CertEX

• What is “CertEX” and how does the system work?
• What does “write‑off/consumption” of CHEDs / GGBs mean?
• What is the impact (aimed at the energy product)?
• Practical do’s & don’ts for trading/ops (where write‑off issues often appear)
• “Best-effort standard” HS/CN list for commodities
• Detailed considerations
• Recources

What is “CertEX” and how does the system work?

In NL/EU day‑to‑day practice, people often use “CertEX” as an umbrella term for the digital certificates/official controls workflow around (pre‑)notification and border controls. The core is:

• TRACES NT is the EU system where consignments that fall under SPS/official controls are notified using a CHED:
  • CHED-P (plants/plant products),
  • CHED-A (animals),
  • CHED-PP (products of animal origin / POAO),
  • CHED-D (certain goods / food & feed of non‑animal origin, depending on the regime).
• In the Netherlands this is commonly referred to as “GGB” (Gemeenschappelijk Gezondheidsdocument bij Binnenkomst) — in practice the Dutch naming/handling of the CHED workflow.

Process at a glance (end‑to‑end):

1. Scope check: does the commodity/consignment fall under EU “official controls” (phytosanitary, veterinary, high‑risk FNAO, etc.)?
2. Pre‑notification: importer/agent creates a CHED/GGB in TRACES NT and attaches:
   • consignment details (origin, destination, HS/commodity code, quantities, packaging),
   • documents (certificates, analyses, attestations),
   • logistics (BIP/BCP, ETA, container/vessel/flight data).
3. Arrival & controls by NVWA/BCP:
   • documentary check,
   • identity check,
   • (where applicable) physical check / sampling.
4. Decision: release / release with conditions / rejection / redirection / destruction / re‑export.
5. Downstream effect: release is often a prerequisite for customs clearance and onward movement.

Important: a CHED/GGB is consignment‑based, not “product‑based”. You can’t use one CHED indefinitely for multiple physical shipments.

What does “write‑off/consumption” of CHEDs / GGBs mean?

• partial deliveries (splitting a lot),
• partial clearance or phased arrivals,
• mismatches between commercial documents (B/L, invoice, packing list) and actual received quantity,
• re‑allocation due to repacking, blending, or resale before physical discharge.

How it works (conceptually):

• The CHED/GGB contains a declared quantity (mass/units).
• Upon release, that quantity may be consumed in one go (fully written off), or (depending on regime/configuration) partly used, leaving a remaining balance still open.
• Authorities/systems ensure you cannot release/move more than what was approved under that CHED/GGB.

Why this exists:

• To prevent one approval (one CHED) from being used to “pull through” multiple consignments or extra volumes.
• For traceability and risk control (especially for SPS/high‑risk goods).

Typical pain points:

• If the CHED is for “1,000 MT” but you want to release 1,050 MT (due to weighing differences or B/L tolerance), you can get blocked and may need a correction/amendment or separate handling.
• If you want to split a cargo across multiple consignees/warehouses, the administrative chain (and sometimes the CHED structure) must support that.

What is the impact (aimed at the energy product)?

Because the energy products sector is broad, the impact is highly product‑ and route‑dependent. There are 3 relevant groups.

A) “Mainstream” energy products (crude, gasoline, diesel, jet, fuel oil, naphtha, LNG/LPG)

Usually no CHED/GGB is required, because these typically do not fall under SPS/official controls (veterinary/phytosanitary/food/feed).

Impact is then indirect:

• If a cargo is combined with regulated co‑loads (rare) or there is a regulated element in the chain, it can still create operational delays.
• If terminals/warehouses also process SPS flows, there can be congestion/slot effects.

B) Biofuels & feedstocks/agri components (UCO, tallow, certain residues, blends into HVO/FAME chains)

Here CHED/GGB can be relevant depending on classification:

• Is it a fat/oil (incl. waste) that can be considered feed or food?
• Is it an animal by‑product (ABP) or subject to veterinary controls?
• Is the intended use within the EU considered part of the food/feed chain?

Business impact:

• Demurrage/laytime risk: if pre‑notification is not tight or documents don’t match, you may get a hold on release → waiting time.
• Contractual risk: who is responsible for CHED/GGB, documentation, and costs in case of hold/rejection (Incoterms and contract clauses)?
• Loss of flexibility: “quickly” rerouting to another EU port or changing consignee can be constrained by:
  • the BCP/entry point in the CHED,
  • the named importer/consignee,
  • quantities already (partly) “written off”.

