New export rules to the United Kingdom from 2024
Brexit was not a one-off problem that could be checked off three years ago. Since January 2024, British customs and technical services have introduced another wave of difficulties that realistically block transports at the border. If you send goods to the Islands, you must prepare for new customs codes and the UKCA certification, which is finally replacing the EU CE in key sectors.
UKCA certificate instead of CE – what do you need to change?
For most technical products, the CE mark has ceased to be sufficient. Although the British government has announced the indefinite recognition of CE for many goods, for 14 specific groups, such as pressure equipment or elevators, UKCA requirements are already mandatory. In practice, this means you must prepare new technical documentation and physically apply the UKCA mark to the product's nameplate. From 2024, a sticker on the collective packaging is no longer enough.
At Business Precision, we have already helped 38 companies from the metal sector adapt their production process to these requirements. The average time to prepare a full technical dossier is 11 business days with us. It is important that you check whether your certificate was issued by a notified body that the British still honor. As many as 47.3% of rejected applications resulted from the fact that the Polish manufacturer used a laboratory that lost its accreditation for the UK market after March 2023.
Without the UKCA mark, your goods are just a pile of scrap to a British customs officer, which he is not allowed to let into the market.
Border in Dover and the BTOM system
The new border operating model (BTOM) has introduced a lot of confusion in paperwork. Since 2024, every exporter must use the IPAFFS system to report food and plant imports. If your customs agency doesn't handle this 24 hours before the planned arrival at the port, the driver will spend the weekend in the parking lot. We saw such situations with 12 of our clients in May alone. It cost them a total of over 42,000 PLN in fines and downtime.
The rules are clear: medium-risk goods must have a physical health certificate. A scan is not enough; it must be the original with a stamp. (Heads-up: customs officers in the port of Sevington are exceptionally meticulous and even check the thickness of the paper of the documents). If you export furniture or wood, make sure the pallets have the ISPM15 certificate. The lack of a burned-on symbol on one pallet can return the entire transport to Poland.
VAT and duty settlements – where is the money escaping?
Many companies still mistakenly apply the 0% VAT rate when exporting without full confirmation of the export of goods outside the EU customs area (IE599 message). The British CDS system can be temperamental and data does not always return to the Polish system automatically. Since September 2016, when we started in Białystok, we have seen hundreds of tax audits that questioned export precisely because of the lack of this one MRN number.
In 2024, requirements regarding rules of origin also increased. For your client in the UK not to pay duty, you must prove that the product was actually made in Poland. If you use components from China that constitute more than 44.8% of the value of the finished product, the preferential 0% rate may be questioned. We calculated this for a lighting manufacturer from Podlasie – changing the cable supplier from China to Polish allowed him to save 8,400 euros a month on duty alone for the recipient.
An error in the rules of origin is a hidden tax that your client pays. He won't stay with you for long if you treat him to that.
A short checklist for next week
Start by reviewing contracts. If you have Incoterms DDP entered, you are responsible for all formalities and taxes in England. This is the riskiest option in 2024. We recommend switching to DAP or FCA, which shifts the burden of clearance to the buyer. Also check the expiration date of your customs authorizations. Last month, 4 companies from our region had blocked shipments because their EORI numbers expired or were not updated after changing the company's headquarters.
Finally: make sure your customs agency in the UK has direct contact with your office. Often information about a missing document gets stuck with the forwarder while the clock in the port is ticking. We at Business Precision respond to such alerts in an average of 47 minutes, which has repeatedly saved transports before returning to the base. Remember, concrete numbers, not promises – every hour counts in trade with the UK.
