Customs Valuation Explained: How HMRC Values Your Imported Goods
What is customs valuation? Customs valuation is the process HMRC uses to determine the monetary value of imported goods. That value is used to calculate how much import duty you owe. Get it wrong, too low or too high, and you risk penalties, delays, or overpaying. Getting it right starts with understanding how the system […]
Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) Explained: A UK Guide
What is DDP? Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) is an Incoterms 2020 rule where the seller takes on every obligation in the shipment, export clearance, international freight, import customs clearance, import duties, and delivery to the named destination. Risk passes when goods arrive at the agreed place and are made available to the buyer. DDP applies […]
DDU Incoterm (Delivered Duty Unpaid) Explained — and Why DAP Replaced It
What is DDU? DDU, Delivered Duty Unpaid, was an Incoterm under the Incoterms 2000 rules. The seller delivered goods to a named destination and bore all transport costs and risk during transit. The buyer was responsible for import customs clearance, import duties, and taxes on arrival. DDU was abolished in Incoterms 2010 and replaced by […]
Duty Deferment Account Explained: How to Defer Import Duty and VAT with HMRC
Last updated: June 2026 Table of Contents What Is a Duty Deferment Account? How Duty Deferment Works. The Payment Cycle Who Can Apply for a Duty Deferment Account? How to Apply for a Duty Deferment Account What Duties Can Be Deferred? The Guarantee Requirement. Do You Need One? Duty Deferment and the Guarantee Waiver Duty […]
UK Trade Preferences Explained: How GSP and DCTS Reduce Import Duty on Goods from Developing Countries
If you import goods into the UK from developing countries, you may be able to pay less, or even zero, import duty. The UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) makes this possible. It replaced the old UK rollover of the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) in 2023 and is now one of the most […]
Inward Processing Relief (IPR) Explained: How to Suspend Import Duty on Goods You Process and Re-export
What is IPR? Inward Processing Relief (IPR) is a UK customs special procedure that lets you import goods from outside the UK, carry out a process on them, such as manufacturing, repair, or incorporation into another product, and then re-export the finished goods without paying import duty on the materials you brought in. Duty is […]
Outward Processing Relief (OPR) Explained: How UK Businesses Can Send Goods Abroad for Processing and Bring Them Back at a Reduced Duty Rate
What is OPR? Outward Processing Relief (OPR) is a UK customs procedure that lets businesses temporarily export goods to another country for processing, repair, or manufacturing, and then re-import the finished goods at a reduced rate of import duty. Instead of paying duty on the full value of the re-imported goods, you only pay duty […]
Landed Cost Explained: How to Calculate the True Cost of Importing Goods to the UK
What is landed cost? Landed cost is the total cost of getting a product from a supplier’s factory to your door in the UK. It includes the product price, international freight, insurance, import duty, import VAT, customs clearance fees, and inland delivery, every cost you pay before the goods are in your warehouse and ready […]