Firms importing goods from Great Britain and the EU may have the opportunity to claim a refund, and changes to the Protocol mean a new registration is now required.
Refund Opportunity – UK Duty Reimbursement Scheme
Have you paid EU Customs Duty on importing goods into Northern Ireland from Great Britain or the Rest of the World? If so, and those goods have remained in Northern Ireland, you may be able to reclaim all or part of the duty paid. The UK Duty Reimbursement Scheme opened on 30 June 2023 and in certain circumstances a refund of EU Customs duty from 1 January 2021 can be claimed, initial claims can be made up to 30 June 2026.
You may be eligible for a reimbursement of all or part of EU Customs Duty paid on “at risk” goods imported to Northern Ireland, where you as the importer have evidence that the goods did not move to the EU. This will typically be on goods on which the EU Custom duty was paid on import, but the goods were subsequently consumed in Northern Ireland, the final sale of the goods was in Northern Ireland, they were permanently installed in Northern Ireland or evidence that they were sold onto Great Britain/Rest of the World (not the EU).
To make a claim you need to have been the importer of the goods and have evidence to demonstrate that the goods didn’t move to the EU (for example, they were used in some of the ways above).
Further information on the UK Duty Reimbursement Scheme and how to claim a refund can be found here.
Action required – Apply for authorisation under the UK Internal Market Scheme
If you import goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and are currently registered under the UK Trader Scheme, using TSS (or you should be), you need to register under the New UK Internal Market Scheme which will replace the UK Trader Scheme from 30 September 2023. You will need to be registered under the UK Internal Market Scheme to be able to declare the goods you import as not “at risk”.
Like the UK Trader Scheme, there are a number of conditions to be met to be able to register under the UK Internal Market Scheme and declare goods not at risk, further information on the scheme and the registration process can be found here.