Deciphering the code

With an increasing emphasis being placed on international tax strategies and a growing focus on businesses needing to understand and manage the direct and indirect tax aspects of trading internationally there is an imminent and significant change that will affect businesses that regularly import from countries outside the EU.

Major changes to the procedure for clearing goods imported into the UK – as well as other EU member states – and for subsequently declaring and paying customs duties are taking effect next year. This will be relevant to business sectors from manufacturing and retail to pharmaceutical. The changes will potentially affect logistics and operational departments commercial managers and finance teams and others who need to understand the implications.

The current code

The current European Union customs code (UCC) is now more than 20 years old and is out of...