C) Food/feed of non‑animal origin with elevated risk (e.g., certain oils/seeds/ingredients)

If Vitol (or an affiliate) trades/imports these: CHED-D/CHED-PP can apply in specific regimes (increased controls, contaminants, etc.).

Business impact:

• Planning: lead times must include BCP capacity, sampling turnaround, and release time.
• Cost: additional costs for inspections, lab tests, handling, storage.
• Reputation/compliance: non‑compliance can escalate quickly (rejection/alerts).

Practical do’s & don’ts for trading/ops (where write‑off issues often appear)

Do's

• Ensure quantities (B/L/manifest vs CHED) are realistic and aligned with tolerance policy. Customs systems are known to have not implemented these tolerances in their system. To raise with Vemobin/NCO-NCW industry associations. 
• In contracts, explicitly define:
  • who files the CHED/GGB,
  • who pays sampling/inspection/storage,
  • what happens under partial release or rejection.
• If splitting is expected: design the administrative chain upfront (single consignee vs multiple; warehousing; resale before/after customs clearance).

Don’ts

• Don’t try to “fix” the CHED/GGB only upon arrival; for SPS goods pre‑notification timing is often strict.
• Don’t assume you can freely reallocate volumes once part of a consignment has been released/“written off”.

“Best-effort standard” HS/CN list for commodities

Quick “screening rule” (practical)

• Ch. 27 (2709/2710/2711) → CHED/GGB usually No
• Ch. 15 (1502, 1511–1514, 1518) and Ch. 12 (oilseeds) → CHED/GGB often Depends/Yes
• 2207 (ethanol), 3826 (biodiesel) → Depends (fuel vs food/feed/ABP chain)

Below is a best‑effort list of EU Combined Nomenclature (CN) commodity code headings / common subheadings that will likely apply to the products mentioned under A, B, and C. Focusing on the CN level (8 digits where reasonably standard) and keeping it practical for trading/ops screening.

Important: CHED/GGB (and what you called “CertEX consideration”) is not determined by the CN code alone. It depends on whether the goods fall under SPS/official controls (food/feed/ABP/plant health, “high-risk” regimes, etc.), plus origin/intended use. So: CN codes below tell you “what it is”; CHED tells you “whether it’s controlled”.

A) Mainstream energy products (typically CHED/GGB: No)

Crude oil

• 2709 00 — Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude 

Refined petroleum products (broad umbrella used for many products)

• 2710 — Petroleum oils (other than crude) / preparations / waste oils 

Gas oil / diesel (common CN ranges)

• 2710 19 43 – 2710 19 48 — Gas oils (often used as diesel/gasoil band in EU references) 
  (Note: exact 8‑digit depends on sulphur band / spec.)

Jet fuel / kerosene

• 2710 19 21 — Jet fuel
• 2710 19 25 — Other kerosene
  (Both explicitly referenced as kerosene CN codes) 

Heavy fuel oil

• 2710 19 62 – 2710 19 68 — Heavy fuel oil band used in EU references

LPG / petroleum gases

• 2711 12 — Liquefied: propane
• 2711 13 — Liquefied: butanes
• 2711 12 11 – 2711 19 00 — LPG band referenced in EU taxation tables 

CHED/GGB expectation for A: generally No (not SPS/food/feed).

B) Biofuels & feedstocks (often CHED/GGB: Depends)

Denatured ethanol (fuel blending / industrial)

• 2207 20 00 — Ethyl alcohol, denatured, of any strength 
• (Also relevant heading: 2207 10 for undenatured ≥80% vol, but in fuels the denatured line is common.)

Biodiesel / FAME / biodiesel blends (broad HS/CN heading)

• 3826 00 — Biodiesel and mixtures thereof (biodiesel heading at HS level; CN splits exist underneath) 

Tallow (animal fats)

• 1502 10 — Tallow (CN sub-splits exist beneath; used widely for tallow)

“UCO / waste oils” (best-effort—classification varies a lot)

• Often ends up under Chapter 15 (animal/vegetable fats & oils) or “chemically modified / inedible mixtures” categories.
• A commonly encountered bucket for chemically modified/inedible mixtures is 1518 00 (note: exact CN depends on product description and lab properties). 

