goods flows and the documents accompanying them.
The legal framework for these inspections is based on articles 60 to 67 of the national Customs Code and the Union Customs Code (UCC), which harmonizes rules at the European level. Agents have broad inspection powers: they can examine goods, means of transport and all commercial documents related to your operations.
Companies are not targeted at random. French customs relies on a risk analysis that combines several criteria: the type of goods, their geographical origin, the operator's history and alerts from international cooperation. In 2024, the DGDDI processed 218.7 million declarations, 95.8% of which in less than five minutes. In-depth controls therefore target a fraction of flows, but their consequences can be significant.
What are the different types of customs controls?
Customs inspections do not all take the same form. Depending on the timing and nature of the verifications, four main categories can be distinguished.
Documentary control
Documentary control occurs as soon as the customs declaration is filed. Agents verify the consistency of declared information with the supporting documents provided: commercial invoices, certificates of origin, import licenses, binding tariff information (BTI). The objective is to ensure that the tariff classification in the Harmonized System (HS), the customs value and the origin of the goods are correctly declared.
This first filter is the most frequent. It can lead to a request for additional documents or, in the event of inconsistency, trigger a physical control. To limit this risk, Customeo structures each clearance file from its creation: commercial documents (invoices, packing lists) are centralized in the platform even before the declaration is filed, which reduces discrepancies between the documents provided and the declared information.
Physical inspection of goods
When the risk analysis or documentary control justifies it, agents proceed with a direct inspection of the goods. This verification may include opening containers, taking samples for laboratory analysis or using non-intrusive scanners.
Physical control is the most visible and feared in terms of delays. During the inspection, the goods remain immobilized, which can disrupt your logistics chain and delay your deliveries. Responsiveness in transmitting documents requested by agents is then decisive in limiting the immobilization period. With Customeo, immediate access to the entire file from any workstation allows required documents to be provided without delay, without having to contact multiple parties or search through physical archives.
Post-clearance control, the most feared audit
Post-clearance control takes place after customs clearance, sometimes several months later, directly at the company's premises. Agents retrospectively examine your commercial files, accounting records, inventories and customs declarations for a period that can go back up to three years (recovery period provided by the UCC).
For companies, this type of audit represents a particular challenge. It can reveal tariff classification errors, customs value discrepancies or invalid proofs of origin accumulated over several years. If unpaid duties and taxes are identified, the administration issues a recovery notice along with penalties. Certain accounting obligations also require archiving for up to ten years.
During a recent AEO audit, the Customeo team was able to respond to agents' verifications in seconds: "The auditor picks declarations at random and asks for associated documents. With Customeo, you type the declaration number and all the information appears." Customs themselves praised the effectiveness of this traceability system.
Sanitary and phytosanitary controls
For certain categories of goods (food products, plants, products of animal origin), sanitary and phytosanitary controls are mandatory even before the customs declaration is filed. Governed by Regulation (EU) 2017/625, these controls are carried out at the first point of entry onto the territory of the European Union.
They cover compliance with health standards, the possible presence of harmful organisms and the validity of phytosanitary or veterinary certificates issued by the exporting country. Non-compliance with these requirements may result in the return or destruction of the goods.
What are the penalties for customs violations?
The consequences of non-compliance go well beyond a simple fine. The Customs Code provides a range of sanctions proportionate to the severity of the violations found.
Financial penalties are the most common sanction. They are calculated on the basis of evaded duties or the value of the goods in question, and can reach considerable amounts. In cases of value under-declaration or tariff classification error, the penalty can represent 40% of the amount of evaded duties, to which are added the payment of duties and taxes due as well as late interest.
Beyond fines, agents can proceed with the confiscation of goods and means of transport used. The joint liability of the manager is engaged, meaning that sanctions target both the company and the individual.
For the most serious offenses (organized smuggling, large-scale fraud, repeat offenses), criminal penalties of up to ten years imprisonment are added to customs sanctions. This is the double penalty mechanism: a customs reassessment procedure can be doubled by a criminal procedure on the same facts.
Simply refusing to submit to a control is itself an offense, punishable by €15,000 fine and one year imprisonment (article 416 bis of the Customs Code).
How to prepare for a customs control?
The best response to the risk of control is anticipation. Three axes allow you to significantly reduce your exposure.
Ensuring the compliance of your customs declarations
The first line of defense is the quality of your declarations. Each operation must be based on an accurate tariff classification in the Combined Nomenclature (CN), a customs value consistent with commercial invoices and duly documented goods origin. The use of a Binding Tariff Information (BTI) from the DGDDI secures your classification for three years and constitutes evidence of good faith in case of control.
