Imports, Exports & Commodity Tariffs – How will it affect you?

Britain’s delayed departure from the EU may have afforded some organizations breathing space on key decisions, including those that will impact on their import and export trade.

As an EU member, the UK and companies based here currently sell their goods freely to customers anywhere else in the EU without those customers having to pay additional taxes to import those goods.

British consumers and companies can also import from elsewhere in the EU without tariffs.  The EU also has agreements allowing free trade with countries such as Norway, Switzerland, South Africa and South Korea.

Outside the EU, the UK will need to strike new deals in order to have free trade with those countries or the remaining EU members.  If the UK does not have a trade agreement with a particular country, then it falls back on World Trade Organisation (WTO) rates.

All imports or exports (including UK imports) must be declared to HMRC using an international commodity (tariff) code and you are legally responsible for the correct tariff classification of your goods. 

Why use commodity codes?  Classifying your goods correctly means you know if:

• the correct amount of duty and VAT has been paid
• duty is suspended on any of your goods
• any preferential duty rates can be applied
• an import or export licence is required
• your goods are covered by measures such as the Common Agricultural Policy of the EU, anti-dumping duties or tariff quotas

Under WTO rates this presents challenges as you could have different rates for different countries for the same commodity, you could also have negotiations between the UK and other countries that change a commodity tariff at a particular date. 

Once your goods have the correct tariff code you can work out the correct duty you need to pay on the import or export of your good. The tariff is applied to the full invoice value and is paid to HMRC.

How iMetal can help?

From its inception flexibility in tariff, surcharges and taxes allows iMetal to handle a multitude of combinations, at home and abroad. In fact the experience of implementing iMetal in international markets has benefited UK customers as many of the financial requirements for international markets will now become relevant in the UK.

With a departure date of the 31st October 2019, and the looming potential of a “no deal Brexit” we need to ensure we are prepared to act when it comes to tariffs, taxes and trade regulations.

To ensure we provide you with the best experience we would like to ask you to help us prepare for these changes. By further understanding our customer’s import and export activity and their current use of commodity codes we can ensure we are well placed to limit the issues you may encounter. 

We have prepared a very short three question survey which would allow us to understand your overseas trade activity and the support you may require from us. 

Create your own user feedback survey

What is an EROI and what does it mean to me?
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, you’ll need an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number that starts with GB to trade goods into and out of the UK. Read more here.