Authorised Economic Operator (AEO)
Ensure continued status compliance with a regular AEO Health Check
Achieving AEO status marks the end of a lengthy internal process and successful auditing by HMRC.
It’s tempting to relax once certification has been achieved, knowing the next scheduled AEO audit will not be due for another 3 years.
We have found from experience that periodic health check days ensure you are keeping up to date with your newly established audit trails, ensuring you don’t get caught out down the line.
Our maintenance services can be tailored to suit your business needs. Below is an example of our standard maintenance options for AEO-C and AEO-S.
Customs Compliance Health Check (AEO-C)
• Review of customs activities and documented procedures
• Ensuring that documented procedures are being compiled with, looking for supportive evidence
• Review of IT systems & security, plus prompting of carrying out new IT intrusion testing.
• Customs entry auditing
• Review of data submitted to HMRC to ensure all significant updates have been communicated to AEO Central Site
• Review and testing of Customs competency levels within your organisation
• Advise on any additional AEO requirements that need to be implemented as experienced in recent audits
Safety and Security Health Check (AEO-S)
• Thorough review of physical security to ensure compliance
• Full review and update of risk and threat assessment
• Review and update of your business continuity plan (BCP)
• Review and update of company security plan
• Review security measures submitted to HMRC to ensure all significant updates have been communicated to AEO Central Site
• Review security related non-conformance reports. Provide mitigation advice if trends are visible
• Review HR processes, including induction, safety & security training & references / DBS checks
AEO Health Check Services
All of our Health Check days are completed with you on-site. We can change the focus of the visits depending on your needs or compliance concerns, to ensure you get the maximum benefit.
Additional services include:
• A full review of customs classifications and procedures
• External audits of suppliers against AEO-C or AEO-S criteria
• Documenting new procedures or re-writing existing procedures
• Acquiring additional standards on the back of the established AEO audit trails such as ISO 9001: 2015 Quality management and ISO 28001: 2007 Security management systems for the supply chain
• Reassessment preparedness review
• Customs Comprehensive Guarantee (CCG) application guidance
It is crucial that you don’t now get complacent and risk your AEO status by not maintaining the processes you established in order to gain AEO in the first instance!
How VARTAN can help you
Regular external audits and health checks will ensure ongoing compliance with AEO criteria, along with refresher training for staff and regular procedure reviews to keep up with your operations as they change over time.
Complimentary Customs Entry Audits
No judgement here, but we see so often businesses with ‘blind spots’. Their in-house method of training customs clearances without expert knowledge of penalties or changes in legislation leaves them open to making costly mistakes over many years, potentially racking up thousands of pounds in overspending on taxes that have to be paid back.
It’s a business no-brainer and you’ve got nothing to lose. Even if you’re pretty sure you’re spot on with your entries, it’s reassuring to make sure, right? Here’s how it works. Our expert customs consultants will audit a sample of your customs entries and provide you with a traffic-light report to show their findings. You’ll get to see what you’re doing right, what’s questionable and what, quite frankly, is incorrect.
HMRC reassessment
We can attend prior to and/or during HMRC reassessments to provide support and expertise and will be on hand to deal with any post-audit matters.
Our AEO Health Check services are designed to ensure that your procedures and audit trails are managed at the required level, protecting your Authorised Economic Operator status.
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