Skip to Content

Customs authorisation · Related statuses and registrations

EORI number: the identifier without which nothing moves

It is the prerequisite for every customs formality in the Union, and for almost every authorisation in this catalogue. It is free, it takes a few days, and it is still the first thing missing when goods sit on the quay.

Where to applyFPS Finance, General Administration of Customs and Excise. Form DEMANDE/BE/EORI/A3 for a Belgian company or individual.
Legal basisArt. 9 UCC for registration · Art. 5(5) UCC for the definition of economic operator · Art. 12 UCC for consent to publication
Format of the number in BelgiumBE followed by the CBE company number, that is the VAT number preceded by a zero
CostFree of charge
Time frameNo statutory deadline. In practice a few working days.
Who needs oneAnyone carrying out customs formalities on import or export, including occasional ones

What it is for, and why it is so often the missing piece

The EORI identifies the operator across every customs system in the Union. It appears on the declaration, on authorisation applications, on decisions. Without it, you do not exist as far as customs is concerned.

The consequence is heavier than it looks: if your EORI is not on the declaration, then someone else is the importer or exporter of record. The obligations and the risks follow that name, not yours.

Check first: you may already have one

In Belgium, the EORI number is identical to the CBE company number, that is your VAT number preceded by a zero and by the BE prefix. But the number existing is not enough: it must have been activated in the European database to be enforceable.

The useful reflex before taking any step: query the European Commission's EORI database with BE followed by your company number. If the number answers, there is nothing to apply for. If it does not, form A3 is all it takes.

What you need to provide

  • Form DEMANDE/BE/EORI/A3, for a company or an individual established in Belgium.
  • The CBE company number, the exact legal name and the registered address.
  • The applicant's signature, handwritten or by electronic identity card.
  • An explicit position on consent to publication of the name and address on the Commission's EORI page, under Article 12 UCC. It is a choice, not a box to tick at random.
  • The undertaking to notify any change to the registered data.

Where it goes wrong

  • Assuming the company number is enough. It exists, but until it is activated in the EORI database the declaration is rejected.
  • An EORI in the name of a different group entity than the one on the invoice and on the transport contract.
  • Using your freight forwarder's EORI. It uses its own for its own operations. If it appears in your place, it carries the obligations, and you lose the status of importer or exporter.
  • A UK EORI. Since the end of the transition period it is no longer valid for customs formalities in the Union.
  • Out-of-date data. Legal name or address changed without notification: the duty to update rests on the holder.
  • Finding out too late. The EORI costs nothing and takes a few days; what costs is realising it is missing when the goods are already on the quay.

You are not established in the Union

A third-country operator can obtain an EORI, but from the Member State where it lodges its first declaration or its first application for a decision. The form and the competent service are not the same as for a Belgian company.

Something to anticipate: holding an EORI does not remove the need to be established in the Union where the regulation requires it. Depending on what you want to do — export, place goods under a procedure, hold an authorisation — a representative or an entity established in the Union is often still necessary. That is a question to settle before the first flow, not after.

What we do, and what we do not do

Included: checking whether your number exists and is valid in the European database, identifying the entity that should hold it in the light of your actual flows and contracts, preparing the form, deciding on consent to publication, and checking consistency with your other authorisations.

Not included: filing the form on the client's behalf unless expressly mandated, the allocation of the number, which belongs to the administration, and the lodging of customs declarations.

CTB Group steers customs compliance and governance; the lodging of declarations remains with the representatives appointed by the company.

Frequently asked questions

Can my freight forwarder use its EORI for my shipments?

It uses its own for its own operations. For you to be the importer or exporter of record, it is your number that must appear on the declaration. If you do not have one, another name takes that place, and the obligations follow that name.

I am established outside the Union. Can I obtain one?

Yes, from the Member State where you lodge your first declaration or your first application. But the EORI does not replace establishment in the Union where the regulation requires it.

How long does it take, and what does it cost?

It is free, and there is no statutory deadline: allow a few working days. It is never the EORI that costs you time, it is discovering that it is missing.

Is your number active, and in the right name?

Thirty minutes, with no commitment, to check your registration and which entity should hold it in the light of your contracts.

Free first call (30 min)

Sheet updated on 14 September 2026, sources checked with the Belgian FPS Finance. This sheet is a working reference, not legal advice. See also: the authorisations catalogue, authorised CBAM declarant status, our customs diagnostic.