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Issue 1 2021 - Freight Business Journal


///CUSTOMS CLEARANCE This is not a drill


January 1 marks the most tumultuous change in the terms of trade for the UK and Ireland since 1993 – and unlike previous Brexit deadlines, this one is for real. Customs clearance agents in both countries have been preparing for the big day.


Irish agents gear up for the grand slam


While UK importers have a six- month grace period before they will be required to do full import clearances for the majority of goods, there is no such luxury for their colleagues in Ireland. That country, along with the rest of the EU, implemented full- scale important clearances from 1 January, in line with Brussels’ regulations. The Irish transport and


freight industry has risen to the challenge, training staff and in many cases setting up or


strengthening customs


clearance arms so as to be able to take on the task on behalf of their customers. Irish Pallet-Track member Roche Logistics Group, which has offices in Dublin, Rosslare and Swansea, is one such operator and it and other members of the network have been helping their customers get


ready for the new regime. For example, shipments will


need a commercial invoice that includes an EORI number, the exporter and importer’s name and addresses, dates, the gross and net weights as well as value of the shipments and countries of origin. For Northern Ireland, a Single Administrative Document (SAD) also needs to be generated by the Trader Support System (TSS). It’s quite complicated for companies that have only ever dealt with customers within the Single European Market. However, says Roche


managing director, Damien Roche, the level of preparedness among customers varies greatly. “Some customers have done some work, others have probably not done enough,” he told FBJ in early December. The situation isn’t helped by


the lack of clarity on the part of governments and their agencies and, in the case of Ireland, the additional uncertainty resulting from the introduction of a new customs computer system in November and December. The switchover from the AEP computer system to AIS in Ireland has also complicated training of staff. With hindsight, introducing a new customs computer on the eve of the fundamental change in trading terms with Ireland’s leading source of imports perhaps wasn’t the best move, but everyone is keeping their fingers crossed that the cutover to the new system will go smoothly. Many of Roche’s customers


in Ireland have opted to use the haulier’s customs clearance service, but they are of course perfectly free to appoint another agent and this is one area where Damien Roche can see problems arising. “What if there is a problem with a consignment arriving in Ireland at 4am but


the agent only works 9 to 5pm?” Many customs agents in Ireland are small firms, in some cases one or two-person operations and could not be expected to provide cover outside office hours. Would the entire truck be expected to wait until the agent started work; taking the shipment off the truck to be dealt with later is not an option at busy ro ro ports. Setting up a customs bond –


a service that Roche can offer – and bonding the shipment through would be one solution but, as Damien Roche points out, this can be very expensive and probably not viable for lower value consignments. Pallet networks and other


operators with busy - and limited - hub space are likely to insist that all documentation is in line before picking up the goods, for fear of having their systems gummed up by shipments with customs problems. Transport operators are unlikely to insist that their


Brokers are open for new business, but do your homework first


It has been said that customs brokers are likely to be overwhelmed by the end of Brexit transition and have closed their doors to new business, but not necessarily, says Paul Burness, managing director of Stanwell (Heathrow)-based broker, HICS Worldwide. “There are always companies


that can accommodate new business as long as those potential clients have done their homework and applied for the correct authorisations then I don’t see it as a problem,” he told FBJ in late November, just as the


transition period was about to come to an end. HICS is owned by the Jersey


Post Group of companies and can offer a range of complementary services including access to the global postal network as well as freight services. It also offers import customs


clearance facilities at Heathrow and Gatwick airports through HMRC’s CHIEF computer system as well as the new CDS computer. HICS can also offer full customs


deferment facilities to the general public, freight and courier agents along with retail companies with


account facilities. A delivery service is available aſter customs clearance has been made, or alternative arrangements can be made directly with customers’ own transport partners. Another service is clearance of


e-commerce shipments through Low Value Bulking of Imports (LVBI) procedures along with Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) shipments. Burness


sees Brexit as an


opportunity in many respects. He continues: “The introduction of customs brokerage for European traffic will enable customs


brokers to concentrate on road and port traffic, which has been missing since 1996. It will enable us to explore a new market on our door-step and give us an exciting future. We have had enquiries regarding Brexit for which we have done as much preparation as possible and have companies already signed up for our services.” HICS Worldwide had not,


at the time of writing, taken on any additional staff but it had upgraded its soſtware and systems through the government grant scheme then being offered.


customers use their own in- house customs clearance service for fear of losing their business. Many firms, particularly larger ones, will insist on using their own agents. The existence of a customs


clearance and associated cost could also change the dynamics of logistics. Importing small quantities of low-value goods could become financially unattractive as an additional €60 charge would increase costs and prices significantly. What might happen, Damien Roche ventures, is that wholesalers or middlemen might emerge who would import larger quantities (with a single customs clearance) and then disburse small amounts to individual traders. Many companies don’t


understand Incoterms, as they have always been dealing within the EU and have used ex-works or CIF for example. UK companies may need to change their terms from DDP (delivered


duty paid) to DAP/CIP/DPU. The free trade deal agreed


at the eleventh hour by the UK Government and the EU will not change the fundamental need for customs clearance, Damien Roche points out, as the UK has nevertheless leſt the EU’s customs territory. But the talk of a deal did perhaps encourage some firms – particularly those in the UK – to put their heads in the sand and assume that the issue would, somehow,


all go


away by 1 January. Traders – and private buyers


– should not necessarily expect a ‘light touch’ approach from Irish Revenue who will no doubt be on the look-out for under- invoicing of shipments and similar practices. If anything, the number of physical inspections of goods and of documentation could be higher in the early days to weed out £1,000 Ferraris and £25 laptop computers. And the penalties for misdeclaring can be very high these days, says Damien Roche.


Clearance boom could be flash in the pan, says Basildon agent


At the end of 2020, customs brokers were being deluged with offers of new business, says Mike White, group operations director at Basildon, Essex-based Brunel Shipping and Liner Services. However, the question many are asking


themselves is whether


the boom would last and how sustainable it would be. With under a month to go


before the end of Brexit transition on 1 January, there were still major unanswered questions about the new customs regime, he told FBJ. Nor was it certain that any of the


computer platforms would be robust enough to cope with the huge influx of entries. Not all traders had done their


homework on the new rules. Many had not yet got AEO accreditation, deferment accounts or even, in some cases, UK entities. To cope with the influx of


new work, Brunel has taken on four extra staff and would be operating a night shiſt, White said. He explained: “We have signed up to do 4,000 extra entries a month, but we have


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