All goods intended to be placed under a customs procedure, except for the free zone procedure, shall be covered by a customs declaration appropriate for the particular procedure.

In specific cases, other than those referred to in Article 6(2), a customs declaration may be lodged using means other than electronic data-processing techniques.

Union goods declared for export, internal Union transit or outward processing shall be subject to customs supervision from the time of acceptance of the declaration referred to in paragraph 1 until such time as they are taken out of the customs territory of the Union or are abandoned to the State or destroyed or the customs declaration is invalidated.

Except where Union legislation provides otherwise, Member States shall determine the location and competence of the various customs offices situated in their territory.

Member States shall ensure that official opening hours are fixed for those offices that are reasonable and appropriate, taking into account the nature of the traffic and of the goods and the customs procedures under which they are to be placed, so that the flow of international traffic is neither hindered nor distorted.

Except where otherwise provided, the competent customs office for placing the goods under a customs procedure shall be the customs office responsible for the place where the goods are presented to customs.

The supporting documents required for the application of the provisions governing the customs procedure for which the goods are declared shall be in the declarant's possession and at the disposal of the customs authorities at the time when the customs declaration is lodged.

Supporting documents shall be provided to the customs authorities where Union legislation so requires or where necessary for customs controls.

In specific cases, economic operators may draw up the supporting documents provided they are authorised to do so by the customs authorities.

The customs authorities may accept that a person has goods placed under a customs procedure on the basis of a simplified declaration which may omit certain of the particulars referred to in Article 162 or the supporting documents referred to in Article 163.

The regular use of a simplified declaration referred to in paragraph 1 shall be subject to an authorisation from the customs authorities.

In the case of a simplified declaration pursuant to Article 166 or of an entry in the declarant's records pursuant to Article 182, the declarant shall lodge a supplementary declaration containing the particulars necessary for the customs procedure concerned at the competent customs office within a specific time-limit.

In the case of a simplified declaration pursuant to Article 166, the necessary supporting documents shall be in the declarant's possession and at the disposal of the customs authorities within a specific time-limit.

The supplementary declaration may be of a general, periodic or recapitulative nature.

The simplified declaration referred to in Article 166 or the entry in the declarant's records referred to in Article 182, and the supplementary declaration shall be deemed to constitute a single, indivisible instrument taking effect, respectively, on the date on which the simplified declaration is accepted in accordance with Article 172 and on the date on which the goods are entered in the declarant's records.

The place where the supplementary declaration is to be lodged shall be deemed, for the purposes of Article 87, to be the place where the customs declaration has been lodged.

Without prejudice to Article 167(1), a customs declaration may be lodged by any person who is able to provide all of the information which is required for the application of the provisions governing the customs procedure in respect of which the goods are declared. That person shall also be able to present the goods in question or to have them presented to customs.

However, where acceptance of a customs declaration imposes particular obligations on a specific person, that declaration shall be lodged by that person or by his or her representative.

The declarant shall be established in the customs territory of the Union.

Customs declarations shall be authenticated.

Customs declarations which comply with the conditions laid down in this Chapter shall be accepted by the customs authorities immediately, provided that the goods to which they refer have been presented to customs.

The date of acceptance of the customs declaration by the customs authorities shall, except where otherwise provided, be the date to be used for the application of the provisions governing the customs procedure for which the goods are declared and for all other import or export formalities.

The declarant shall, upon application, be permitted to amend one or more of the particulars of the customs declaration after that declaration has been accepted by customs. The amendment shall not render the customs declaration applicable to goods other than those which it originally covered.

Upon application by the declarant, within three years of the date of acceptance of the customs declaration, the amendment of the customs declaration may be permitted after release of the goods in order for the declarant to comply with his or her obligations relating to the placing of the goods under the customs procedure concerned.

The customs declaration shall not be invalidated after the goods have been released unless where otherwise provided.

Where a consignment is made up of goods falling within different tariff subheadings, and dealing with each of those goods in accordance with its tariff subheading for the purpose of drawing-up the customs declaration would entail a burden of work and expense disproportionate to the import or export duty chargeable, the customs authorities may, upon application by the declarant, agree that import or export duty be charged on the whole consignment on the basis of the tariff subheading of the goods which are subject to the highest rate of import or export duty.

Customs authorities shall refuse the use of the simplification referred to in paragraph 1 to goods subject to prohibitions or restrictions or excise duty where the correct classification is necessary to apply the measure.

The customs authorities may, upon application, authorise a person to lodge at a customs office responsible for the place where such person is established, a customs declaration for goods which are presented to customs at another customs office.

The requirement for the authorisation referred to in the first subparagraph may be waived where the customs declaration is lodged and the goods presented to customs offices under the responsibility of one customs authority.

The applicant for the authorisation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be an authorised economic operator for customs simplifications.

