AEO (Authorised Economic Operator) Introduction 

The AEO (Authorised Economic Operator) is the Status certification that provides international recognition to a business entity involved in the International supply chain; it certifies an entity as a secure and reliable trade partner. There are the four AEO Tier introduced under the AEO Programme team. AEO T1, T2, T3 for the importer and exporter, and AEO LO for logistic providers. There are two modes for AEO application depending on the tier for which the applicant wishes to apply, first is Online Application on AEO Portal & the second is the manual Application for AEO T2, AEO LO, AEO T3 – in the customs office. In this article, we will have an in-detail discussion about the required documents such as the AEO application form for grant of AEO status & other supporting documents.

Documents Required for AEO Application - Application form and other supporting documents

It consists of A common set of documents and a list of Additional documents which would be the same for each tier. Application forms would be different for AEO T1 from the other remaining three tiers. Common Document Set and additional documents are used to fill out the application forms and need to be attached in the application submission. Find below all three sets of documents.

• Common Document Set
• AEO Application form/AEO registration form
• Additional Documents

Analyze the below image to get a complete understanding of the AEO documents requirement.

A) Common Document Set

Below are the Common documents set required to support the information filled in the AEO Application form and also need to be attached while application submission:-

• IEC Certificate
• GST Certificate
• MSME Certificate
• Certificate of Incorporation
• Pan Card Copy
• Audit Report for Last three years
• Declaration on Letterhead
• List of Import items with HSN code and country of import
• List of Export items with HSN code and country of export

B) AEO Application form/AEO Registration form 

For AEO T1 - Annexure 1 and Annexure 2

For AEO T2, AEO LO, AEO T3 - Annexures from A to E5 is required for AEO T2, AEO T3, and AEO LO. There is 1 more application form annexure F is required only when the applicant is applying for AEO T3.

AEO T1 For MSME - MSME Annexure 1 and MSME Annexure 2 with the reduced documentation.

AEO T2 For MSME - MSME Annexure 1, MSME Annexure 2, and MSME Annexure 3 with the reduced documentation.

C) Additional Documents - 

• Import- Export Process Map
• Site Plan of registered address and branch address
• Solvency Certificate for AEO application with undertaking & Declaration

We saw the documents required for each tier in general,

Now we will understand the document list for each tier in detail and also understand the information required to be filled in the application, and how the Government has simplified and reduced the documents for the MSMEs as per the latest update.

Documents required for AEO T1

• Common Document Set
• Application Form :- Annexure 1 and Annexure 2
• Additional Documents:- Import-Export Process Map + Site Plan +Solvency Certificate for AEO application with undertaking & Declaration

Documents required for AEO T2, AEO LO, and AEO T3

The Common Document Set (Given above) is required with the following documents in the case of AEO T2, AEO LO, and AEO T3

Now, it is important to understand what is information required to be filled in application forms, and what all other company documents required to attach to verify the details filled in the form. We will understand each of the annexures given above in detail with the supporting documents.

Reduced Documentation for MSMEs

In line with the Government’s Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Yojana to support all MSMEs against the challenges of Coronavirus Pandemic the Custom has simplified the eligibility criteria and reduced the required documents and processing time for MSMEs to get the AEO T1 & AEO T2 Certificate as per the latest Notification.

Find the tabular differentiation between the required documents for the company having the MSME certificate with the company which does not have the MSME certificate.

How Afleo can help you to get AEO certification?

The First Step for an AEO process is the preparation of a document list, standard operating procedures (SOP) for safety and security plans, and an Import-Export process map for goods movement in international trade. Afleo consultants can help in documenting the process and forming the SOPs as a first step to get the Certification.

Following hand holding ways are implemented at Afleo to obtain the AEO Certificate right from the planning and readiness assessment step till getting the final certificate in hand

• Assistance in Document Preparation, SOPs preparation,
• Application preparation, online/Manual Application,
• Providing the clarification for the queries raised by AEO Authorities,
• Assistance in Physical verification,
• Follow up with the AEO Programme team to get the status,
• Assistance in AEO Monitoring.

We at Afleo Consultants are India’s leading Export Import Consultants, having rich experience of 10+ Years in the domain. We specialize in GST Refund from GST Department, all the DGFT related matters, Export promotion schemes such as RoDTEP, MEIS, SEIS, Advance License, EPCG, AEO certification, Star Export House certification, Duty Drawback, etc.

[Not sure whether your company is taking all the Export incentives notified by the Govt? – Refer to our article on "18 latest Export promotion schemes/Export Incentives in India"]

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