News

 (From the EU into Great Britain) from 1 January 2021

The Government has issued guidance on importing goods from the EU to Great Britain from 1 January 2021.

From 1 January 2021, if you are a UK-based business bringing or receiving goods from the EU, you must complete an import declaration to get your goods through customs.

You can do this yourself, but as completing a customs declaration can be complicated and you will need compatible software to do it, many smaller and medium sized importers typically use a specialist. Please see our guide entitled “Importing goods from the EU to Great Britain from 1 January 2021” if you are thinking of this approach.

The process for importing goods from the EU has changed. Businesses in Great Britain need to complete the following actions to continue importing from EU countries from 1 January 2021.

From 1 January 2021 you need an EORI number to move goods between the UK and the EU.

You can apply for your EORI number in advance. It can take up to a week to get one.

You will not usually need an EORI number if you only:

• provide services
• move goods between Northern Ireland and Ireland  
• If you use a post or parcel company they will tell you if you need an EORI number.

From 1 January 2021, you will need to make customs declarations when exporting goods to the EU. These rules currently apply to exporting goods to the rest of the world, including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. 

You can make the declarations yourself or hire someone else such as a courier, freight forwarder or customs agent.

BREXIT TRADE AGREEMENT

The transition period for the UK leaving the EU has ended. The EU and UK have struck a trade deal, and this has been ratified by the UK Parliament so from 1 January we are trading with the EU quota and tariff “free”. There are new Customs regulations and VAT requirements to get to grips with, but we have every confidence once we get used to the new system imports and exports will continue to flow.