6 minute read
International Trade
The Comeback Carnet
The U.K. is experiencing a “double whammy” from Brexit and Covid-19. Individually, these would be daunting but together are a gauntlet of shifting hurdles and stressful challenges. Industries across the board have been hard hit. From live music touring to the creative screen industries to tech companies, all need to cross borders into the E.U and other carnet countries. Boomerang carnets® UK has reached out via webinars, geared toward these industries, to increase awareness of the benefits of the ATA Carnet to ease cross border travel. The customs document provides significant savings enabling overseas music gigs, film production, and product demos to continue.
The top two questions new customers ask are “What can I put on a carnet?” and “Where can I go with it?”. The ATA Carnet is an internationally accepted customs document for temporarily exported merchandise, goods, or professional equipment. It allows cross border movement of goods import-duty and -tax free into 87+ carnet countries and territories for up to a year. The ATA Carnet is known as “The Merchandise Passport” or “Passport for Goods”. It can serve as the Certificate of Registration allowing goods re-entry into the U.K. import-duty and -tax free. You can put almost anything on a carnet from musical instruments, expensive cameras, to a robot that cleans.
We teamed up with the Musicians’ Union to offer discounted rates on carnets for union members to ease the new costs of touring to the E.U. The discounts will allow musicians to take expedient advantage of opportunities despite the new layers associated with doing business with the E.U., our largest trading partner.
In anticipation of the urgent need for carnets, we opened two new Boomerang Carnet Distribution Centers: one at Pinewood Studios in Leeds, and one serving the Bristol/Cardiff/Southwestarea. ATA Carnets benefit companies in nearly every industry. These new locations offer enhanced convenience to the creative screen industries in the vicinity, as well as, to any of the multitude of other industries nearby.
New customers in 2020 represented a variety of industries from lifestyle guru to tech companies to engineering/ construction. One of our more unique customers included a Norwegianbased company with headquarters in the Port of Southampton. They are a major contributor to net zero efforts by providing an environmentally friendly, underwater hull cleaning service for vessels with an advanced remote-controlled robotic vehicle. They used a boomerang Carnets4Cargo in shipping one to their customer outside the U.K.
Our business is based on our customers’ needs. Our 30 plus years of experience means we can readily anticipate those. Historically, jumpstarting economies from dire situations by stimulating trade, in particular exports, has worked. We hope our contribution expedites a comeback to industries and economies at full throttle.
Customs Declarations
made easy
Post Transition businesses need to make customs declarations to import and export goods between Great Britain and the EU
Liverpool Chamber delivers training to highlight what you need to know to be able to accurately complete a simple customs declaration.
Course Objectives
• Demonstrate the gathering of information to complete a customs declaration using various example scenarios, covering both export and import, enabling learners to feel confident in their approach to their own declarations
• Explore a number of typical problems and common errors when completing declarations, increasing their ability to apply best practice
• Improve confidence and provide reassurance through an opportunity to bring specific questions or issues to the attention of the trainer
Our next course is on the 12 of May and you could benefit from Customs Grants . Contact
export@liverpoolchamber.org.uk
for further information.
SME Brexit Support Fund is open for applications
The SME Brexit Support Fund could give you up to £2,000 to help with training or professional advice, if your business has up to 500 employees and no more than £100 million annual turnover.
Traders can apply for up to £2,000 in total through two types of grants:
Grant for Training: The grants can be used to provide training on the following:
• How to complete customs declarations • How to manage customs processes and use customs software and systems
• Specific import and export related aspects including
VAT, excise and rules of origin
Grant for Professional Advice:
The grant can be used to get professional advice, so your business can meet its customs, excise, import VAT or safety and security declaration requirements.
Find out more information on eligibility for the fund and apply online.
Applications will close on 30 June 2021 or earlier, if all funding is allocated before this date.
Global Business
Network
For 160 years our business has been helping UK businesses grow and trade successfully across the world.
The British Chambers of Commerce Global Business Network is comprised of member British Chambers of Commerce and businesses groups that are located across all continents of the world and directly link back to Chambers of Commerce in every region of the UK.
Meet the Ecuadorian Chamber of Commerce:
Ecuador is a growing industry that is willing to open its market to new countries and partners, in order to grow together. Its application of free market principals, including the lowering of trade barriers, its participation in numerous international trade organizations, and a firm commitment to diversification of its economy and reform of its financial institutions, are helping to restore a favorable balance of trade and generally better the nation’s economy. Since 1988, the British Ecuadorian Chamber of Commerce-BRITCHAM UIO- has principally contributed to the strengthening and promotion of commercial relationships between the UK and Ecuador. We seek to generate business opportunities for our members offering a high level of networking, assessment in imports and exports with our allied institutions, as well as information concerning business relations. We have some member companies that are interested in offering different products to the British market such as: - Indigenous crafts & handcrafted jewellery
- Flowers
- Toquilla straw hats
- Infusions and dried fruit
- Plantain and cassava chips
- Exotic fruit
- Organic bananas
For more information visit
http://www.camarabritanica.com.ec
or contact
officer@camarabritanica.com.ec
Revised timetable for the
introduction of import border controls
A new timetable for introducing import border control processes will enable UK businesses to focus on their recovery from the COVID pandemic. The government will now introduce full border control processes, six months later than originally planned.
From 1 October 2021:
• Pre-notification requirements will be required for products of animal origin, high risk food not of animal origin (HRFNAO) and certain animal by products.
• Health certificates will be required for products of animal origin and certain animal by-products.
For more information on importing or moving live animals, animal products and high-risk food and feed of animal origin, https://www.
gov.uk/guidance/importing-or-movinglive-animals-animal-products-and-highrisk-food-and-feed-not-of-animal-origin
For more information on importing or moving fish to the UK, https://www.gov.uk/
guidance/importing-or-moving-fish-
to-the-uk. Guidance on importing animals has also been updated in “guidance for EU businesses exporting to the UK”, https://
www.gov.uk/guidance/eu-business-
exporting-to-the-uk for more information.
From 1 January 2022:
• Safety and Security declarations for imported goods will be required.
• Physical SPS checks for products of animal origin, certain animal byproducts, HRFNAO and high risk plants, will take place at Border Control Posts.
• Prenotification requirements and documentary checks, including phytosanitary certificates, will be introduced for low risk plants and plant products.
• Customs declarations on all goods will be required at the point of import, and businesses will no longer be able to use the deferred declaration scheme.
From 1 March 2022:
• Checks at Border Control Posts will take place on live animals, low risk plants and plant products.
Traders moving controlled goods into Great Britain will continue to be ineligible for the deferred customs declaration approach. They will therefore be required to complete a full customs declaration, when the goods enter Great Britain.
For more information on the announcement, visit https://www.gov.
uk/government/news/governmentfocuses-on-recovery-from-covidwith-new-timeline-for-border-controlprocesses-on-import-of-goods
For a step-by-step guide on importing goods into the UK visit https://www.gov.
