The EU information system is the digital system of the European Commission in which operators and traders submit their declaration of due diligence for the Deforestation Regulation before a product enters the EU market or leaves the EU. When each declaration is submitted, the system generates two numbers: a reference number and a verification number. These two numbers are at the heart of how the system works in practice.
Once a declaration has been submitted and accepted, you must be able to show that reference number and verification number to customs or to the competent authority, and you must pass them on to the party to whom you sell the product if that party further down the supply chain also has an obligation. Without those numbers, the next link in the supply chain cannot demonstrate that a declaration for the product already exists.
What happens in the system after submission
When you submit a declaration of due diligence, you enter the data from your file: the product and the corresponding code, the quantity, the country of origin, the geolocation data of the plots and the details of your suppliers. The system links that declaration to a reference number, which identifies the declaration itself, and a verification number, which confirms that the declaration has been accepted. Together, both numbers serve as proof that a declaration has been submitted for that specific consignment of goods.
These two numbers are not a formality. If you resell goods to another party within the EU that in turn also has an obligation, that party can refer to your reference number instead of conducting a full due diligence themselves. That is precisely why keeping track of and correctly passing on these numbers is just as important as keeping the underlying documents. view how to build a file per product stream helps you see where these numbers fit into the rest of your administration.
Who can view the system
Competent authorities of the Member States can view submitted declarations and the underlying data as part of their supervision. Customs authorities check on import or export whether a valid reference number is present in the consignment. As an operator or trader, you see the declarations you have submitted yourself and the numbers associated with them. The system is thus not a public register, but rather a place where supervision and trade meet.
Submitting yourself or having it done for you
You can create your own account in the EU information system and submit the declaration there yourself, based on data you have collected and assessed yourself. Some companies choose to authorize a third party to submit on their behalf. In that case, the legal responsibility for the accuracy of the data remains with you as an operator or trader, even if someone else handles the submission technically. Those choosing that route would do well to know in advance how login credentials are handled; how we handle your data and access describes that for situations in which a declaration is submitted on your behalf.
What the system does not do
The EU information system does not assess whether your product is actually deforestation-free and does not perform a risk assessment for you. It only registers the declaration that you submit yourself, based on your own due diligence. The substantive assessment of the risk of deforestation or non-compliance with local legislation remains with the operator or trader themselves, possibly with support from a lawyer or the competent supervisory authority if there is doubt about your own situation.
Where this fits in your own process
Whether you submit the declaration yourself or have it guided, it is useful to first be clear about what role you have in the supply chain, because that determines which obligation applies to you and what type of declaration you need. in a few questions see which role suits you provides an initial direction before you start with the submission itself. For a broader overview of how dossier, declaration and submission relate to each other, an overview of how the submission is structured a logical next step.
If you first want to see whether and when this becomes relevant for your products and your role, then do the free role check or browse through the other topics in the knowledge base. Both are freely accessible, even without an account.