Clarksons Port Services (CPS) is urging businesses to prepare for changes to UK border controls ahead of January 1, 2022.
As a result of Brexit, the way goods move in and out of the EU is changing and businesses that are shipping goods to and from the UK will be subject to Customs clearance from January 1, 2022.
CPS has increased its Customs clearance solutions to help businesses prepare for the changes that will see UK Customs authorities requiring full Customs declarations completed to allow shipments across the border.
The UK government dropped border controls at the beginning of this year when Brexit, in combination with the chaos caused by the pandemic, threatened to shut down UK-Europe supply chains, but businesses now need to prepare for the end of the transition period.
Christopher Ewings, Customs clearance manager at CPS, commented: “We do not believe the sector is ready for the January 2022 deadline – the goods vehicle movement service (GVMS) system should have thousands of companies registered on it, but it’s currently much less, and through conversations with our customers, in the EU, there is great confusion about the changes.
“The start of the new year will see the implementation of import controls – there are no plans to delay this; Customs declarations will be due on January 1 and so we are urging businesses to prepare. If businesses are not prepared, goods will not be released by Customs until all Duty and VAT and accurate documentation is submitted, resulting in costly delays. By preparing now, exporters are able to remove the risk of underpaying duty and VAT which could lead to potential fines and additional changes at a later stage.”
