The European Commission is on the lookout for a city to host the new EU Customs Authority (EUCA).

9 countries have applied and are waiting for a final decision.

This search is part of a major reform on the EU Customs Framework, proposed in May 2023,
to respond to the rise of e-commerce and geopolitical realities. The reform includes creating
a new EU customs authority, a centralised EU customs data hub (operated by the same new
customs authority), an overall simplification and standardization of the customs procedures,
as well as the elimination of the 150€ duty threshold.

Selection criteria followed the expected norms: readiness of the premises (buildings),
accessibility of location, access to labour market and social infrastructure of the hosting city
(education and healthcare).

The assessments were submitted by the Commission to the European Parliament and to the
Council on 20 January 2026.

Here is how the applications fold out for each country:

Liège – Belgium
Centrally located in Europe, with a cargo airport and internal port. The city of Liège offers a
multicultural environment and, at an academic level, training on customs and trade law are
taught at University of Liège.

Málaga – Spain
The spanish application focused on its existent technological hub (with over 700 firms), and
its internationalised labour market. Like its Belgium competitor, Málaga also offers
universities with specialised programmes on customs.

Lille – France
France bet on the geographical location of Lille, with its central location between the United
Kingdom and Brussels. It also presented the availability of the proposed premises (early
2026) and the developed infrastructure of the city which offers hotels, universities and an
affordable and sustainable living environment.

Zagreb – Croatia
The location in the Balkan route, at the heart of a risk area for the EU, was one of the key
arguments presented by Croatian authorities. The specialized staff present in Zagreb and its
surrounding areas, as well as the quality of life and safety of the city were also presented.
The city proposes premises that are fully operational and ready to receive the new
organization.

Rome – Italy
An existing building (built in the late 1950s) is available to hold the new premises, with only
minor adjustments needed expected. EUCA staff will be able to receive training from existing
Italian agencies (customs, universities, and financial police). Currently Italy holds 2 EU
agencies, and this application hopes to balance the geographical distribution of EU
institutions and their presence in the Mediterranean.

The Hague – The Netherlands
The Dutch offered existing premises which would need adaptation works for 66 weeks, with
the earliest availability date of the main premises being available in mid 2032 (temporary
offices would be arranged in the city). The application mentioned the reliable and social
infrastructure of the city, which already holds other International Institutions.

Warsaw – Poland
Warsaw has a modern infrastructure to host the new EUCA, with a special attention to safety
with secure office spaces and advanced cybersecurity. The city follows the example of other
candidates by offering access to public transport, green spaces and academic settings. The
geographical balance of Warsaw would follow a principle of reflecting the EU diversity and
community aspect, according to the Polish proposal.

Porto – Portugal
Like Poland, Portugal defends the need for geographical balance for ensuring fair
representation across regions (Portugal currently hosts 2 EU agencies). The history of Porto
with international trade and its location as the EU’s westernmost country are presented as
advantage points for the EUCA. Porto is ready to host premises as early as mid 2027 and
the city already possesses good public infrastructure, emphasizing an international airport.

Bucharest – Romania
Romania went with long-term stability and support to the new agency, with legal guarantees
and administrative backing. Besides the immediately available premises, Bucharest also
provides higher education infrastructure, a multilingual workforce and direct air connections
to European capitals. The selection of Bucharest would also ensure broader representation
of newer Member States, in the view of the application

Economic Weight of EU Customs
According to official figures, the EU customs union manages trade worth over €4.3 trillion,
corresponding to 14% of global trade.The collection of customs duties are of crucial
importance for Europe, representing almost 14% of the total EU budget (contribution of
€21.2 billion in 2023).

So far, there is no clarification on when the final selection will be made, but the decision will
be made by MEP and the European Council.