Requesting an EORI number and amending an operator’s particulars
Request procedure
The EORI number is assigned upon request and free of charge by the General Directorate of Customs’ Master Data Management office in Dresden (GZD - DO Dresden - Stammdatenmanagement).
The online operator request (Internetbeteiligtenantrag - IBA) that was provided so far is not available after 16 September 2019.
Customs Portal (Portal for citizens and business customers)
Beginning on 1 October 2019 you can request an EORI or change the recorded data via the Customs Portal without change in format. From that day on you can create the necessary user account for the Customs Portal.
Customs Portal (LOGIN)
For a secure electronic identification you only need an ELSTER-certificate issued for your company or for you as private individual (www.elster.de). Please make sure that the company’s or person’s data contained in the certificate are up-to-date. Those data contained in the ELSTER-certificate are also part of your EORI general master data. A change of those data is possible only by updating your ELSTER-certificate.
You gain access to the EORI - administration utilizing your user account where you can apply for a new EORI or you can change the EORI relevant participant’s data of an existing EORI at any time. After verification of your data by customs you receive an automatic confirmation message in your in-box integrated in the Customs Portal as well as a message to the e-mail address connected to your account – this saves time and effort. Furthermore you can always check the status of your application using the process summary of the Customs Portal.
Form 0870
Alternatively you can use form 0870a_en (EORI number). For private individuals and for legally dependent branch offices please use the special forms 0870c_en (private_individuals) and 0870b_en (Branch number) respectively.
The application via any of the forms 0870 requires a legally binding signature and needs to be sent together with the necessary documents by e-mail (as PDF-file), by letter or by fax to the GZD - DO Dresden - Stammdatenmanagement.
Applications submitted by e-mail and any necessary documents must be sent as an attachment. Applications (images) sent directly in the text of the e-mail or applications sent via a link cannot be processed.
When opening the different versions of form 0870 you will find the respective completion instruction. Please consider the information therein regarding the documents that need to be attached to the application form.
All mandatory fields must be filled. Should certain particulars not be known yet (for example, the value added tax identification number), it must be noted on the request form. The missing particulars must be re-submitted as promptly as possible using the relevant form 0870, indicating the EORI number already assigned. The EORI number shall be requested in good time prior to the initiation of any activities covered by the customs legislation.
Note for economic operators who are not based in a member state of the EU
There is no general and fundamental obligation to apply for an EORI number for economic operators who are not based in the customs territory of the Union. An EORI number is only required if, for example, you want to appear as a declarant in customs declarations or as a carrier (Article 3 Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446)
Registration is only required in one member state of the European Union. The application for an EORI number must be sent to the competent body in the Member State in which a customs declaration is to be submitted for the first time or a decision is to be applied for (Article 9 Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (UCC) in conjunction with Artikle 5(6) Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.
In order to check this requirement, an informal justification for the requirement and the responsibility of the German customs administration must be attached to the application. Applications that do not contain a reason will be rejected.
In accordance with Article 3 and Annex 12-01 Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 (DA), the EORI master data (which correspond with the ATLAS master data) are transmitted to the EU where they are available for queries by the authorities of other European Member States. In addition, there is the possibility to conduct an online research in order to corroborate the validity of EORI numbers. Where third-party access to the data has been authorised, an economic operator’s name and address can also be retrieved.
German data protection legislation provides that German economic operators must have expressed their consent in writing before their details can be transmitted to the EU and researched online.
Any unincorporated units of a company (that is, establishments not having the capacity to perform legal acts) are to be registered under the EORI number assigned to their headquarters having separate legal personality. In this case, too, a formal application must be lodged using the EORI - administration included in the Portal for citizens and business customers or form 0870b_en (Branch number). For further information about EORI and establishment numbers please consult the Questions and Answers section.
Questions and Answers
In the course of the successive implementation of the "main establishment approach", any unincorporated business units which had been assigned their "own" EORI number before ATLAS Release 8.4.5 went live, will be re-attached to the dataset of their headquarters having separate legal personality. Until the date of transition, they shall continue to use their "own" assigned EORI number. There is no need for them to specifically request an establishment number.
Guide to the transition of unincorporated business units registration for economic operators (in German)PDF | 467 KB
Representation arrangement
Where the request is lodged by a representative on behalf of the economic operator, it can currently only be done by using one of the form 0870 and it must be accompanied by a letter of authorisation signed by the party represented. Such letter of authorisation shall be clearly manifest on the request form. The representative’s complete contact details shall be enclosed with the request.
The representative will subsequently be notified by GZD - DO Dresden - Stammdatenmanagement of the assignment of an EORI number.
Amendment procedure
In the Portal for citizens and business customers you can easily change certain EORI relevant participant’s data or terminate an EORI or a branch number using the EORI - administration.
Furthermore you still have the option to inform the GZD - DO Dresden - Stammdatenmanagement office if you wish to make amendments to your master data using the relevant form 0870. The relevant request for amendment shall be accompanied by either an excerpt from the commercial register or your business registration.
The termination of an EORI or branch office number can also be notified using the appropriate form 0870.
If you have questions regarding the EORI number, you can contact the Customs Information Centre.
Phone: +49 228 303-26040
E-mail: info.eori@zoll.de
Please do not use this email address for lodging applications.
