Customs clearance UK

What clearance is asking you to do

The GOV.UK import guide is the map. It applies when you move goods permanently to England, Wales or Scotland from outside the UK, or to Northern Ireland from outside the UK and the EU. Movements between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, postal imports, personal luggage and temporary imports follow different steps, and the same guide points those out.

You get the business ready, decide who will make the declaration, find the commodity code, work out the customs value, check whether a licence applies, and get the goods through customs. Most businesses appoint a transporter or a customs agent. You can also make the declaration yourself. This site does not introduce you to an agent.

Who needs an EORI number

An EORI number is the Economic Operators Registration and Identification number customs systems use to identify you. GOV.UK says you may need one if you move goods between Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) or the Isle of Man and any other country, including the EU; between Great Britain and Northern Ireland; between Great Britain and the Channel Islands; or between Northern Ireland and countries outside the EU. You also need one to register for an export licence.

You do not need an EORI number if the goods are both not controlled and for personal use only. A business based in the Channel Islands that moves goods to or from the UK does not need one either. To get a number yourself, the business usually has to be established in the country it is importing to or exporting from: a registered office, a central headquarters, or a permanent business establishment. If you are not eligible to apply, GOV.UK says you appoint someone to deal with customs, and that person gets the number.

For an import into England, Wales or Scotland the number you need starts with GB. If you move goods to or from Northern Ireland you may need one that starts with XI. You will need the number to make customs declarations, to use the Customs Declaration Service and the Import Control System 2, and to apply for a customs decision.

How to get an EORI number

Apply on GOV.UK. For a GB number, HMRC asks for your Unique Taxpayer Reference, your business start date and Standard Industrial Classification code, your VAT number and the effective date of registration if you are VAT registered, and your National Insurance number if you are an individual or a sole trader. A business that is not based in the UK does not need the Unique Taxpayer Reference, the SIC code or a National Insurance number.

You sign in to apply. HMRC says you get the GB EORI number immediately unless checks are needed, in which case it can take up to 5 working days. An XI number is a second step: you need a GB number first, then the XI registration form, and HMRC says you get the XI number within 5 days. Check the status of an application you have already made on the same guide.

What a customs declaration involves

Check whether the goods need a declaration before you start a full import declaration. Where a temporary storage declaration has been made, the full import declaration must be made within 90 days of the goods being presented to customs. At a location without temporary storage, the operator of that location sets the timescale. You may be able to declare up to 30 days before arrival, but the declaration is formally accepted when the goods have arrived and been presented.

The declaration has to include the customs procedure code, the commodity code and your declaration unique consignment reference. You also provide the departure point and destination, the consignee and consignor, the type, amount and packaging of the goods, the transport methods and costs, the currencies and valuation methods, and certificates and licences. You submit it with software that can talk to the Customs Declaration Service. When the declaration is accepted, HMRC tells you how much you owe. Duty has to be paid before the goods can be released. A duty deferment account changes when that payment is made, not whether the debt exists.

HMRC may ask for supporting documents if the entry is selected for a check. The National Clearance Hub lists evidence of the goods’ value and a packing list of all items among those documents. Keep records for 4 years. Paper that carries an original stamp or watermark, such as a preference certificate, stays on paper.

Documents an importer needs

The commercial invoice is the value document. HMRC’s valuation guidance lists commercial invoices from overseas suppliers among the documents you may have to show, along with purchase orders, previous import entries, a breakdown of manufacturers’ costs, commercial agreements, a bill of lading, bank statements and shipping or freight bills. Start a commercial invoice from the figures you already have. The template does not calculate duty.

The packing list is the piece count. If the declaration is selected for a documentary check, the National Clearance Hub asks for a packing list of all items included. Draft one on the packing list page from the cartons, weights and sizes. The bill of lading page is the shipper’s transport document. It is not the carrier’s original bill of lading.

Some goods need a licence or certificate before they can be imported. The import guide names animals and animal products, plants, high-risk food, medicines, controlled drugs, waste, chemicals and weapons among them. The commodity code is what tells you whether a licence applies, as well as which duty treatment the UK Trade Tariff shows.

Import VAT and duty

You must tell HMRC about goods you bring into the UK and pay any VAT and duty that is due. You may be able to defer, suspend, reduce or get relief from import VAT. The commodity code is what you look up. The UK Trade Tariff is where the duty for that code is shown. This page does not copy a rate from it.

HMRC’s import VAT guidance says import VAT is normally charged at the same rate as if the goods had been supplied in the UK, and that some goods are treated differently, including works of art, antiques and collectors’ items. The figure is on that guidance and in the tariff. It is not repeated here. A VAT-registered business can account for import VAT on its VAT Return using postponed VAT accounting, or pay it at importation and reclaim it as input tax subject to the normal rules. A UK trader who is not registered for VAT still has to pay the import VAT and cannot reclaim it.

The customs value used for VAT includes the customs value plus incidental costs such as commission, packing, transport and insurance up to the first destination in the UK, and any customs duty, levy or excise duty payable on importation, except the VAT itself. A trade agreement, a duty suspension or a tariff quota can change the duty. Those are checks on GOV.UK and in the tariff, not a calculation this guide will do.