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ARTICLE · 06 NOVEMBER 2026

EU Tax Alert 217

Loyens & Loeff
Loyens & Loeff
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Loyens & Loeff

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The European Union's customs landscape is undergoing a major transformation with new regulations entering into force, while tax authorities grapple with data protection concerns in cross-border information exchange.

European UnionTax
Arno Van den Bosch
Arno Van den Bosch
Bert Gevers
Bert Gevers
Kwinten Dewaele
Kwinten Dewaele
Viktor Van Marcke
Viktor Van Marcke
Olivier Mirck
Olivier Mirck
Bram Middelburg
Bram Middelburg
Daan Both
Daan Both
Oumaima Tarifit
Oumaima Tarifit

In this publication, we look back on recent tax law developments within the European Union (EU). We discuss, amongst other things, relevant case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJ), Opinions of its Advocate Generals (AG), as well as relevant case law of the national courts of the Member States.

Furthermore, we set out important tax plans and developments of the European Commission, the Council of the European Union (Council) and the European Parliament. We have summarised the highlights of this edition below.

EU Customs Reform enters into force:

Following its publication in the European Official Journal on 19 September 2026, the EU Customs Reform has entered into force, introducing a new Union Customs Code, a new EU Customs Authority and the EU Customs Data Hub, with the importer becoming the central customs actor and implementation phased in through 2034.

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