CHED/GGB expectation for B: Depends, and this is where most surprises happen:

• If it’s treated as food/feed or animal by-product (ABP) related, or under a high‑risk regime → CHED/GGB can become Yes.
• If it’s clearly an industrial fuel component with no SPS relevance → often No, but you still need to confirm case-by-case.

C) Food/feed of non‑animal origin with elevated controls (often CHED/GGB: Yes/Depends)

You didn’t name specific products in C earlier (only “certain oils/seeds/ingredients”), so here are the most typical CN families that come up for edible oils / oilseeds that can be subject to official controls depending on origin/risk regimes:

Vegetable oils (examples)

• 1507 — Soya-bean oil
• 1508 — Groundnut oil
• 1511 — Palm oil
• 1512 — Sunflower/safflower/cotton-seed oil
• 1513 — Coconut (copra), palm kernel or babassu oil
• 1514 — Rapeseed/colza/mustard oil
  (Exact 8‑digit depends on crude/refined/fractions.)

Oilseeds (examples)

• 1201 — Soybeans
• 1205 — Rapeseed/colza seed
• 1206 — Sunflower seed
• 1207 — Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits

CHED/GGB expectation for C: commonly Yes/Depends because food/feed items can fall under:

• mandatory pre‑notification regimes for certain origins/commodities,
• increased controls (contaminants, residues, etc.).

(Again: whether CHED is required is not “because of the CN code”, but because of the regulatory status of that commodity/origin/use.)

Detailed considerations

A) Mainstream energy products (typical CHED/GGB consideration: NO)

Product family	Likely EU CN / HS headings	CHED/GGB (CertEX consideration)
Crude oil	2709 00 (petroleum oils, crude)	No (not SPS/food/feed)
Refined petroleum products (broad bucket)	2710 (petroleum oils other than crude; preparations; etc.)	No
Jet / kerosene	Typically under 2710; common EU references include 2710 19 21 (jet fuel) and 2710 19 25 (other kerosene)	No
LPG / petroleum gases (propane/butane etc.)	2711 (petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons; incl. liquefied propane/butanes)	No

(These are energy products; in normal cases they do not fall under CHED categories.)

B) Biofuels & feedstocks (typical CHED/GGB consideration: DEPENDS)

Product family	Likely EU CN / HS headings	CHED/GGB (CertEX consideration)	Why “depends”
Biodiesel / FAME / biodiesel blends	3826 00 (biodiesel and mixtures)	Depends	Generally industrial/energy, but classification & controls can be affected by documentation/intended use and any specific EU measures.
Denatured ethanol (fuel ethanol)	2207 20 00 (denatured ethyl alcohol)	Depends (often No)	Usually not CHED, but if consignment is treated within food/feed controls or special regimes, checks can differ.
Tallow / animal fats	1502 (tallow)	Depends (often Yes if ABP-related)	Can fall into animal by‑product / veterinary logic depending on grade/intended use and accompanying certification.
Used cooking oil (UCO) / inedible mixed oils	Frequently screens under 1518 00 (inedible mixtures/preparations of animal/vegetable fats/oils; chemically modified; etc.)	Depends (often Yes)	UCO is explicitly discussed in SPS contexts as HS 1518 in trade/SPS notifications; whether CHED applies depends on the specific control regime and use.

Practical takeaway for B: for UCO (1518) and tallow (1502) you should treat CHED/GGB as a live risk until proven otherwise for that exact cargo (origin, documentation, intended use, importer status, BCP requirements).

C) Food/feed of non-animal origin (typical CHED/GGB consideration: YES / DEPENDS)

These are the common CN families for vegetable oils and oilseeds (often used in food/feed chains, and therefore most likely to interact with “official controls” workflows, potentially via CHED‑D depending on specific risk lists and origin).

Product family	Likely EU CN / HS headings	CHED/GGB (CertEX consideration)
Vegetable oils (edible / crude/refined variants)	1507 (soybean oil), 1511 (palm oil), 1512 (sunflower/cottonseed etc.), 1513 (coconut/palm kernel), 1514 (rapeseed/colza/mustard)	Yes/Depends
Oilseeds	1201 (soybeans), 1205 (rapeseed/colza), 1206 (sunflower), 1207 (other oil seeds/oleaginous fruits)	Yes/Depends

Recources

The EU Single Window Environment for Customs - Taxation and Customs Union