It has been confirmed that UK exporters and importers will still be required to file Intrastat returns after 31st December 2020
International Trade Compliance Specialist Mike Court brings us the latest developments as we move closer to the Brexit deadline
What is an Intrastat return?
Intrastat returns are a mandatory task for companies who move goods from UK to the EU (subject to value thresholds). It enables the UK authorities and the EU to track trade between countries for statistical purposes.
Intrastat data is also used to check on potential VAT fraud.
Do I need to be registered?
If you are currently a registered Intrastat business or in the coming year you will exceed the Intrastat exemption threshold, which is £1,500,000 for EU imports (arrivals) and/or £250,000 for EU exports (dispatches), then you must submit monthly Intrastat declarations in 2021 for the following movement of goods:
- Goods imported into Great Britain (GB) from the European Union (EU)
- Goods imported into Northern Ireland (NI) from the EU
- Goods exported from NI to the EU for the lifetime of the Northern Ireland Protocol (This will be a minimum of 4 years)
- You do not have to submit Intrastat declarations for goods exported from GB to the EU
There will be NO CHANGE to either the Intrastat arrivals or dispatches exemption thresholds for 2021 for either GB or NI movement of goods (you should submit Intrastat declarations if the value of your trade with the EU exceeds: £1,500,000 for arrivals (EU to GB and EU to NI imports) £250,000 for dispatches (NI to EU exports)
What are the exceptions?
There are some notable exceptions to the Intrastat returns mandate, including:
- Temporary exports
- Services
- If your company is NOT VAT registered, you do not need to file an Intrastat return
Questions?
Mike and the team can guide you through all aspects of international trade compliance to make sure you’re on track and up-to-date. Contact us using the form below, or give us a call.
We recognise that some importers may decide not to use the staged controls facilitation and may consider submitting Intrastat arrivals declarations to be an additional burden. However, the necessary detail, quality and consistency of the resulting statistical data can only be achieved from using one data source, rather than a mixture of both Intrastat and customs declarations. You can find more information about Intrastat returns here, on the government website
This is vital as ‘Trade in Goods Statistics’ are essential to the Government’s ability to monitor the UK economy and trade performance and for the continued use by all users of the international trade publications.