ETD-transit by air
From 1 June 2025, operators receiving ETD transits for goods arriving by air must report the arrival of the goods by providing the authorisation number of the airline that initiated the ETD transit procedure.
From 1 June 2025, ETD transits must be reported upon arrival
From 1 June 2025, if you submit TSTS declarations (temporary storage upon ETD termination), you must report that the ETD transit goods have arrived.
You do this in the temporary storage declaration by entering the authorisation number of the airline that initiated the ETD transit procedure.
What does ETD mean?
ETD stands for electronic transport document as a customs declaration. There are many different types of customs declarations, such as import declarations and export declarations. ETD is a transit declaration and is therefore usually referred to as ETD transit.
ETD transits are not registered in the NCTS system.
What is an electronic transport document?
An Air Way Bill (AWB) is an example of an electronic transport document. The airline sends it digitally from the departure airport to the operator who will receive the goods at the destination airport.
Is an authorisation required?
In order to use an AWB as a transit declaration, the airline initiating the transit procedure must apply for authorisation and obtain an authorisation number.
Swedish companies should apply for authorisation from Swedish Customs.
Authorisation for an electronic transport document as a customs declaration, air-traffic operators
How does an AWB become a transit document?
An AWB indicates that the goods are under the transit procedure by containing information about transit codes, for example
- T1 (non-Union goods).
- T2/T2F (Union goods).
There may also be other codes in an AWB, such as C, which indicates that the goods are not under the transit procedure and that they are Union goods. A single AWB may contain both goods that are under the transit procedure and goods that are not. This is indicated by different codes.
When does an ETD transit start?
When goods arrive from a country outside the EU to a hub in Europe (an airport), they are first reported to the customs authority there. The goods are then under customs supervision, and when they are transported further by air transport to Sweden, the responsible airline initiates an ETD transit procedure.
How do i report that an ETD transit movement has arrived?
From 1 June 2025, if you submit TSTS declarations (temporary storage upon ETD termination), you must report that the ETD transit goods have arrived. It is possible to file this notification today, so you do not need to wait until 1 June.
You make the notification in the declaration for temporary storage (TSD) by entering the airline's authorisation number together with the code C525 in data element 12 03 000 000 Supporting documents. By entering this information, you have declared the goods arriving in the transit movement. This means that you submit both a TSD and a notification of the ETD transit in the same digital message to Swedish Customs.
If you receive ETD transits from different airlines, it is important that you know their respective authorisation numbers.
Declaration guide for Temporary Storage Declaration (TSD) Only in Swedish
What does an authorisation number look like?
Authorisation numbers for airlines vary slightly, but generally have the following structure:
- Country code
- Authorsation code ETD
- A combination of letters and digits of varying lengths.
Examples of authorsation numbers:
- DEETD1234AB123456 (A German airline: the number begins with the codes DE and ETD, followed by a combination of letters and digits.)
- FIETDA12345 (A Finnish airline: the number begins with the codes FI and ETD, followed by a combination of letters and digits.)
- NLETDAB123456-2018-ABC12345 (A Dutch airline: the number begins with the codes NL and ETD, followed by a combination of letters and digits.)
Questions?
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us by telephone or via our contact form.