Guidance

Moving processed or repaired goods into free circulation or re-exporting them

Find out how to move your goods from inward processing into free circulation, another special procedure or re-export.

• From: HM Revenue & Customs
• Published: 21 January 2020
• Last updated: 14 June 2024 — See all updates

You must have authorisation before you use inward processing to process or repair your goods.

When you’ve finished processing or repairing your goods, you must leave or ‘discharge’ the procedure and dispose of your goods by:

• re-exporting them outside the UK — you’ll need to use a full declaration unless you’re authorised to use simplified declaration procedures
• declaring them to another customs procedure
• transferring them to another inward processing authorisation holder
• destroying them — usually only possible under customs supervision

There are also special cases for certain goods which are classed as re-export.

Your authorisation letter will tell you:

• the period of time before you have to discharge your goods — this will be based on the period you estimated on your application form or 6 months if you used authorisation by declaration
• details of your supervising office if you need to extend the period

Discharging your goods with a full authorisation

You need to send a form, known as a ‘bill of discharge’ to your supervising office no later than 30 days after the end of the period for discharge.

The Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system is no longer available for completing full import declarations. You can still discharge any outstanding goods through CHIEF if you used the CHIEF system to complete your full import declaration.

If you completed your full import declaration through CHIEF

Discharge your goods online

If you completed your full import declaration through the CHIEF system, complete the online form for CHIEF to discharge your goods.

You need to have a Government Gateway user ID and password. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one the first time you apply.

Discharge your goods by post

To discharge your goods by post, you need to:

1. Get all of your information together before you start. You will fill this form in online and you cannot save your progress.

2. Fill in the CHIEF postal form.

3. Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.

Email HMRC to ask for the form in Welsh.

If you completed your full import declaration through the Customs Declaration Service

If you completed your full import declaration through the Customs Declaration Service, you need to:

1. Get all of your information together before you start. You will fill this form in online and you cannot save your progress.

2. Fill in the Customs Declaration Service postal form.

3. Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.

Find out how accessible our forms are.

Email HMRC to ask for the form in Welsh.

Information you’ll need before you start

You’ll need the following details to hand to fill in the form:

• your inward processing authorisation number, which you’ll find on your authorisation letter
• your EORI number
• authorisation holder’s details
• date the bill of discharge is due
• all bank details

Information you’ll need about the goods you’ve declared to inward processing

You’ll need the following details about your goods:

• customs import declaration reference
• economic code
• commodity code
• description
• customs value
• amounts of customs charges suspended

Information you’ll need if you dispose of your goods

If you’ve disposed of your goods, you’ll need the following:

• disposal reference number
• date of disposal
• free circulation declaration number
• method of valuation
• method of disposal
• economic code
• commodity code
• description
• quantity
• rate of yield
• amounts of customs charges that you’re claiming relief on

Information you’ll need if you carry goods forward to the next accounting period

If you’re carrying goods forward to the next accounting period you’ll need to provide:

• customs import declaration reference and date
• quantity
• period of extension

Discharging your goods when using authorisation by declaration

You need to send a form, known as a ‘bill of discharge’ to your supervising office no later than 30 days after the end of the period for discharge. For us to process the ‘bill of discharge’, all bank details must be included.

The Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system is no longer available for completing full import declarations. You can still discharge any outstanding goods through CHIEF if you used the CHIEF system to complete your full import declaration.

If you completed your full import declaration through CHIEF

Discharge your goods online

If you completed your full import declaration through the CHIEF system, complete the online form for CHIEF.

You need to have a Government Gateway user ID and password. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one the first time you apply.

Discharge your goods by post

To discharge your goods by post, you need to:

1. Get all of your information together before you start. You will fill this form in online and you cannot save your progress.

2. Fill in the CHIEF postal form.

3. Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.

Email HMRC to ask for the form in Welsh.

If you completed your full import declaration through the Customs Declaration Service

If you completed your full import declaration through the Customs Declaration Service, you need to:

1. Get all of your information together before you start. You will fill this form in online and you cannot save your progress.

2. Fill in the Customs Declaration Service postal form.

3. Print and post it to HMRC, using the postal address shown on the form.

Find out how accessible our forms are.

Email HMRC to ask for the form in Welsh.

Information you’ll need before you start

You’ll need the following details to hand to fill in the form:

• your EORI number
• import details including:
  • entry processing unit
  • import entry number
  • import date
  • rate of yield
  • inward processing disposal details (including reference numbers and dates)
  • all Bacs details (cheques will no longer be issued)

Paying duty when you release goods to free circulation

If you release your goods to free circulation, you’ll need to pay duty.

You’ll have told us if you wanted to pay duty based on either the goods being declared to inward processing or released to free circulation.

You can change this method by contacting your supervising office and explaining the reasons.

