The World Customs Organization (WCO; , OMD) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. Notable projects include its collaboration with the WTO on trade facilitation and the implementation of the SAFE Framework of Standards to secure global supply chains. The WCO works on customs-related matters including the development of international conventions, instruments, and tools on topics such as commodity classification, valuation, rules of origin, collection of customs revenue, supply chain security, international trade facilitation, customs enforcement activities, combating counterfeiting in support of intellectual property rights (IPR), illegal drug enforcement, combating counterfeiting of medicinal drugs, illegal weapons trading, integrity promotion, and delivering sustainable capacity building to assist with customs reforms and modernization. The WCO maintains the international Harmonized System (HS) goods nomenclature, and administers the technical aspects of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements on Customs Valuation and Rules of Origin. The WCO oversees the implementation of new technologies, artificial intelligence, to improve the efficiency of customs operations. Furthermore, the WCO is involved in addressing emerging issues, such as the digitalization of customs systems.

History On 23 August 1947 the Committee for European Economic Cooperation created a European Customs Union Study Group (ECUSG) to examine economic and technical issues of inter-European Customs Union concerning the rules of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). In total, six ECUSG meetings were held in four years from November 1947 to June 1950. This work of ECUSG led to the adoption in 1950 of the Convention establishing the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC), which was signed in Brussels. On 26 January 1953 the CCC's inaugural session took place with the participation of 17 founding members. CCC membership subsequently expanded to cover all regions of the globe. In 1994, the organization adopted its current name, the World Customs Organization. Today, WCO members are responsible for customs controls in 187 countries representing more than 98 percent of all international trade.

One of the major turning points in the WCO’s history was its expansion beyond Europe, which allowed it to become a truly global organization. This expansion was fueled by the recognition of the need for standardized customs procedures across different regions of the world, particularly in the post-colonial period when many new nations were emerging. The WCO played a crucial role in helping these nations establish efficient customs administrations. In the 21st century, the WCO has emphasized digitalization and the harmonization of customs systems to address the challenges of global e-commerce and cross-border trade.

The development and implementation of the Harmonized System(HS) were direct institutional responses to the severe non-tariff barriers created by fragmented national customs nomenclatures during the late 20th century’s expansion of global trade. Prior to 1988, the lack of a universal classification language resulted in inconsistent product categorization across borders, generating significant uncertainty, administrative delays, and high transaction costs for internationally-trading firms.

Vision and objectives The WCO is internationally acknowledged as the global center of customs expertise and plays a leading role in the discussion, development, promotion and implementation of modern customs systems and procedures. The WCO has supported the modernization of customs procedures in over 180 countries through initiatives like the Revised Kyoto Convention and the Harmonized System. It is responsive to the needs of its members and its strategic environment, and its instruments and best-practice approaches are recognized as the basis for sound customs administration throughout the world.

The WCO's primary objective is to enhance the efficiency effectiveness other members customs administrations, thereby assisting them to contribute successfully to national development goals, particularly revenue collection, national security, trade facilitation, community protection, and collection of trade statistics.

Instruments In order to achieve its objectives, the WCO has adopted a number of customs instruments, including but not limited to the following:

Online tools The World Customs Organization (WCO) released a new online platform, WCO Trade Tools, that encompasses the Harmonized System, preferential Rules of Origin and Valuation. It includes the 2002, 2007, 2012, 2017 and 2022 editions of the HS, around 400 Free Trade Agreements with their preferential Rules of Origin/ and Product Specific rules, and the set list of Valuation texts, including those of the Technical Committee on Customs Valuation.

Administration The WCO Secretariat is headed by a Secretary General, who is elected by the WCO membership to a five-year term. Ian Saunders from the United States was elected WCO Secretary General in June 2023 and took office on 1 January 2024. The WCO is governed by the council, which brings together all members of the organization once a year, in a meeting chaired by an elected chairperson. Additional strategic and management guidance is provided by the Policy and Finance committees. There are several other WCO committees, including the Harmonized System Committee, the Permanent Technical Committee, the Technical Committee on Customs Valuation, Technical Committee on Rules of Origin, the Capacity Building Committee, and the SAFE Working Group.

Under the leadership of recent Secretaries General, the WCO has increasingly embraced digital transformation in customs practices, focusing on the adoption of technology to streamline border processes. These initiatives, such as the implementation of artificial intelligence in customs operations, have placed the WCO at the forefront of modern customs administration, ensuring that its members are well-equipped to face the challenges of an increasingly interconnected global economy.

