Brexit Logistics Complexities

Initial Challenges for UK and EU shipments

The UK officially exited the European Union at 2300Hrs GMT December 31st 2020. A trade deal was reached on December 24th, which facilitated tariff and quota free trade between the European Union and Great Britain.

Northern Ireland remains within the European Union single market and regularity check have been introduced between the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. These checks have been put in place to protect the European Union internal market and to ensure the Ireland and Northern Ireland border remains open and free moving in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement. 

Shipments moving between the United Kingdom and the European Union require additional documentation. Latest indications demonstrate that many hauliers and traders have experienced difficulty with the new documents and the procedures required for border crossings, typical considerations include: 

• Export declaration
• T1 movement bond, if moving between EU states or inland, for customs clearance
• Safety & Security filing submission in the UK to cross into the EU – one registration is required per EU country (This is the responsibility of the haulier or shipping line and to date, many hauliers were not registered)
• Kent pass required to allow a vehicle to proceed to the port – this process involves logging the transit paperwork before the pass is issued
• Health certificate requirements where animal or animal products are being transported
• Plant heath certificates where certain plants are shipped.
• Issues pertaining to health checks and when they are required, many foodstuff exports out of the United Kingdom have been delayed due to paperwork complexities