UK eases no-deal Brexit import declarations and tariffs

The UK’s HMRC has eased some of the potential new import requirements in the case of a no-deal Brexit on the 29 March 2019. This changes will be limited to roll on roll off (Ro-Ro) UK ports, and excludes shipments from Ireland to Northern Ireland.

Currently, the UK is scheduled to leave the EU on this date without any transitional deal for leaving the EU Customs Union. This would mean imports into the UK from the EU would require customs declarations – SAD or form C88 – and a payment of import tariffs.

Over 245,000 UK businesses will have to complete customs procedures for the first time in the event of a no-deal Brexit. 145,000 of these are VAT registered, and have been contacted by HMRC about the changes.

HMRC has now confirmed that these import requirements will be eased at Ro-Ro's. Under its one-year (likely to be extended) Transitional Simplified Procedures (TSP), UK businesses can register from 7 February 2019 for the following benefits:

·     Full import declarations need only be made by the 4th of the following month. Instead, at the port of entry, simplified submissions may be made at clearance with reduced data sets. This is similar to the existing Customs Freight Simplified Procedure (CFSP).

·     Tariff duties may be postponed for one-month after the import. This will require businesses to set-up a direct debit with HMRC to pay the tariffs. More details to follow.

Any businesses should have already applied for Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) numbers, which are required for all import documentation. These can be obtained from HMRC online.