Guidance

Moving goods you bring into Northern Ireland as 'not at risk’ of moving to the EU

Find out if goods you bring into Northern Ireland can move as 'not at risk’ of moving to the EU.

From:
HM Revenue & Customs
Published
14 December 2020
Last updated
30 June 2023 — See all updates

If you’re a business who brings goods into Northern Ireland from Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) or a country outside of both the EU and UK, you need to submit information about your goods movements to HRMC or if you use an intermediary, such as the Trader Support Service.

If you do not have experience in moving goods into Northern Ireland or would like to find more information, you can sign up for the Trader Support Service to support you with this process. You can also hire a person or business to deal with goods movements into Northern Ireland for you.

There may be duties due depending on the origin of the goods and whether they are ‘at risk’ of onward movement to the EU.

Find out more about your duty options if you’re a business who brings goods into Northern Ireland from Great Britain, or from a country outside of both the EU and the UK.

You can also use an online tool to check if you need to pay a tariff on goods brought into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.

‘At risk’ goods will be charged the applicable EU rate of duty.

‘Not at risk’ goods will be charged:

  • no duty if entering Northern Ireland from free circulation in Great Britain
  • UK duty if entering Northern Ireland from outside of both the EU and the UK
  • UK duty if entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain and the good was not in free circulation in Great Britain

When you cannot declare goods ‘not at risk’

There are some goods which cannot be declared ‘not at risk’. These goods will be automatically ‘at risk’ and the applicable EU rate of duty will be payable.

Goods which are subject to commercial processing, where the additional requirements to declare them ‘not at risk’ are not met, cannot be declared ‘not at risk’. These goods are automatically ‘at risk’. You can find out more about the additional requirements for goods subject to processing in this guidance.

Goods entering Northern Ireland from countries outside of both the EU and UK, where the applicable EU rate of duty is more than the applicable UK duty by 3 percentage points or more, cannot be declared ‘not at risk’. These are automatically ‘at risk’.

If you have moved ‘at risk’ goods into Northern Ireland, you may be able to claim for a repayment of import duty paid or remission of import duty deferred or you may be eligible to claim a waiver subject to de minimis State Aid limits.

Find out more about claiming a repayment or remission of import duty and how to claim a waiver for duty on the goods you bring into Northern Ireland.

When you can declare goods ‘not at risk’

If goods you bring into Northern Ireland are not automatically ‘at risk’, they can be declared ‘not at risk’ when they are either:

When goods you bring into Northern Ireland are ‘not at risk’ due to the applicable duties

Goods brought into Northern Ireland from Great Britain are ‘not at risk’ if the applicable EU rate of duty is zero. This is unless the goods are subject to processing and you do not meet the additional requirements to declare goods for processing ‘not at risk’. You can find out more about the additional requirements for goods subject to processing in this guidance.

Goods brought into Northern Ireland from countries outside of both the EU and the UK are ‘not at risk’ where the applicable UK duty is equal to or more than the applicable EU rate of duty. This is unless the goods are subject to processing in Northern Ireland and you do not meet the additional criteria to declare goods for processing as ‘not at risk’.

To work out what the applicable UK duty and EU rate of duty would be, you need to take account of the customs duty and any other applicable measures that apply to your goods. This includes reliefs and preferential rates where goods meet rules of origin requirements under relevant Free Trade Agreements.

The Customs Declaration Service automatically checks the applicable rates of duty and works out if goods can be treated as ‘not at risk’ based on this.

You do not need to be authorised under the UK Internal Market Scheme to move goods as ‘not at risk’ based on the applicable duties. You must include any claims for preference or reliefs when making your declaration so these can be taken into account.

When goods you bring into Northern Ireland can be declared ‘not at risk’ under the UK Internal Market Scheme

Where the applicable EU rates of duty are more than the applicable UK duties (which are zero in the case of movements from Great Britain to Northern Ireland), goods brought into Northern Ireland can still be moved as ‘not at risk’ when all of the following conditions are met:

  • the goods are for sale to, or final use by, end consumers located in the UK (if the goods are moving to Northern Ireland from a country outside both the UK and the EU, the end consumers must be located in Northern Ireland)
  • the ‘importer of record’ for the goods movement is authorised under the UK Internal Market Scheme
  • the goods not subject to an EU trade remedy

If the goods you bring into Northern Ireland will be subject to processing, you must meet additional criteria before you can move these goods as ‘not at risk’. You can find out more about the additional requirements for goods subject to processing in this guidance.

In moving goods as ‘not at risk’ under the UK Internal Market Scheme, you must be satisfied that these goods entered Northern Ireland to be sold to or for final use by end consumers located in the UK (if the goods are moving to Northern Ireland from a country outside the UK and EU, the end consumers must be located in Northern Ireland).

If you are selling the goods onto further parties in the supply chain, you need to keep evidence in your records to show that the goods meet these requirements.

For example, a wholesaler could sell a chair which was moved as ‘not at risk’ if it will be used at an office location in Northern Ireland. They could ask their customer for a written and signed declaration stating that the goods will remain in Northern Ireland or capture this information when agreeing to terms and conditions in their online sales platform at the point of sale.

If you did not move your goods as ‘not at risk’, and this was a mistake, you may be able to apply for a repayment. If you apply for a repayment, you must provide proof you’re authorised under the UK Internal Market Scheme. This proof should be the letter or the email you received confirming your authorisation. If you moved your goods as ‘not at risk’ by mistake, you should apply for a voluntary clearance amendment (underpayment).