An often overlooked point: the consistency between accounting invoices and the supporting invoices of customs declarations. Any discrepancy, even unintentional, can be interpreted as an anomaly during an audit. Customeo's declarants verify this consistency at each operation, which limits the risk of an unnoticed discrepancy.
Centralizing and organizing documentation
During a control, the ability to quickly produce the requested documents makes all the difference. Commercial invoices, bills of lading (B/L), packing lists, certificates of origin, customs declarations: each document must be archived in a structured and accessible manner.
Customeo automatically centralizes all documents related to each clearance file. A search by declaration number, customer reference or period is enough to retrieve all documents in a few seconds. This digital centralization transforms a usually time-consuming process into a fluid operation, whether the control covers a single file or two years of history.
Conducting regular self-audits
Waiting for a control to discover anomalies is the riskiest scenario. The best-prepared companies conduct internal spot-check controls: they periodically verify that declarations, invoices and tariff classifications are consistent.
Each customs control, whether external or internal, must be followed by a lessons-learned review. The objective: identify procedures to correct and vigilance points to strengthen before the next audit. The traceability offered by Customeo facilitates these internal verifications: the complete history of each operation is accessible, with the timeline of statuses, uploaded documents and exchanges with the declarant.
AEO status, an asset against controls
The Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) is a certification issued by customs to companies that demonstrate a high level of compliance, financial reliability and security in their operations. Two types of authorizations exist: AEOC (customs simplifications) and AEOS (security and safety). Companies can combine both to obtain AEO-Full status.
The advantages are tangible: reduced number of physical controls, priority processing of inspections, recognition throughout the European Union territory and facilitated access to simplified clearance procedures. In return, the company commits to being re-audited at least every three years on its internal processes, accounting, IT and security management.
Customeo is backed by an AEO-certified customs agent, one of the first in France to have obtained this accreditation. Its users directly benefit from this recognition. During the last AEO audit, the platform enabled instant responses to each agent verification, confirming the robustness of the archiving and traceability system.
How Customeo secures your operations against customs controls
Errors that lead to customs reassessments often have a common origin: dispersed documentation, fragmented exchanges between the company and its declarant, and an absence of structured operation monitoring. Customeo directly addresses these weaknesses.
Each clearance file automatically centralizes commercial documents (invoices, packing lists), customs declarations, exchanges with the declarant and the complete history of statuses. A timeline traces the file handling, declaration preparation, actual clearance and, for exports, the obtaining of the export authorization document, which constitutes the tax proof justifying the tax-free sale.
This traceability proves particularly valuable during tax audits. Customeo users under tax audit access all their declarations and can show in a few clicks that the goods have indeed left the territory, without waiting for their customs agent to retrieve documents.
For companies managing regular import-export flows, switching to a digital customs management platform is no longer a convenience: it is a compliance lever that reduces the risk of anomaly and speeds up response in case of control.
Imagine your next clearance operations with total visibility: each declaration archived and accessible in a few seconds, each commercial document centralized in the same space, each clearance status tracked in real time. During a control, you no longer search through physical archives. You respond immediately, with confidence.
This is precisely the peace of mind that Customeo brings to companies that import and export. By combining a digital platform designed for traceability and compliance with the expertise of licensed customs declarants, you transform customs control into a simple administrative formality. Because a well-prepared company has nothing to fear from an inspection.
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How long does a customs inspection at a company last?
The duration varies depending on the type of inspection. A documentary check can be resolved in a few hours. A physical inspection immobilises goods for the duration of the inspection (a few hours to several days). A post-clearance inspection on the company's premises can extend over several weeks, depending on the volume of operations to be verified.
Can a customs reassessment be contested?
Yes. The company can first file a complaint with the customs service, then refer to the mediator of the economic and financial ministries. If the disagreement persists, legal action is possible. Assistance from a lawyer specialised in customs law is recommended as soon as the reassessment notice is received.
Is post-clearance control systematic?
No. Post-clearance controls are targeted based on the risk analysis carried out by the DGDDI. Companies whose flows show inconsistencies, who operate in sensitive sectors or who do not have AEO status are more likely to be inspected.
What documents should be kept in case of an inspection?
Customs declarations must be kept for a minimum of three years (recovery period). However, certain tax and accounting obligations require archiving of up to six years, or even ten years in some cases. It is recommended to keep all supporting documents: invoices, certificates of origin, bills of lading, licences. Customeo automatically keeps all your files and documents in the long term.
