The Government has announced the UK’s new Customs tariffs.

The UK Global Tariff (UKGT) will replace the current EUs’ Common External Tariff (EU CET). The new regime will come into play on the 1st January 2021, marking the end of the Transition Period.

How does this affect your business? If you supply us with a list of your commodity codes, we can give you a comparison of the old versus new duty rates, showing you your potential duty savings.

The new tariff is designed to support the needs of the UK economy, making it easier for businesses to import goods from overseas. It eliminates the EU’s complex Meursing table, scrapping thousands of unnecessary tariff variations on products.

The UKGT tariff also includes simplified tariff lines with almost 6,000 streamlined changes. Business costs will also be cut including reduced administrative burdens.

Key changes will include:

• removing unnecessary tariff variations
• rounding tariffs down to standardised percentages
• removing all tariffs below 2%.
• expanding tariff free trade by eliminating tariffs on a wide range of products
• The new tariff is cheaper than EU CET
• Using pounds (£) rather than euros

UKGT ensures that 60% of trade comes into the UK tariff free on WTO terms, or through existing preferential access from January 2021. It eliminates unnecessary barriers to trade and reduces the cost pressures for businesses, increasing choice for consumers, and backing UK industries to compete on a global stage.

Finally, we would strongly recommend your company apply to become an Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) and we can guide you through the process and explain the many benefits.

Should you need any assistance with your Customs obligations, please contact one of our customs specialists on our Brexit Hotline 01375 850 770 or email us at brexitteam@ugroup.co.uk.

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