In June, HMRC finally retired its customs declaration platform CHIEF as their new platform, the Customs Declaration Service (CDS), took over all import and export processes. 
 

What does this mean for Traders?

It is important for businesses involved in importing and exporting to understand that CHIEF and CDS are not like-for-like systems. While some elements remain the same, there a lot of differences and additional data required. One thing that hasn’t changed is the need for businesses to be 100% compliant. The CDS platform focuses even more on customs and trade compliance, and HMRC will continue to monitor, check and audit businesses regularly to confirm this. 

One of the elements updated on the CDS platform, is the accuracy of Commodity Codes. As we covered in our last issue, it is imperative that you ensure you have the correct Commodity Codes for all your goods. If the Commodity Code is incorrect, it can impact other areas of compliance. For example, at import, it could result in paying the wrong level of duty. Read more here. 

Whether you use a freight forwarder, customs broker, or declare your goods yourself to HMRC, you need to understand that you are responsible for the information declared. If you do outsource your declarations, you need to ensure you provide clear instruction and all the correct data required. If you fail to do this, you can leave your instruction open to interpretation by your representative or delay your shipment if they need to revert back to you for additional information.
 

How we can help

Our Customs Declaration Service (CDS) for Exports & Imports Training will help you understand how to meet customs requirements fast and efficiently now the new customs declaration system CDS is in place. 

During this virtual half day training we will highlight what you need to know to be able to accurately complete a simple customs declaration, to understand the Customs regimes and focus on completion of a customs declaration on CDS.

We will cover