EU-UK trade

Learn about how the Shipping API supports EU-UK trade.

Post-Brexit trading arrangements

The United Kingdom (UK) left the single (internal) market and customs union of the European Union (EU) on 31 December 2020.

This affects shipping from:

• The UK to the EU
• The EU to the UK
• Great Britain (GB - England, Scotland, and Wales) or the Isle of Man (IM) to Northern Ireland (NI)
• NI to GB or the IM
• The UK to the Republic of Ireland (ROI)
• The ROI to the UK

Compliance guidelines

To ensure that any affected consignments are compliant with the new trading arrangements, ensure that you do the following while using the Shipping API:

1. Enter any required Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) numbers.
2. Provide parcel- and product-level information to define consignments for customs purposes.
3. Specify the International Commercial Terms (Incoterms) of each consignment.
4. Generate customs documentation.

Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) numbers

Anyone shipping commercial goods into or out of the EU needs to obtain an EORI (Economic Operators Registration and Identification) number. These are part of a system of unique identification numbers used by customs authorities throughout the EU.

An EORI number is made up of the ISO alpha-2 country code of the relevant EU member state followed by up to 15 digits. Generally, for the UK, a VAT-registered company’s EORI number consists of the prefix GB followed by the company VAT number, and is suffixed with 000.

From 1 January 2021 onwards, you will need an EORI number when moving goods between:

• GB or IM and the EU
• GB and NI

Getting an EORI number

Shippers based inside the EU can request an EORI number from the customs authorities in their own countries. In the UK, HMRC handles all EORI number applications.

If you do not yet have an EORI number, you will need to complete one of the following forms:

• VAT-registered
• Not VAT-registered and exporting
• Not VAT-registered and importing

Using EORI numbers with the Shipping API

If you are a business-to-business (B2B) exporter shipping to the territories listed above and you are creating a consignment in the Shipping API, you need to specify the EORINumber for the sender address, such as the warehouse.

Likewise, if you are a B2B importer shipping from the territories listed above and you are creating a consignment in the Shipping API, you need to specify the EORINumber for the recipient address.

The numbers will appear in your customs documentation, manifest files, and live carrier APIs (where applicable), and also in any paperless solutions being used.

Product-level information

To define consignments for customs purposes, anyone shipping commercial goods into or out of the EU needs to supply information at both parcel and product level.

From 1 January 2021 onwards, you also need to supply the same level of information when moving goods between:

• GB or IM and the EU
• GB and NI

You can then generate the required customs documentation.

International Commercial Terms (Incoterms)

Incoterms are a series of three-letter combinations published by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) that define the trade terms of buyers and sellers in international deliveries. They communicate clearly where the responsibility lies at each stage of the delivery process.

The rules governing Incoterms are accepted by almost all governments and legal authorities worldwide for the interpretation of the most commonly used terms in international trade. This mitigates the risk of any differing interpretations of the rules in different countries.

The Metapack Platform supports the following Incoterms.

Customs documentation

In most situations, you will have to generate one of the following for a shipment:

• A customs form
• A commercial invoice
• An export declaration

Customs forms

From 1 January 2021 onwards:

• Anyone in GB using a postal carrier to send parcels to the EU that have a value of up to £270 is required to complete a CN22 customs declaration form .
• Businesses using a postal carrier to send items worth £270 or more are required to fill in the longer CN23 customs declaration form .

Commercial invoices

A commercial invoice is required if a consignment is being transported by a parcel carrier (as opposed to a postal carrier) that does not support paperless trade.

This is a binding customs document that contains information about the consignment contents and the agreements made (Incoterms), including who pays the customs costs. Based on the commercial invoice, the customs authorities determine whether import duties have to be paid on the goods.

If shipping to NI or the ROI, three copies of the commercial invoice are required.

Each copy will need to include the following:

• Goods description
• Harmonised code
• Tariff number
• Value and currency
• Packaging details
• Weight
• Country of origin
• EORI number
• Incoterms
• Full addresses of the importer and exporter

Export declarations

From 1 January 2021 onwards, you should make full export declarations when bringing goods into NI from GB or from outside the EU.