The deferred third phase of Britain’s post-Brexit border procedures for EU imports will begin on Friday.
This comes four years after Britain departed the bloc’s single market and nine years after voting to exit the EU.
Following Brexit, the rules of Britain’s mission to untangle supply chains and establish customs barriers were so complex that it only began implementing new laws in 2018.
The first phase of Britain’s new border approach, which requires additional verification for certain goods, went into effect at the end of January last year.
The second phase began at the end of April, with physical checks at ports for meat, fish, cheese, eggs, dairy goods, and some cut flowers. New levies were also introduced.
A third phase, which has been postponed since October 31 of last year, will begin on Friday, with businesses transporting goods from the EU to Britain obliged to comply with new UK safety and security declaration rules – specific information about the products being delivered.
Britain’s HM Revenue and Customs claimed obligatory data collection would allow for “more intelligent risking of goods,” with legal goods less likely to be held up at the border. It stated that this will result in less interruption for businesses while stopping illicit and harmful items from entering the UK.
But it warned businesses that declarations must be submitted before goods arrived at the UK border to avoid them being held up for unnecessary checks and possible penalties.
While Britain’s major retailers and large EU exporting businesses have the resources to handle the demands of the new border regime, smaller retailers and wholesalers have complained it is disproportionately burdensome.
Finance minister Rachel Reeves said on Sunday, she was “happy to look at” an idea, put forward last week by European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, that Britain could join a pan-European customs scheme. The scheme is not the same as the EU’s full customs union, which the Labour government has said it will not rejoin.