They will either allow or refuse your request and say if this impacts your authorisation.

Moving your goods to another customs procedure

There are various ways to move your goods to another person:

• to another inward processing authorisation holder
• within the same inward processing authorisation
• by transferring rights and obligations

Moving goods to another inward processing authorisation holder

You can discharge your liability by moving the goods to another inward processing authorisation holder. 

The other party must:

• make a customs declaration using CPC 51 51 000 or 51 51 A04 for goods entered to VAT-only inward processing
• give you a copy of the customs acceptance

You must note the movement in your commercial records before the goods are actually moved.

The liability for any Customs Duty or import VAT suspended under the arrangements remains with you until customs have accepted the movement declaration submitted by the receiving party.

Moving goods within the same inward processing authorisation

If you have more than one set of premises covered by your authorisation, you can move the goods provided you note the movement in your records. No customs documentation is required.

Keeping records

You must keep records containing all the details of goods while they are under either your:

• inward processing authorisation
• Freeport customs special procedure authorisation

This will enable HMRC to supervise your authorisation.

You must keep:

• inward processing authorisation records for 4 years
• Freeport customs special procedure authorisation records for 5 years

Your records must contain the following:

• the reference number of the authorisation used to place the goods under the procedure
• the reference numbers of the declarations used to place the goods under the procedure and to discharge the procedure — if these are not available use codes, numbers or references that can identify the declarations
• information that clearly identifies any documents, other than customs declarations, connected to the placing goods under the procedure and their discharge
• details of marks, identifying numbers, numbers and kind of packages, the quantity and commercial or technical description of the goods and (where relevant) details of any containers used
• the location of the goods and details of any movements that have taken place
• the customs status of the goods — whether they are UK or non-UK goods
• details of any usual forms of handling that may have taken place
• details of any change tariff classification because of the handling
• the costs involved during any usual forms of handling
• the rate of yield or method of calculating it
• details of any use of equivalence
• details of any transfer of rights and obligations that may have taken place
• the date and time that the goods were received in the free zone
• any additional information HMRC may ask you to keep

Where records do not form part of your main records (for example, the rate of yield may be calculated outside of your main records), you must provide a reference to where the information is transferred to in your main records.

Special cases for discharge

As an alternative to re-export or releasing your goods to free circulation, you can dispose of your goods by one of the following methods:

• export shops where the goods are for sale to passengers travelling outside the UK
• sales to non-UK armed forces stationed in the UK (for example, US or Canadian armed forces)
• sales to embassies or consulates for example (this includes sales to non-UK staff based in the UK and UK staff working outside the UK)
• use as stores or bunkers on ships travelling outside the UK (this includes food for crew and passengers)
• tray type meals used on, for example, cross channel ferries but not cross channel trains and UK flights
• aviation fuel used on any flight apart from intra-UK
• delivery of an aircraft
• delivery of spacecraft and related equipment
• delivery of processed products where the duty rate is nil or an airworthiness certificate has been issued
• the disposal of goods where destruction is not allowed on environmental grounds

You can also use commissary stores on aircraft or ships travelling outside the UK. For example, cross channel ferries. Cross-channel trains are not included.

Commissary stores include:

• cutlery
• napkins
• tissues
• slippers
• give-away packs supplied free of charge to passengers

 Goods for sale and foodstuffs are not included.

Published 21 January 2020
Last updated 14 June 2024 + show all updates

1. 14 June 2024

   Discharging your goods with a full authorisation and discharging your goods when using authorisation by declaration have been updated to advise what form needs to be submitted and in which circumstances.

2. 25 April 2024

   The links to the online form for Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) have been updated.

3. 30 September 2022

   We have updated 'Keeping records' to make clear how long you need to keep records.

4. 5 August 2022

   We have updated 'Discharging your goods with a full authorisation' section with a link to the postal form for the Customs Declaration service.

5. 16 June 2022

   This is a clarification to the last update. We have updated the section 'moving goods to another inward processing authorisation holder' to clarify that liability for any suspended customs duty or import VAT remains with the first holder until customs have accepted the movement declaration submitted by the receiving holder.

6. 14 June 2022

   We have updated the section 'moving goods to another authorised inward processing holder' to confirm that liability remains with the first holder until the goods are declared by the receiving holder.

7. 20 December 2021

   This guidance has been updated to show all of these movements must be made on a customs declaration under Customs Procedure Code 51 51 000 or 51 51 A04.

8. 19 November 2021

   Updated the section on keeping records to include Freeport customs special procedure authorisations.

9. 9 June 2021

   This page has been updated to advise all bank details must be included when sending bill of discharge’ for it to be processed.

10. 31 December 2020

    This page has been updated because the Brexit transition period has ended.

11. 21 January 2020

    First published.