Whether you voted leave or remain (let’s not go down that route again) Brexit is happening, or indeed has already happened, as we officially left the EU at the start of the year. The whole of 2020 has been a transition period, a year to sort out a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the UK and the EU, however at the time of writing we still don’t have a one, and time is running out.

One way or another we will still leave the EU (properly, this time) on 31st December, with or without an FTA. If we don’t sort out an FTA with enough time for it to be ratified by both UK parliament and all the EU member states, then we end up on World Trade Organization terms (WTO). This could be particularly damaging for UK businesses, so let’s hope we can agree an FTA before long.

Either way, for any businesses that import or exports (approximately half of all UK businesses) from the EU or even the rest of the world, there are still a number of considerations and things to arrange before the year is out. A bit like your Christmas shopping, if you haven’t started it yet, or at least given it some thought you definitely need to, and soon.

Some of the considerations for UK importers and are exporters include but are not limited to:

• Decide how you want to make customs declarations and whether you need to get someone to deal with customs for you

• Check if you need to pay a tariff on the goods you import from 1st January 2021

• Get an Economic Operators Registration and Identification Number (EORI) number that starts with GB to move your goods into or out of the EU

• Check if your employees need a visa or work permit and that they meet professional requirements for the country they’re going to

• Check the rules, tax and duty rates for exporting to the rest of the world

• Check what documents you need to transport goods through the EU if you’re a haulier

• Check if you need to change your contract to keep accessing personal data from the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein

• Check the new rules for parallel exporting IP protected goods from the UK to the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein

• If you buy chemicals from the EU, you will need to register on the new UK REACH system, this can take up to 6 weeks.

• Register for a licence to export dual-use items to the EU and Channel Islands 

• Check the rules for providing online services to the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein

• Check which carbon pricing policies you need to comply with

• Check whether any wood packaging you use meets ISPM15 international standards

• Check if sanctions applying to a country, person or organisation will affect your business

• Check if there's a trade agreement with any non-EU country you're planning to trade with from 1 January 2021

• Check if you need a Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora permit (CITES) when moving endangered animal or plant species between the UK and the EU

• Check if you need to change how you do accounting and reporting

• Check the rules for reporting unfair trade practices using the UK's new trade remedies service

So as you can see, if you haven’t starting looking at it yet then you definitely need to start soon, as in yesterday. The good news is if you haven’t started your Christmas shopping yet then it will make that seem a whole lot easier and less stressful by comparison. The best place to start is the Government website where you can fill out a questionnaire that will narrow down the actions you need to take dependent on the nature of your business:

https://www.gov.uk/transition

As with most things in life, there are companies out there who you can pay to look at it for you, however there is still plenty of time to sort everything out if you act now. Whatever happens, we are likely to see volatility in the Foreign Exchange market and if we do end up on WTO terms, then every penny will count for UK businesses. Talk to us today about how we can help your business navigate Brexit by cutting costs, improving efficiencies and helping you protect your profit margins.