Are you ready for Brexit?
With Coronavirus dominating recent headlines, the UK Government have continued to work on the Brexit strategy.
The UK will leave the EU Single Market and Customs Unions at the end of 2020 when the current transition period ends. This means that from 1 January 2021, the UK will operate a full, external border with the EU.
Below are some simple steps that will help you prepare for the future:
- Apply for an EORI
If you haven’t done so already, ensure you apply for an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI). This will allow businesses to keep trading with customers and suppliers in the EU. It takes less than 10 minutes, simply apply using the following link: gov.uk/eori.
- EU Nationals already working in the UK
EU citizens and their family members living in the UK have until 31st December 2020 to apply to continue living in the UK after 30 June 2021 under the EU Settlement Scheme. The EU Settlement Scheme is now open and application guidance can be found on: gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families.
- Check your paperwork, including contract terms & payments
In order to continue trading, ensure you check that you have the licences/permits/approvals you need in all the other EU states. There are a number of changes that may need to be made such as product labelling, local VAT registrations needed or the setup of new tariff payments.
Following Brexit, there will be new restrictions on transferring data across borders, this may mean new policies are required to prevent breaches of data rules in EU countries.
For more information on preparing to leave the transition period, please visit https://www.gov.uk/transition.
If you are a VAT-registered business trading with the EU, please visit our news article on HMRC’s advice to such businesses.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused some changes and delays to preparations for the future beyond the transition period, however the government and HMRC has issued some guidance:
- New border controls on imports to from EU to GB are being introduced in stages
- Customs declarations for goods that are not controlled can be delayed until 30th June 2021
If you would like assistance with Brexit planning in relation to your accounting needs, then please do not hesitate to contact our team.