Location
Customs Clearance for Shipments To and From the UK
Since leaving the EU customs union, the UK has required full customs declarations on goods moving to and from the EU as well as the rest of the world — a significant change for businesses that previously moved goods across that border without formal customs entries. HMRC administers the process through the Customs Declaration Service (CDS).
Primary gateway: Felixstowe
Key gateways
- Port of Felixstowe
- Port of Southampton
- Dover (for short-sea and roll-on/roll-off freight with continental Europe)
- London Heathrow for air cargo
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Named ports & gateways
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Key industries
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Common shipment types
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Common questions
Customs environment
How clearance works here
Declarations are filed through CDS, which replaced the older CHIEF system. Rules of origin under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement determine whether goods moving between the UK and EU qualify for preferential (tariff-free) treatment — qualification isn't automatic just because goods originate within either market.
Key industries
- Automotive manufacturing and parts
- Pharmaceuticals
- Food and agricultural products (subject to sanitary and phytosanitary checks)
- Financial and professional services-adjacent goods trade
- Fashion and retail goods
Common shipment types
- EU-UK cross-border trade newly subject to full customs declarations since Brexit
- Roll-on/roll-off freight through Dover and the Channel Tunnel requiring pre-lodged declarations
- Food and agricultural imports subject to sanitary and phytosanitary border checks
- Rest-of-world imports via major container ports
Documentation
Standard entry requires a commercial invoice, packing list, and bill of lading/airway bill. For preferential treatment under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, a statement of origin or supplier's declaration is needed to support the rules-of-origin claim — this has been a common gap for businesses used to pre-Brexit paperwork-free EU trade.
Duties & taxes
Duty is assessed against the UK Global Tariff for non-preferential trade, with UK-EU trade potentially qualifying for tariff-free treatment where rules of origin are met. VAT applies on import in addition to any duty, with postponed VAT accounting available for VAT-registered importers to avoid paying VAT at the point of entry.
Rates and thresholds change — confirm current figures for your specific goods before relying on them for a shipment.
Watch for
Where clearance commonly runs into trouble
A small, recurring set of causes accounts for most delays in this market. Knowing them ahead of time reduces the odds of hitting one.
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EU-origin goods assumed to be automatically tariff-free post-Brexit without the required origin documentation
- 02
Sanitary and phytosanitary checks on food imports causing delays at Dover and similar roll-on/roll-off crossings
- 03
Businesses new to formal customs declarations for EU trade underestimating the documentation lead time
- 04
Postponed VAT accounting not set up correctly, leading to cash-flow issues at import
Terms you'll see
- CDS
- Customs Declaration Service — HMRC's platform for import and export declarations, which replaced CHIEF.
- TCA
- UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement — governs preferential origin claims between the UK and EU.
- Postponed VAT accounting
- A mechanism allowing VAT-registered importers to account for import VAT on their VAT return rather than paying it at the border.