Place of import/export

Transit can begin and end either at:

• A customs office of departure/arrival:

  • A port or airport.

  • An approved premise linked to the port or airport, such as a customs warehouse or temporary storage facility.

• An approved location under the Authorised Consignor/Consignee arrangements.  Authorised Consignor/Consignee approvals can either be held by the exporter/importer themselves or they can utilise one held by an agent.

Port of Dover and the Channel Tunnel

In relation to shipments via the Port of Dover and the Channel Tunnel, these locations do not have the space necessary to facilitate the transit process.  Alternative inland locations are required, such as the approved Authorised Consignor/Consignee location offered by The Custom House.

Beginning transit inland – Authorised Consignor

Transit can be instigated when the vehicle is loaded, when the export and transit declarations have been accepted and when the prescribed time limit, to enable HMRC to potentially attend in order to inspect the load, has expired.

The transit accompanying document (TAD) with the movement reference number (MRN) is then printed by the Authorised Consignor, which must travel with the goods at all times.

Once these formalities have been completed, the vehicle is now under transit and it can leave the UK without further presentation at the frontier.

Ending transit inland – Authorised Consignee

Transit can end at the premise of an Authorised Consignee who must:

• Notify HMRC about the arrival of the goods and inform them of any irregularities or incidents that occurred during transport.

• Inspect the goods, notify HMRC about the results and inform them of any irregularities.

Once this has been done, the goods are released from transit.

The Authorised Consignee location must have controlled storage facilities in which to store goods that are not released by HMRC, e.g. due to irregularities in the shipment.  Such storage facilities are available at The Custom House’s Ashford facility.