The EUDR DDS Reference Number, Explained

The container is at the border. The broker sends one line: "Customs wants the EUDR DDS reference number before they'll clear this. Send it now." You know a Due Diligence Statement was filed. But not which of the two numbers TRACES handed back is the one the broker actually needs, or where it belongs on the declaration. By the end of this post you will know exactly what the EUDR DDS reference number is, where it comes from, and how to reuse it down the chain. This post is about that number: how it differs from the verification number, and what to do when you do not have one yet.

What the EUDR DDS reference number is

When a Due Diligence Statement is filed in TRACES, the EU Information System returns two identifiers. The DDS reference number is the one for customs and for the supply chain. You quote it on the customs declaration so authorities can tie the goods in front of them to the statement that covers them, and you pass it down the chain so the parties after you can point back to your due diligence without refiling it.

Think of the reference number as the public handle on your DDS. It travels; the verification number stays with the record. For the wider picture of what a DDS is, the full DDS guide is the pillar to read alongside this. This spoke stays on the number.

Reference number vs verification number

Filing returns two numbers, and mixing them up is the fastest way to slow a shipment down.

• DDS reference number: for customs and for the chain. Quoted on the customs declaration; handed to traders and downstream manufacturers so they can reuse it.
• DDS verification number: for the record. It confirms the specific version of the statement that was lodged, and it lives with the filing rather than being passed around at the border.

So when a broker asks for "the EUDR DDS number" at customs, they mean the reference number. When an auditor wants to confirm exactly which statement was submitted, the verification number is the one that matters. Both come from the same place: TRACES mints them at the moment you file.

Where both numbers come from

Neither number is something you generate yourself, and neither exists before filing. Under the EUDR, Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, only an operator (the first party to place goods on the EU market) or a solo operator lodges the DDS in TRACES. The statement attests that the risk of non-compliance is negligible and references the plot geolocation behind the goods. The instant it is accepted, TRACES returns both numbers together.

Producers, such as a farm or a co-operative, supply data but never file. Traders and downstream manufacturers do not file a fresh statement for goods already on the market either, which is exactly what the next section turns on.

How the reference number moves down the chain

The reference number is built to be reused. Under the December 2025 simplification, Regulation (EU) 2025/2650, a trader or a downstream manufacturer handling goods that an operator already declared does not repeat the whole exercise. They reuse and pass on the upstream operator's DDS reference number. The coffee roaster who buys already-declared green beans references the importer's number rather than filing a new DDS for the same lots. The number is the thread tying every later step back to the original due diligence, which is why it cannot get separated from the batch it covers.

Coffee importers, who sit at the operator position on CN heading 0901, feel this most directly. If that is you, the coffee importers guide walks through the whole flow from supplier data to filed DDS; if you supply those importers, see EUDR for coffee exporters.

Where the number appears on the customs declaration

The DDS reference number is quoted on the customs declaration for the goods it covers, so the authorities clearing the shipment can match the physical consignment to the statement in TRACES. That is the moment the broker was asking about. Without the reference number in hand, the declaration cannot carry the link, and the goods wait. And a reference number only covers what it was filed against, so verified and unverified lots must stay apart: one unverified bag fails the whole container.

What to do if you do not have one yet

There is no shortcut. The reference number does not exist until the DDS is filed. If customs is asking and you have no number, the answer is not to find one somewhere; it is to file the statement, correctly, and let TRACES return it. That means the plot geolocation is in place (Article 9: every plot, no sampling), the legality checklist is done (Article 2(40): eight legal areas), and the risk conclusion is recorded. Then you file.

This is where the timing bites, because the numbers cannot be produced in the minute the broker asks. 30 December 2026 is the application date for large and medium operators, the deadline that actually applies after two postponements. From that date, goods crossing the border need the statement, and the statement needs to exist before the goods do.

How Bindu gets you the number

Bindu is a trade-compliance OS, and this is the exact gap it closes. It takes you from raw supplier data to an accepted TRACES statement, then files to TRACES in one click and returns both numbers: the DDS reference number for customs, and the verification number for the record. You do not copy identifiers between systems or wonder which one the broker means.

And because the reference number has to travel, Bindu carries it down the chain, so a trader or downstream manufacturer reuses the upstream reference number instead of refiling. Every filing is held in a 5-year evidence vault, hash-chained per actor.

So the next time the broker messages "send it now" from the border, the number is already filed and sitting where it belongs, not something you are scrambling to find. Book a demo and see how Bindu files to TRACES and returns both numbers.

FAQ

What is the EUDR DDS reference number? It is the identifier TRACES returns when a Due Diligence Statement is filed, used at customs and passed down the supply chain so later parties can point back to the original due diligence, under Regulation (EU) 2023/1115.

What is the difference between the DDS reference number and the verification number? The reference number is for customs and for the chain: you quote it on the customs declaration and hand it to traders and downstream manufacturers. The verification number is for the record: it confirms the exact statement that was lodged. Both are returned by TRACES when you file.

Can a trader or manufacturer reuse the upstream DDS reference number? Yes. Under Regulation (EU) 2025/2650, traders and downstream operators handling goods an operator already declared reuse and pass on the upstream operator's reference number rather than filing a new DDS.

What if I do not have a DDS reference number yet? The number does not exist until you file. There is no way to obtain one without lodging the statement in TRACES first, with plot geolocation and the legality checklist in place. For large and medium operators, the statement is due by 30 December 2026.