Guidance

General Notes on Reading Data Element Completion Rules

Updated 28 September 2024

This Data Element Completion Guide relates to Customs Declaration Service (CDS) written export customs declarations only.

It does not cover completion instructions for import customs declarations or Customs Clearance Requests ((CCRs) inventory releases previously referred to as C21s).

For data element completion guidance for imports and CCRs, please refer to the appropriate Declaration or Customs Clearance Request Completion Guide.

Data element overview table

The table shown, at the start of each data item, identifies in column:

1. Which types of declaration require the completion of the data element (Declaration Categories)
2. The number and type of characters allowed in the field (Field format)
3. The number of times the data element may be used at header level (Number of occurrences at header level)
4. The number of times the data element may be used at item level (Number of occurrences at item level)

For example:

Declaration Categories	Field format	No. of occurrences at header level	No. of occurrences at item level
B1, B2, B3, B4, C1 C&F and C1 B&E	a2	1x	99x

Declaration Categories:

The data element completion rules provided in this document indicate for which types (categories) of declarations the data element is required, for example, Data Element (DE) 1/1 needs to be completed for categories: B1, B2, B4, C1 C&F and C1 B&E.

The table below explains which categories of export customs declarations these are, for example C1 C&F: Export or Re-export Simplified Declaration (Regular Use).

Declaration Categories	Description
B1	Export Standard Declaration or Re-export Standard Declaration
B2	Special Procedures – Declaration for Outward Processing
B3	Declaration for Customs Warehousing of Union goods to claim repayment or remission of export duty. To note this declaration type is not currently used in the UK. This type will only be introduced if CAP export refunds are re-introduced.
B4	Declaration for dispatch of goods to a Special Fiscal Territory or Territory with which the EU has formed a Customs Union
C1 C&F	Export or Re-export Simplified Declaration (Regular Use)
C1 B&E	Export Simplified Declaration (on an occasional basis)

For correlation purposes:

• Full customs declarations are referred to under the Union Customs Code (UCC) as standard customs declarations
• The Pre-Shipment Advice (PSA) used under Simplified Declaration Procedure (SDP) is referred to under the Union Customs Code as a Simplified Declaration Regular Use (DE 1/2 codes C&F)
• Incomplete declarations (Partial declarations in CHIEF terms) are referred to under the Union Customs Code as Simplified Declarations on an occasional basis (DE 1/2 codes B&E)
• Declaration categories B1 and B4 will be used for the Supplementary Declaration data sets. Please refer to the Declaration Category Data Set tables in Appendix 22: Declaration Category Data Sets for details of the specific data elements to be completed on the supplementary declaration, including any data element exemptions

Exit Summary Declaration (EXS) Pre-departure Declaration Data Elements, including those for Express Consignments

In the UK, currently on CHIEF, the pre-departure EXS data elements are included with the fiscal data elements in a ‘combined’ customs declaration. This will continue to be the case on CDS.

EXS data requirements are incorporated into the B1, B2, C1 C&F and C1 B&E data sets for the purposes of UK CDS export and re-export pre-departure declarations. These are not declared in isolation as an export customs declaration category in their own right. A stand-alone EXS safety and security declaration may only be made using a C21e. Please see the CDS Customs Clearance Request Instructions for Inventory Exports for details.

These data elements are not required when a waiver from the obligation to lodge a pre-departure declaration is claimed under Article 245 of Commission Delegated Regulation 2015/2446.Where the EXS data has been provided to CDS pre-departure, the data elements will not require completion on the supplementary declaration. The specific data element completion rules will state whether a supplementary declaration exemption applies.

Data Sets to be used for Combined Declarations

For combined fiscal and EXS declarations, the pre-departure declaration data sets are constructed by combining the following data sets:

For standard declarations:

• B1
• B2

For simplified declarations (regular use) (formerly referred to as the ‘Pre-Shipment Advice’):

• C1 C&F

For simplified declarations (on an occasional basis) (formerly referred to as Partial declarations on CHIEF):

• C1 B&E

The B4 declaration data set does not include any EXS data requirements.

Appendix 22: Declaration Category Data Sets provides a detailed breakdown of the specific data elements needed for each declaration category.

There is a separate table in Appendix 22 for each declaration category type, for example B1 data set.

These tables also provide a cross reference from the new data element number to the previous SADH box reference number for correlation purposes.

The data set tables in Appendix 22 also state whether the data element is mandatory in all cases, optional for the declarant or dependant on the circumstances being declared.

The data set tables in Appendix 22: Declaration Category Data Sets will also indicate which EXS data elements may be excluded when making a Supplementary Declaration.

Field Format

The column showing field format in the table at the start of each data element indicates the requirements for the character type and length. The codes for the character types are as follows:

• a: alphabetic
• n: numeric
• an: alphanumeric

The number following the code indicates the admissible data length.

The following further rules apply:

• If there are no dots between the character type indicator and the length of the field indicator, then the data element has a fixed length and the full number of characters must be completed. For example: a2 indicates that 2 alpha characters must be used
• Where there are two dots before the length indicator, this means that the data has no fixed length, but it can have up to a maximum number of digits, as specified by the length indicator. For example: an..4 indicates that a up to maximum of 4 alpha numeric characters may be used
• A comma in the field length means that the data element can include decimals, the digit before the comma indicates the maximum length of the data element. The digit after the comma indicates the maximum number of digits that may be used after the decimal point
• For example, n..16,2: The maximum field length is 16 digits:
  • A maximum of two decimal places may be used.
  • If both decimal places are used, a maximum of 14 digits may be declared prior to the decimal place.
  • If only 1 decimal place is used, a maximum of 15 digits may be declared prior to the decimal place.
  • If no decimal places are used, the full 16 digits may be used to indicate the whole number.
  • You cannot declare 16 digits plus 2 decimal places

Examples of field lengths and formats:

• a1: 1 alphabetic character, fixed length
• n2: 2 numeric characters, fixed length
• an3: 3 alphanumeric characters, fixed length
• a..4: up to 4 alphabetic characters
• n..5: up to 5 numeric characters
• an..6: up to 6 alphanumeric characters
• n..7,2: up to 7 numeric characters in total including maximum 2 decimal places

Please Note:

Where the field specifies:

• Alpha character only, it must be completed in upper case. For example, “Field Length a2” to be completed in capitals for example, GB
• Alphanumeric fixed length code, it must be completed in upper case. For example, “Field Length an5” to be completed in capitals example, GEN45
• Alpha numeric free text fields, these may be completed in upper or lower case

Data Groups:

Within the Union Customs Code (EU Reg. No 952/2013 (UCC)) the declaration data elements are grouped into sections:

Group	Description
1	Message Information (including Procedure Codes)
2	References of Messages, Document, Certificates and Authorisations
3	Parties
4	Valuation Information and Taxes
5	Dates, Times, Periods, Places, Countries and Regions
6	Goods Identification
7	Transport Information (Modes, Means and Equipment)
8	Other Data Elements (Statistical Data, Guarantees and Tariff Related Data)

Each data element will begin with the number of the Data Group it belongs to, for example, Exporter Identification Number, which is included under ‘Data Group 3: Parties’ begins with number 3. Its data element number is DE 3/2.

Notes:

Where the Declaration Completion Guide or declaration category indicates that a data element may be left blank, it may already have been completed on the declaration for goods arriving from another member state.

Where that is the case and the declaration is being used as an export declaration in this country, the information must be allowed to stand - it must not be deleted or erased.