Members

Region Member Date Of Membership South America, North America, Central America and the Caribbean Antigua and Barbuda 10/04/2017 Argentina 01/07/1968 Bahamas 16/08/1974 Barbados 07/01/1999 Belize 22/04/2008 Bermuda 01/07/1990 Bolivia 14/08/1997 Brazil 19/01/1981 Canada 12/10/1971 Chile 01/07/1966 Colombia 11/07/1993 Costa Rica 29/08/2001 Cuba 01/07/1988 Curaçao 11/07/1988 Dominican Republic 28/07/2004 Ecuador 16/12/1997 El Salvador 07/07/2005 Guatemala 22/02/1985 Guyana 29/07/1976 Haiti 31/01/1958 Honduras 08/12/2005 Jamaica 29/03/1963 Mexico 08/02/1988 Nicaragua 24/09/1998 Panama 08/03/1996 Paraguay 03/10/1969 Peru 27/01/1970 Saint Lucia 12/05/2005Saint Vincent and the Grenadines17/09/2025 Suriname 26/11/2018 Trinidad and Tobago 15/10/1973 United States 05/11/1970 Uruguay 16/09/1977 Venezuela 01/07/1996 Europe Albania 31/08/1992 Andorra 03/09/1998 Armenia 30/06/1992 Austria 21/01/1953 Azerbaijan 17/06/1992 Belarus 16/12/1993 Belgium 11/12/1952 Bosnia and Herzegovina 04/07/2008 Bulgaria 01/08/1973 Croatia 01/07/1993 Cyprus 31/08/1967 Czech Republic 01/01/1993 Denmark 19/10/1951 Estonia 18/06/1992 European Union* Finland 27/01/1961 France 06/10/1952 Georgia 26/10/1993 Germany 04/11/1952 Greece 10/12/1951 Hungary 16/09/1968 Iceland 15/02/1971 Ireland 23/09/1952 Israel 23/05/1958 Italy 20/11/1952 Kazakhstan 30/06/1992 Kyrgyzstan 10/02/2000 Kosovo 25/01/2017 Latvia 22/06/1992 Lithuania 18/06/1992 Luxembourg 23/01/1953 Malta 06/07/1968 Moldova 28/10/1994 Montenegro 24/10/2006 Netherlands 23/01/1953 Norway 06/08/1951 North Macedonia 01/07/1994 Poland 17/07/1974 Portugal 26/01/1953 Romania 15/01/1969 Russian Federation 08/07/1991 Serbia 27/03/2001 Slovakia 01/01/1993 Slovenia 07/09/1992 Spain 13/07/1952 Sweden 17/10/1952 Switzerland 19/12/1952 Tajikistan 01/07/1997 Türkiye (Republic of) 06/06/1951 Turkmenistan 17/05/1993 Ukraine 26/06/1992 United Kingdom 12/09/1952 Uzbekistan 28/07/1992 East and Southern Africa Angola 26/09/1990 Botswana 25/08/1978 Burundi 20/10/1964 Comoros 01/07/1993 Djibouti 19/03/2008 Eritrea 08/08/1995 Eswatini 15/05/1981 Ethiopia 06/08/1973 Kenya 24/05/1965 Lesotho 02/08/1978 Madagascar 18/02/1964 Malawi 06/06/1966 Mauritius 29/03/1973 Mozambique 01/07/1987 Namibia 01/07/1992 Rwanda 03/03/1964 Seychelles 25/07/2000 Somalia 04/10/2012 South Africa 24/03/1964 South Sudan 18/07/2012 Tanzania 07/11/1964 Uganda 03/11/1964 Zambia 27/09/1978 Zimbabwe 19/03/1981 North of Africa, Near and Middle East Algeria 19/12/1966 Bahrain 18/04/2001 Egypt 26/10/1956 Iraq 06/06/1990 Jordan 01/01/1964 Kuwait 04/10/1993 Lebanon 20/05/1960 Libya 11/01/1983 Morocco 01/07/1968 Oman 11/09/2000 Palestine 24/03/2015 Qatar 04/05/1992 Saudi Arabia 08/05/1973 Sudan 08/06/1960 Syrian Arab Republic 19/11/1959 Tunisia 20/07/1966 United Arab Emirates 07/02/1979 Yemen 01/07/1993 West and Central Africa Benin 09/11/1998 Burkina Faso 16/09/1966 Cameroon 09/04/1965 Cape Verde 01/07/1992 Central African Republic 28/07/1986 Chad 16/02/2005 Congo (Republic of the) 02/09/1975 Côte d'Ivoire 02/09/1963 Democratic Republic of the Congo 26/07/1972 Equatorial Guinea 22/12/2021 Gabon 18/02/1965 Gambia 14/10/1987 Ghana 01/08/1968 Guinea 30/10/1991 Guinea-Bissau 19/08/2010 Liberia 07/01/1975 Mali 07/08/1987 Mauritania 02/10/1979 Niger 01/07/1981 Nigeria 21/08/1963 Sao Tome and Principe 23/09/2009 Senegal 10/03/1976 Sierra Leone 06/11/1975 Togo 12/02/1990 Far East, South and South East Asia, Australasia and the Pacific Islands Afghanistan (Islamic Republic of) 10/08/2004 Australia 05/01/1961 Bangladesh 01/07/1978 Bhutan 12/02/2002 Brunei Darussalam 01/07/1996 Cambodia 03/04/2001 China 18/07/1983 Fiji 01/07/1997 Hong Kong, China 01/07/1987 India 15/02/1971 Indonesia 30/04/1957 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 16/10/1959 Japan 15/06/1964 Korea (Republic of) 02/07/1968 Lao People’s Democratic Republic 16/01/2007 Macao, China 07/07/1993 Malaysia 30/06/1964 Maldives 08/09/1995 Mongolia 17/09/1991 Myanmar (The Republic of the Union of) 25/03/1991 Nepal 22/07/1986 New Zealand 16/05/1963 Pakistan 16/11/1955 Palau 02/02/2024 Papua New Guinea 18/03/2002 Philippines 01/10/1980 Solomon Islands 26/01/2023 Samoa 01/10/2001 Singapore 09/07/1975 Sri Lanka 29/05/1967 Thailand 04/02/1972 Timor-Leste 19/09/2003 Tonga 01/07/2005 Vanuatu 17/11/2009 Vietnam 01/07/1993

Status akin to WCO membership

References

External links

B. Kormych The European Customs Union Study Group: Drafting the EU Customs Legislation WCO Trade Tools