Online declarants in sea traffic will start using the EU’s ICS2 declaration service starting on 3 June 2024 at 13.00

From Monday 3 June 2024 at 13.00, online declarants are to submit entry summary declarations and the following arrival notifications in the EU’s ICS2 Declaration Service for Safety and Security Data (STI-STP). These declarations and notifications are submitted for goods that arrive on a ship from a port outside the EU (excluding Norway). Users log into the service via the EU Trader Portal. After the arrival notification, a presentation notification must be submitted in the Finnish Customs Clearance Service for goods to be unloaded at a Finnish port.

Changing over to the new system

Presently, the entry summary declaration for goods arriving by sea is submitted in the Arrival and Exit Declaration Service (AREX). An entry summary declaration submitted to the old service before 3 June 2024 at 13.00 is valid, even though the ship arrives after this time. A combined arrival and presentation notification is submitted for it in the same service.

Online declarants are not allowed to submit any entry summary declarations in the old service after 3 June 2024. An exception to this is when a current online declarant becomes a message declarant and the shipping company has been granted a transition period until 4 December 2024 at the latest. In that case, the shipping company or its representative can still submit these declarations and notifications in the Arrival and Exit Declaration Service (AREX).

After 3 June 2024, entry summary declarations are only submitted to the Arrival and Exit Declaration Service (AREX) for goods arriving by road and railway until 1 April 2025. The service is also used for safety and security declarations on exit for all modes of transport until spring 2025.

New entry summary declarations

Shipping companies are still responsible for submitting entry summary declarations. New information required in the declaration in the future is e.g. seller and buyer, container information with more exact details and the mandatory 6-digit or 8-digit commodity code.

The change affects import clearance only indirectly

The change does not actually affect the import clearance of goods imported by sea. If the declaration preceding an import declaration is an entry summary declaration in the new format involving goods arriving by sea, the customs declaration must contain the reference number of the house-level transport document in addition to the MRN of the previous declaration and the consignment number.

More information

Entry of goods into the EU
Changes to entry declarations and temporary storage declarations
ICS2 Process and Data: Maritime and Inland Waterways
Entry summary declarations to be renewed in June 2024 for sea traffic and in 2025 for railway traffic (customer notice, 23 October 2023)
ucc(at)tulli.fi