The UK leaves with a Transition Agreement in place which means that UK businesses will be able to import / export free of tariffs until end of 2020.

You will need a Harmonized System (HS) Code which allows accurate duties and taxes to be applied to your shipment.  You will also need to provide an accurate description of your goods including country of origin as well as the value from the commercial invoice.   Information HS classification codes can be found here.

You will need to ensure you have a Harmonized System (HS) code to ensure accurate duties and taxes are applied to your shipment.  You will also need to provide an accurate description of your goods including country of origin as well as the value from the commercial invoice. 

Take a look at this website which provides the HS classification codes.

Every shipment you send will need a commercial invoice uploaded into Palletways' portal system that includes information for the customs authorities – this helps assess suitability for shipping and determines the correct duties and taxes.  The right information on your invoice reduces the potential for a delay to your shipment.

You should agree International Commercial Terms with your own customers which are a sequence of pre-defined commercial terms that are widely used in international trade transactions. In a no-deal scenario these will define many of the rules and will be an important part of the commercial invoice.  These terms address where the goods will be delivered, who arranges and pays for transport, who is responsible and pays for insurance of the goods, who handles customs procedures.  You can learn more about Incoterms here.

The commercial invoice is a legal document between the supplier and the customer that clearly describes the sold goods, and the amount due on the customer. The commercial invoice is one of the main documents used by customs in determining customs duties.

The commercial invoice is one of the main documents used by customs in determining customs duties as it clearly describes the sold goods, and the amount due by the customer.

The Palletways Portal system has the ability for commercial invoices to be uploaded into it providing valuable information to the customs authorities.  This helps reduce paperwork and any customs delays.  Palletways' members can upload these.

You may need to apply for an export licence to export specific types of goods from the UK.  Take a look at this website for information on the requirements for exporting goods into the EU from a non-EU country.

You must make sure you communicate with your receivers and importers regarding local requirements in their country and the potential import VAT and duty they may have to pay.  You must also ensure you have the correct address and contact details for all parties.

A deferment account is authorized by your local Customs office to allow import duties and taxes to be paid efficiently.

It enables high value import shipments to be cleared quickly.  It may be advantageous that you set up a deferment account, but this is dependent upon each individual business.  To find out how to set up your UK deferment account see this website.  The alternative is that a bank transfer for duties and taxes would be needed to settle the charges before delivery.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has a page dedicated to Brexit and how this can affect British business.  See this site https://www.cbi.org.uk/ for the latest news.

No, there are special categories of products that will require separate handling as they have a mandatory inspection on being shipped into / out of the EU.  These include all animal and plant products.

For special categories it is mandatory to inspect the goods but it is unclear how long the government agencies will take to inspect the goods, the expectation is that it could take from 1 hour to 2 days extra.

There will be a freight surcharge for special products due to the inspection delay.  For normal products at this time there is no surcharge.