Every day, thousands of shipping containers and cargo trucks cross EU borders, and customs officers must decide in seconds whether to wave them through or pull them aside for a physical search. The problem is that current X-ray scanners, the first line of defence, produce too many false alarms and missed threats. This forces officers to waste time on unnecessary physical inspections or, worse, let dangerous materials slip through. The technology has not kept pace with the volume of trade or the sophistication of smugglers, who hide drugs, weapons, radioactive materials, and illicit waste inside legitimate cargo. Training for operators is inconsistent, and data on threat materials is not shared systematically across borders. BORDERLINK aims to fix this by upgrading detection equipment—improving X-ray scanners and field analysis tools like Raman spectroscopy—and by creating standardised training and a shared database of threat images. If successful, customs officers across the EU will make faster, more accurate decisions at border crossings. This means fewer delays for legitimate trade, less smuggling of dangerous goods, and stronger environmental protections under the Green Customs Initiative. The project directly supports the EU’s planned reform of the Customs Union, making border controls both more effective and more efficient.
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EU customs administrations implement common rules at the EU Customs Union borders. They protect society while facilitating legitimate trade. Alongside the collection of duties and taxes, customs core activities now include security related roles including fighting illegal trade in drugs, weapons, radioactive and nuclear materials, security sensitive dual-use items, illicit waste and other environmental threats. To deal with high volumes of goods moving across the Union`s borders, and the need to restrict physical interventions to a minimum, customs operate a risk-based, multi-level detection architecture at Border Crossing Points. This must take into account the nature of the operational environment, the threat materials to be detected, and the types of concealments used by smugglers. For more than two decades, customs have used X-ray scanning as a first level control. However, current applications of thistechnology continue to result in a relatively high level of false positives/negatives and inconclusive results, giving rise to secondary controls, including physical inspections. This can be attributed in part to a failure to develop operator skills through accredited training and sharing of images of threat materials and concealmentsin a structured manner. Moreover,second level technology controlssuch as Raman spectroscopy are frequently applied with a narrow focus. The EU Customs Control Equipment Instrument aims to harmonize customs controls at the EU borders and to upgrade customs equipment including X-ray scanners and field analysis devices. BORDERLINK aims to make a significant contribution to CCEI aims as well as the planned reform of the Customs Union. BORDERLINK will enhance customs` capabilities and performance at EU borders by advancing the detection and identification of threat materials, improving training, communication and data sharing. It will help to strengthen supply chain controls and promote the Green Customs Initiative.
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