About Customs
warehousing and
other customs
procedures
There are numerous customs procedures, all designed to ensure that duty and VAT do not make businesses in the EU less competitive in the international market place. Of these, customs warehousing is probably the best known. You can store your goods in your own private customs warehouse or use a commercially run customs warehouse.
The major benefits of customs warehousing are:
- no need to pay duty and import VAT on goods intended for re-export outside the EU;
- delaying customs clearance of goods
to take advantage of a duty free quota;
- where goods are dispatched to another EU member state there
is usually no need to pay the import
VAT. This makes for substantial cash-flow advantages; and
- you can manage when you pay import duty and VAT, for
example to
minimise the time before you reclaim the VAT on your VAT return.
- import, process and re-export; export for processing outside the EU and re-import;
- import and supply to another EU member state; and
- import goods, liable to one duty rate, that are used to manufacture goods liable to a lower duty rate.
Where a customs procedure gives a duty advantage, it is usually necessary to have prior authorisation by HMRC and you may need to maintain additional records.
Many importers expect their freight agents to advise them on the appropriate customs procedure but many agents are only aware of the more common reliefs. All too frequently they know little about you - the importer - and your business activities.
If you would like to discuss customs procedures with someone who has years of experience in this field, give me a call. I make no charge for initial enquiries.
www.tuckey.biz Last updated: 18th February 2008
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