About AEO & MRA

About AEO

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The Indian AEO Programme, which started in 2011, has come a long way in the last few years. It was designed to set standards to secure and to facilitate the ever-growing flow of goods in international trade. Today, the programme has a membership of nearly 5,000 AEO entities. That is 5,000 economic entities which have actively collaborated with Indian Customs to ensure safety and security in the Supply Chain. And in return, they are reaping benefits of an ever-widening set of benefits from Indian Customs such as faster processing and clearance of cargo, deferred payment of duty, direct port delivery/entry.

AEO is a programme under the aegis of the World Customs Organization (WCO) SAFE Framework of Standards to secure and facilitate Global Trade. The programme aims to enhance international supply chain security and facilitate movement of legitimate goods.AEO encompasses various players in the International supply chain. Under this programme

Benefits associated with AEO

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Tier T1
  1. High facilitation
  2. DPD/DPE
  3. BG 50%
  4. Expedited investigation-dispute resolution
  5. On request 24 x 7 at all sea-ports and airports
  6. OSPCA once a year
  7. ID cards/Space in warehouse
  8. Email on arrival/departure
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Tier T2
  1. All facilities of Tier 1 Plus
  2. Higher facilitation
  3. Deferred duty payment
  4. MRA benefits in other countries
  5. Waiver of seal verification
  6. Priority in scanning/assessment
  7. 25% BG
  8. On-site inspection/stickers
  9. Refund/rebate in 45 days
  10. Faster drawback
  11. Client Relation Manager
  12. OSPCA in 2 years
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Tier T3
  1. All facilities of Tier II PLUS
  2. Highest facilitation
  3. Scanning only on intelligence
  4. Reliance on self certified copies
  5. No Bank Gaurantee
  6. Risk based intervention by other departments
  7. Refund/rebate in 30 days
  8. OSPCA in 3 years
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AEO-LO
  1. Logistic Service Providers
  2. Custodians or Terminal Operators
  3. Customs Brokers
  4. WarehouseOperators
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AEO-Eligibility Criteria for an entity

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  • 1. Handled 25 documents (s/B & Bills of Entry) in last Financial Year.
  • 2. Should Undertake Customs Related Work.
  • 3. Be a part of international supply chain.
  • 4. AEO can only be given to legal entity and not group company.
  • 5. Have had business activity for three Financial Years (can be waived in deserving cases).

Benefits of MRA

  • 1. Lower Risk Score
    • Both Customs and AEO companies are considered trusted members of the trade community whose security standards have been validated by either of the partner Customs Administrations. Therefore, AEO exporters/importers are given a reduction in their risk score by partner Customs Administrations, which will translate into fewer examinations at the port of importation.
  • 2. Risk Assessment Tool
    • The status of the MRA partner’s AEO programme’s participant is recognized by each other and is used as a risk-assessment factor.
  • 3. Less Redundancy / Duplication of Efforts
    • Traders do not have to go through two or more separate validation visits. The initial validation conducted by the local Customs Administration as being certified under respective AEO programme would be recognized by other MRA partner countries.
  • 4. Common Standard / Trade Facilitation
    • Since Mutual Recognition is based on having equally stringent minimum security criteria, one country’s AEO essentially complies with the security criteria of those countries with which it has achieved an MRA with. Common standards among programmes will also aid companies in conducting and documenting their security self-assessments.
  • 5. Transparency
    • Closer collaboration among and between Customs Administrations and their AEO programmes participants will lead to more transparency in international commerce. Information exchanged between these partners expedites and facilitates the movement of commerce across nations.
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Last Updated On : 20.03.2025