Uk customs how long does it take

Some countries and international organisations impose restrictions on what you can send to certain individuals, organisations and countries. International Signed aims to deliver to Europe in 3 to 5 working days and to the rest of the world in 5 to 7 working days.

You should attach enough stamps to cover the rate to send a letter to international destinations. Check here for the current tariff. Parcels can be tracked here. Skip to main content. Trending searches Where is my nearest branch? Other services. International confirmed delivery. Enjoy extra peace of mind. Changes with posting to the EU. All items sent to EU countries require a customs form to be filled out and attached to items. Customs clearance itself is actually quicker than you may first think.

When scheduling and preparing for the entire logistics process, we generally say that from your goods landing in the UK, to arriving at your warehouse, you should allow roughly days from leaving an EU destination.

Customs clearance itself is only a fraction of that time, If for some reason you have not met the criteria needed to clear goods, this can take a matter of weeks. Customs clearance controls the UK border, so the final decision as to whether your goods enter the UK or not is down to them.

To ensure a smooth and streamlined process, you should be aware that the below will cause delays in the customs clearance process:. Having a cloud-based document management system means you can easily access critical documents and say no to filing cabinets or searching emails to find what you need. A commodity code tells HMRC what your goods are. Every single item that you can think of has a commodity code in the HMRC tariff , which is harmonised with other not all countries so that the same code is recognisable around the world.

The commodity code that you use to transport your goods will determine the amount of Duty and VAT paid, whether or not additional licenses are required, or if additional border checks are required. Using the correct commodity code is essential, and intentional misdeclarations to avoid paying more tax or omit checks is illegal. If you are unsure of the correct commodity code to use, contact HMRC for binding advice. From the moment that the declaration becomes live, a route 6 import customs clearance will take 10 minutes to process if there are no reasons for delay.

Reasons for delay on a route 6 clearance include, but are not limited to, outstanding Duty and VAT payment, or an additional border agency check. UK customs clearances that are marked for additional examination can take a few days, especially if there is a physical move to be made like a movement to the X-Ray site. Unfortunately, HMRC process these checks in order of arrival or add your shipment to the queue when your documents are received.

It is best to be proactive with sending documents when checks are required as your carrier will not waive rent and demurrage for customs delays. Every commodity has its own duty rate, which will be calculated during clearance based on your commodity code. Find out more about what values to put into your import duty calculator here. Check the tariff to see if your commodity qualifies for VAT relief.

Funds are added to the account as a lump sum, with Duty and VAT taken from the account automatically by shipments. Note that there is a separate account for each port, and that customs brokers will usually not hold funds as they will have multiple clients using the same account. Any method of payment will usually incur a fee from the customs broker for management and processing.

Customs clearance is due on any shipment before it crosses the customs border, or before it leaves a customs authorised facility. The exception to this rule is for the delayed import declarations that have been put in place following Brexit. This allows for goods to be imported without a clearance, but requires a UK customs clearance to be processed within 6 months of import. UK Customs Solutions are currently taking new customers for delayed import declarations. This is largely due to the demands placed on customs officers — they have so many parcels to get through, incorrectly filled forms get pushed to one side to speed through those with correct information.

A respectable freight forwarding company will take care of this. You need to make sure products are described properly on Customs Declarations and have all correct values filled in. Normally, this information is incorrect due to lack of experience which is where a specialist company can help. Clear information needs to be provided to help these products pass through the specialist customs process. Partnering with a trustworthy freight forwarding company is one of the best ways to avoid delays through customs.