Germany’s Federal Ministry of Finance announced that the Federal Cabinet approved legislation to modernize the customs administration and expand its powers against financial and organized crime, money laundering, international drug trafficking and sanctions violations. The overhaul covers the customs service’s nearly 49,000 employees and combines structural reform with greater use of digital tools, automated analysis and artificial intelligence. The reform will replace the General Customs Directorate’s six specialist directorates with two operational streams covering customs and taxes, and security and enforcement. It also authorizes measures including the seizure of cryptoassets, drone deployment, biometric matching against publicly available internet data and the blocking of digital criminal communications. Customs will be able to secure significant assets suspected of unlawful origin outside criminal proceedings, with confiscation possible if the competent fiscal court is satisfied that the assets are illicit. The legislation also strengthens data sharing with the Federal Criminal Police Office, gives customs new sanctions-enforcement powers and expands the Financial Intelligence Unit’s role in countering proliferation financing. Automated risk analysis and access to customs data systems are intended to target controls more efficiently and reduce burdens on compliant individuals and businesses.

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