Secure Release Order” from October 1, 2025 – Security Upgrade or Bureaucratic Burden?

Secure Release Order” from October 1, 2025 – Security Upgrade or Bureaucratic Burden?

A critical look at the new container release procedure in German seaports

Starting October 1, 2025, the long-standing PIN-based container release system at Germany’s major seaports – Hamburg, Bremerhaven, and Wilhelmshaven – will be replaced by a new mandatory digital procedure known as the “Secure Release Order” (SRO).
Authorities claim this move will improve port security. But for many importers, forwarders, and logistics providers, the change means higher costs, more bureaucracy, and limited added value.

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🔐 Background: Why is the system being changed?

The current PIN release process is considered too vulnerable. In recent years, criminal organisations have exploited the system to gain unauthorised access to containers – particularly for drug trafficking.
The new Secure Release Order aims to eliminate this risk by linking every container release to a registered and verified party using the centralised German Ports platform, developed by DAKOSY and dbh Logistics IT.

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💸 Security – but at what cost?

Access to the new system comes with mandatory fees:

• Basic fee: €60/month
• Additional charges per container released

This pricing model hits small and medium-sized importers especially hard, many of whom previously used the PIN method free of charge.

Industry criticism focuses on:

• Increased administrative burden, with a separate digital process required for every release
• No integration with the customs system (ATLAS) – meaning the SRO does not replace customs clearance
• Fees for a system primarily designed to serve state security interests – yet fully paid for by the private sector
• A monopoly-like structure, as users are locked into using the German Ports platform, with no viable alternatives

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🧭 Alternatives? None.

Rather than improving the existing PIN system with modern security features (e.g. two-factor authentication), a completely new procedure has been introduced.
Industry associations (e.g. DSLV, BGA, ZDS) have repeatedly criticised the lack of stakeholder involvement and the one-size-fits-all nature of the solution.

As one Hamburg-based freight forwarder put it:

“We now pay monthly for a platform that creates more effort than benefit. We support better security – but this is the wrong approach.”

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⚠️ Conclusion: Digitalisation – yes, but with balance

There’s no doubt that stronger port security is essential.
But the Secure Release Order is shaping up to be an example of overengineered regulation, created without meaningful dialogue with the businesses that must implement it.

With mandatory fees, added bureaucracy, and no integration with customs, the system risks becoming yet another layer of red tape, rather than a practical security improvement.

More Information:

• Official registration page: www.germanports.com