According to the World Customs Organization (WCO), an authorized economic operator (AEO) is "a party involved in the international movement of goods in whatever function that has been approved by or on behalf of a national Customs administration as complying with WCO or equivalent supply chain security standards.
Authorized Economic Operators include inter alia manufacturers, importers, exporters, brokers, carriers, consolidators, intermediaries, ports, airports, terminal operators, integrated operators, warehouses and distributors"The growth of global trade and increasing security threats to the international movement of goods have forced customs administrations to shift their focus more and more to securing the international trade flow and away from the traditional task of collecting customs duties.
Customs benefits as scarce inspection capacity can be targeted better at the cargo of unknown and potentially unsafe operators.
Most members of WCO have acceded to the SAFE framework, and it is expected that in the next few years, the majority of customs administrations will introduce AEO-programmes.
According to the 2014 edition of the Compendium of Authorized Economic Operator Programmes,[1] published by the World Customs Organization, the following countries had either fully operational or pilot AEO programmes at that time: At the end of 2014, Brazil has also launched its AEO Programme by the name of “Operador Econômico Autorizado” (OEA)[2] which will be implemented in three phases: OEA-Segurança - export type with focus on security, launched in December 2014 (certification based on compliance with a range of safety requirements), OEA-Conformidade - import type expected to be launched by December 2015 (certification will be based on compliance with customs regulations and procedures through the expansion and revision of the Blue Line Programme) and OEA-Integrado in which other public entities such as the Brazilian Health Agency (ANVISA) and the International Agricultural Surveillance System (VIGIAGRO) will be integrated into the AEO programme with the goal of further streamlining and integrating international trade controls - expected to be launched by December 2016.