Consumer goods and Brexit - How will you be affected?

Importing, exporting and selling consumer goods have changed following the 1st January 2021. If you’re a business moving goods between Great Britain and the EU, you will no longer be able to import or export goods if you fail to comply with customs procedures and new regulations.

In this guide, we’ve put together key resources and information to keep you up to date with what we know so far about the changes and how businesses will be impacted. Along with our other guides on Brexit, we aim to help you be best placed to handle and prepare for the incoming changes.

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These first few steps and checks are essential ensure you are best placed to handle post-Brexit business.

• EORI number: apply for an EORI number starting with GB as soon as possible if you haven't done so already– ALL businesses moving goods in or out of Great Britain will need this. It only takes 5-10 minutes to apply and you should get a registration within 1 week. Visit www.gov.uk/eori for more information and to apply.

• Intermediary: Using an intermediary to make declarations for you can help speed up and ensure accuracy of processes and prevent goods being held up.

• Licences: you might need an import or export licence for your goods – make sure you have one if this is the case e.g. for chemicals or food.

• VAT: don’t underestimate VAT. Be clear on your obligations and what you might have to pay.

• Deferred declarations: can be helpful and enable you to pay duty on a direct debit basis instead of all in one go on individual consignments. This makes sense if you’re regularly moving goods in or out of Great Britain.

Top tip: if you’re regularly importing goods, you can have a duty account that makes things more efficient. A duty account will allow you to make payment via direct debit, rather than payments on each individual consignment.

Changes begun from 1st January 2021 when the Northern Ireland Protocol came into effect. The protocol has triggered changes for goods movements from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, including different administrative procedures for traders e.g. new digital import declaration requirements.

You can read the full guidance on gov.uk [here] (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trading-and-moving-goods-in-and-out-of-northern-ireland-from-1-january-2021).

Trader Support Service (TSS)

The HMRC has developed a new free service for traders called the Trader Support Service (TSS). The service will help you cope with changes to moving goods to/from Northern Ireland and can even complete declarations for you!

Sign up here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/trader-support-service

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Manufacturers should be aware of this new scheme that aims to make it easier and cheaper for businesses to import from any country where the UK does not have a free trade agreement in place.

During the transition period (up to 31st December 2020), the EU common external tariff continued to apply. However, from 1st January 2021, the UKGT now applies to goods from countries with whom the UK does NOT have a trading agreement in place.

You can check which tariffs apply using this tool from .gov.uk. You’ll need your EORI code or a description of your product to use the government’s tool. There is help on the site to help you find out the commodity code if you don’t have it to hand.

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These are agreements which the UK is hoping to sign in order to replace existing trade agreements in the EU. They’ll be relevant if you’re currently trading with other businesses in other EU countries and if you've previously been benefitting from the EU’s free trade and common market arrangements.

All agreements already signed by the UK with other countries are listed on the gov.uk site. Once in place the agreements enable you to continue trading as you did before the end of the transition period. However, where agreements are not in place by 1st January 2021, trade will take place on WTO terms.

To best prepare, by the end of this year, ensure that you check here to see if a trade continuity agreement has been signed by the UK with any country you are currently trading with, through an EU trade agreement or otherwise.

It also might be a good idea to sign up for email alerts from the transition team at gov.uk to stay up to date.

You can also make use of the Department for International Trade tool to check tax and duty rates, exporting documents, and rules and restrictions.

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It’s important to keep in mind that the guidance does NOT apply to goods on the market in Northern Ireland or goods flowing between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Different rules apply here which you will need to check.

Labelling goods

• CE marking

  • You will still be able mark products placed on the GB market with CE labelling if you use an EU Notified Body or self-certify until 1st January 2022
  • Where required, you’ll need to use the CE marking for produced on the EU market
  • You can use both markings (CE and UKCA) on a single product if being marketed in GB and the EU

• UKCA marking

  • New approach products will be assessed by a GB ‘approved body’ against GB rules and will need UKCA marking from 1st January 2021 onwards.
  • You can self-certify for the UKCA mark if you already do so for the CE mark – but the UK declaration of conformity will need to be completed for you to use the UKCA mark
  • The standards to demonstrate compliance to the CE marking will be the same for the UKCA marking from January 2021.

Labelling and how to ensure new approach goods are labelled correctly

'New approach goods’ refer to those not already in circulation on the market. From 1st January 2021, conformity assessments by UK bodies will no longer be recognised in the EU and manufacturers will be required to have separate EU and UK certificates. You should now start to arrange for separate certificates in time for 1st January 2022 as there may be re-assessment needed before an additional certificate is issued.

The main change here relates to CE mark goods. From January 2022, you’ll need to use the UK’s new product mark – the new UKCA mark.

UK declaration of conformity will need to be completed for you to put UKCA mark on your goods, but compliance for the UKCA is essentially the same steps and standards as the current CE mark. Nothing will change if you presently self-certify for the CE mark – you can do the same for UKCA.

If you plan to continue to place products on the EU market, you’ll still need to use the CE mark. However, you should mark products both CE and UKCA if you intend to market goods in Great Britain and the EU (but be sure to check that the rules are met for both markets!).

Find out more about using the UKCA mark from 1 January 2021 here.

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If you use a conformity assessment body:

All existing UK bodies currently accredited will automatically transfer over. If you use any conformity assessment body, make sure you know your options for these assessments going forward. Be sure to arrange for separate certificates for both CE and UKCA marks for those goods that will require both – delays may be expected so start the process now.

It is important to know that importers have a higher burden in terms of labelling and standards compliance obligations.

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You can find more information about placing goods on the GB market here

Or, for further information about placing goods on the EU market, head here

And, for information on placing goods on the Northern Ireland market, follow this link

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You’ll need to comply with each EEA country’s e-commerce rules you operate in. Previously, the directive harmonised it for UK traders, but it will no longer be of any benefit. The directive does not apply to all online services (check on the gov.uk website) but make sure you know whether your services were in scope and therefore require new compliance obligations.

These regulations affect online shopping, contracting and a variety of other services and goods. Search ‘ecommerce directive after the transition period’ on gov.uk. Compliance was needed by the 1st January 2020 otherwise so you now risk non-compliance if you don’t follow the key rules for online services in EEA countries.

What to do if you have a .eu domain name

If you’re not an EU/EEA citizen, resident or business that is established in the EU/EEA, you should consider using another domain. You should migrate services and functions that your EU domain is linked to as soon as possible.

IP rights and trademarks

Action will be needed on IP rights, so you may want to consider taking advice. You can find out more about Intellectual property after Brexit here.

Failure to take action might infringe intellectual property rights. From January 1st 2021 onwards, goods protected by intellectual property rights, which are placed on the UK market first, might be prevented from export to the EEA. You may need permission of the IP rights holder to continue with your involvement in the parallel export of IP-protected goods from the UK to the EEA.

Ultimately, parallel trading will be more arduous – permission will need to be sought from rights-holder for entry of IP-protected UK goods into each EEA member state. This means goods travelling between the EEA and UK may need IP licences for every country they’re being sold in. You’ll no longer benefit from the pre-Brexit umbrella assurance that if goods enter one EEA country with brand owner permission, then all other EEA countries are treated the same (parallel trading rules).

Following the end of the transition period, the IPO has created a UK right automatically for all registered EU trade marks and designs, but these are independent UK rights that will retain the renewal and filing dates of the EU right. You will therefore need to renew your ‘new’ UK right independently at the IPO. UK business still continue to have access to the Hague system. There will be very little impact on patents.

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