The customs office at which the customs declaration is lodged and the customs office at which the goods are presented shall exchange the information necessary for the verification of the customs declaration and for the release of the goods.

The customs office at which the goods are presented shall, without prejudice to its own controls pertaining to goods brought into or taken out of the customs territory of the Union, carry out the customs controls referred to in point (c) of paragraph 3 and provide the customs office at which the customs declaration is lodged with the results of these controls.

The customs authorities may, upon application, authorise a person to lodge a customs declaration, including a simplified declaration, in the form of an entry in the declarant's records, provided that the particulars of that declaration are at the disposal of the customs authorities in the declarant's electronic system at the time when the customs declaration in the form of an entry in the declarant's records is lodged.

The customs declaration shall be deemed to have been accepted at the moment at which the goods are entered in the records.

The conditions under which the release of the goods is allowed shall be set out in the authorisation.

Customs authorities may, upon application, authorise an economic operator to carry out certain customs formalities which are to be carried out by the customs authorities, to determine the amount of import and export duty payable, and to perform certain controls under customs supervision.

The applicant for the authorisation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be an authorised economic operator for customs simplifications.

Transport of the goods to the places where they are to be examined and where samples are to be taken, and all the handling necessitated by such examination or taking of samples, shall be carried out by or under the responsibility of the declarant. The costs incurred shall be borne by the declarant.

The declarant shall have the right to be present or represented when the goods are examined and when samples are taken. Where the customs authorities have reasonable grounds for so doing, they may require the declarant to be present or represented when the goods are examined or samples are taken or to provide them with the assistance necessary to facilitate such examination or taking of samples.

Provided that samples are taken in accordance with the provisions in force, the customs authorities shall not be liable for payment of any compensation in respect thereof but shall bear the costs of their analysis or examination.

Where only part of the goods covered by a customs declaration is examined, or samples are taken, the results of the partial examination, or of the analysis or examination of the samples, shall be taken to apply to all the goods covered by the same declaration.

However, the declarant may request a further examination or sampling of the goods if he or she considers that the results of the partial examination, or of the analysis or examination of the samples taken, are not valid as regards the remainder of the goods declared. The request shall be granted provided that the goods have not been released or, if they have been released, that the declarant proves that they have not been altered in any way.

For the purposes of paragraph 1, where a customs declaration covers goods falling under two or more items, the particulars relating to goods falling under each item shall be deemed to constitute a separate declaration.

The results of verifying the customs declaration shall be used for the application of the provisions governing the customs procedure under which the goods are placed.

Where the customs declaration is not verified, paragraph 1 shall apply on the basis of the particulars contained in that declaration.

The results of the verification made by the customs authorities shall have the same conclusive force throughout the customs territory of the Union.

The customs authorities or, where appropriate, economic operators authorised to do so by the customs authorities, shall take the measures necessary to identify the goods where identification is required in order to ensure compliance with the provisions governing the customs procedure for which those goods have been declared.

Those identification measures shall have the same legal effect throughout the customs territory of the Union.

Means of identification affixed to the goods, packaging or means of transport shall be removed or destroyed only by the customs authorities or, where they are authorised to do so by the customs authorities, by economic operators, unless, as a result of unforeseeable circumstances or force majeure, their removal or destruction is essential to ensure the protection of the goods or the means of transport.

Where the conditions for placing the goods under the procedure concerned are fulfilled and provided that any restriction has been applied and the goods are not subject to any prohibition, the customs authorities shall release the goods as soon as the particulars in the customs declaration have been verified or are accepted without verification.

The first subparagraph shall also apply where verification as referred to in Article 188 cannot be completed within a reasonable period of time and the goods are no longer required to be present for verification purposes.

All the goods covered by the same declaration shall be released at the same time.

For the purposes of the first subparagraph, where a customs declaration covers goods falling under two or more items the particulars relating to goods falling under each item shall be deemed to constitute a separate customs declaration.

Where the placing of goods under a customs procedure gives rise to a customs debt, the release of the goods shall be conditional upon the payment of the amount of import or export duty corresponding to the customs debt or the provision of a guarantee to cover that debt.

However, without prejudice to the third subparagraph, the first subparagraph shall not apply to temporary admission with partial relief from import duty.

Where, pursuant to the provisions governing the customs procedure for which the goods are declared, the customs authorities require the provision of a guarantee, those goods shall not be released for the customs procedure in question until such guarantee is provided.

In specific cases, the release of the goods shall not be conditional upon the provision of a guarantee in respect of goods which are the subject of a drawing request on a tariff quota.

Where a simplification as referred to in Articles 166, 182 and 185 is used and a comprehensive guarantee is provided, release of the goods shall not be conditional upon a monitoring of the guarantee by the customs authorities.