Check the additional requirements for goods subject to processing

If you bring goods into Northern Ireland which will be subject to processing and wish to declare these goods ‘not at risk’, you’ll need to meet additional criteria.

You can move goods that are subject to processing as ‘not as risk’ if you meet at least one of the following:

  • your annual turnover is less than £2 million
  • you’re importing sheepmeat, poultry and beef using UK tariff rate quotas into Northern Ireland from countries outside the UK and EU
  • your goods are for one of the following approved purposes

The approved purposes are:

  • food for sale to end consumers in the UK
  • construction — where the processed goods form a permanent part of a structure that is constructed and located in Northern Ireland by the importer or one subsequent entity
  • directly providing health or care services in Northern Ireland by the importer or one subsequent entity
  • non-profit activities in Northern Ireland by the importer or one subsequent entity, where there is no subsequent sale of the processed goods
  • the final use of animal feed on premises located in Northern Ireland by the importer or one subsequent entity

If you’re moving goods subject to processing in the construction, health and care services, non-profit or animal feed sectors, you may do so even if you sell on the eventual product to one subsequent entity.

For example, you could import animal feed that will be sold on to a farmer, provided the farmer is the final entity in the supply chain and will use the animal feed in Northern Ireland.

Once authorised, you’ll then be able to move your goods for processing that meet these requirements as ‘not at risk’ in line with the treatment of other goods.

These additional requirements for moving goods ‘not at risk’ apply only to goods which will be processed in Northern Ireland.

If you also move goods which are not to be processed, you can still apply for authorisation under the UK Internal Market Scheme. You can move those goods as ‘not at risk’ in the usual way, regardless of whether your business meets the additional processing requirements mentioned in this section.

How to move your goods ‘not at risk’

You can move your goods into Northern Ireland by submitting information directly to HMRC or using:

How to move your goods as ‘not at risk’ under the UK Internal Market Scheme in the Customs Declaration Service

You can use your UK Internal Market Scheme authorisation to move goods as ‘not at risk’. You need to provide information to your intermediary or submit information directly to HMRC using the Customs Declaration Service instructions for imports. 

You need to use the Economic Operators Registration and Identification number (EORI) starting with GB or XI that linked to your UK Internal Market Scheme authorisation. 

You can only use your UK Internal Market Scheme authorisation for goods that you move on or after the date that you’re authorised.

If you want to move a proportion of a single line item as ‘not at risk’, you must submit those goods as a separate line item. The remaining proportion which is ‘at risk’ must be a separate line item for which no code is necessary.

If you’re using a specialist intermediary to complete declarations, you need to:

  • make them aware that the goods you intend to bring into Northern Ireland are ‘not at risk’
  • confirm whether you’re authorised for the UK Internal Market Scheme
  • tell them your UK Internal Market Scheme authorisation number and the EORI that is linked to your authorisation

Find out what supporting evidence you need to move your goods as ‘not as risk’

If you’re moving your goods as ‘not at risk’ under the UK Internal Market Scheme, you’ll need to keep supporting evidence for each consignment you move into Northern Ireland.

You must keep supporting evidence for 5 years and it will need to be accessible at an address in the UK that HMRC can visit.

The types of evidence to support a ‘not at risk’ goods movement include:

  • commercial receipts and invoices
  • VAT invoices
  • commercial contracts and purchase orders
  • delivery receipts
  • consignment notes
  • proof of installation
  • electronic records

Even where you are not responsible for the end destination of the goods, you may still be able to be authorised and move goods as ‘not at risk’ if you can make sure that goods will meet the ‘not at risk’ criteria.

Examples of evidence you could use in this case include:

  • a written and signed declaration from your customer stating that the goods will remain in Northern Ireland
  • evidence that your customer only makes retail sales for final use or end-consumption in the UK from a physical outlet in Northern Ireland
  • evidence that your customer only sells goods that will be for final use by end consumers in the UK and are delivered within the UK
  • commercial contracts and purchase orders showing that goods will be for final use in the UK
  • evidence that the goods are to be permanently installed within the UK

You will not need to provide this evidence to HMRC on a routine basis, only when asked to do so.

Updates to this page

Published 14 December 2020
Last updated 30 June 2023 + show all updates

  1. A link has been included so that you can check the guidance about how to submit a claim for a repayment or remission of EU duty paid on 'at risk' goods brought into Northern Ireland from 1 January 2021.

  2. You can no longer apply for authorisation under the UK Trader Scheme. You must register for the UK Internal Market Scheme.

  3. Removed the how to declare your goods ‘not at risk’ in CHIEF for goods entering Northern Ireland from outside of the UK and EU section as the Customs Declaration Service should be used.

  4. Information added on how to claim a repayment if you make a mistake using the duty off-set mechanism and pay more excise duty that is needed.

  5. A link to an online tool to check if you need to pay a tariff on goods brought into Northern Ireland from Great Britain has been added.

  6. Guidance about when goods can be declared 'not at risk' has been updated.

  7. Guidance updated for declaring goods not ‘at risk’ in the Customs Declaration Service and making a customs declaration in CHIEF for goods entering Northern Ireland from outside the UK and EU.

  8. Information about making a declaration based on expected outcomes has been added. Further information about rules of origin requirements and preferential rates when bringing goods into Northern Ireland has also been added.

  9. First published.

Sign up for emails or print this page

Contents

Related content