Official Statistics

Customs declarations for international trade in goods in 2021

Updated 4 August 2022

1. Tables produced

The tables produced in this release are:

• Notes: a summary of the key terms and definitions, data notes and caveats
  
  

• Table 1: Declarations by month and trade partner
  
  
  • Table 1a: Import declarations by trade partner and month, 2021
  • Table 1b: Export declarations by trade partner and month, 2021
  • Table 1c: Import declarations by trade partner and month, 2019 to 2020
  • Table 1d: Export declarations by trade partner and month, 2019 to 2020
    
    
• Table 2: Declarations by declarant representation and trade partner
  
  
  • Table 2a: Import declarations by declarant representation and trade partner, 2021
  • Table 2b: Export declarations by declarant representation and trade partner, 2021
    
    
• Table 3: Declarations by location of entry/exit and trade partner
  
  
  • Table 3a: Top 50 entry locations for GB - EU import declarations, 2021
  • Table 3b: Top 50 entry locations for UK - Non-EU import declarations, 2021
  • Table 3c: Top 50 exit locations for GB - EU export declarations, 2021
  • Table 3d: Top 50 exit locations for UK- Non-EU export declarations, 2021
    
    
• Table 4: Declarations by type and trade partner
  
  
  • Table 4a: GB - EU import declarations by declaration type category, 2021
  • Table 4b: UK - Non-EU import declarations by declaration type category, 2021
  • Table 4c: Other trade import declarations by declaration type category, 2021
  • Table 4d: GB - EU export declarations by declaration type category, 2021
  • Table 4e: UK - Non-EU export declarations by declaration type category, 2021
  • Table 4f: Other trade export declarations by declaration type category, 2021

Here you can view the data tables for customs declaration volumes for international trade in goods in 2021

2. Key insights

In the year 2021, a total of 78.3m customs declarations were submitted to HMRC for international trade, made up of:

• 58.0m import declarations and 20.3m export declarations
• 34.3m declarations for GB trade with the EU and 42.9m declarations for UK trade with Non-EU countries
• 19.6m declarations that were self-declared and 58.5m declarations that were declared by a third party (as either direct or indirect representation)

The predominant declarant representation type for imports varied by trade partner:

• 51.0% of GB – EU import declarations were submitted by indirect representation compared with 19.7% of UK – Non-EU being submitted by indirect representation.
• 40.2% of UK – Non-EU declarations were submitted by self-representation compared with 40.0% being submitted by direct representation

The majority of export declarations were submitted by indirect representation:

• 56.1% of GB – EU and 61.2% of UK - Non-EU declarations were submitted by indirect representation
• 35.4% of GB – EU and 23.3% of UK - Non-EU declarations were submitted by direct representation
• 15.5% of GB – EU and 6.6% of UK - Non-EU declarations were submitted by self-representation

3. Explanatory Notes

3.1 Key data caveats and limitations

• Figures are provisional and may be subject to change:
  
  
  • Figures will remain static if the underlying customs declarations data recorded by CHIEF and CDS at the given date of extraction does not change.
    
    
• Limitations of declaration volumes as a measure of trade in goods:
  
  
  • Declaration volumes are a useful metric for measuring the approximate number of unique consignments of imports and exports, however, are not reliable measures of trade volume. Data on trade value and netmass are better indicators of UK trade performance and are published on a monthly basis in the Overseas Trade Statistics (OTS).
    
    
• Impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and European Union (EU) exit on 2021 data:
  
  
  • International trade continued to experience a unique combination of factors throughout 2021. These included, but are not limited to, COVID-19 lockdowns across the UK and in many of our international trading partner countries, alongside changes in the trading relationship with Europe. It is impossible to say what impact each of these factors had in isolation on the 2021 customs declaration volumes.
    
  • Since 1st January 2021, following the end of the EU exit transition period, customs declarations have been required for GB imports from the EU and GB exports to the EU. Prior to 2021, customs declarations were only required for UK imports and exports with Non-EU countries.
    
    
• Impact of Staged Customs Controls (SCC) on 2021 data:
  
  
  • Throughout 2021, the introduction of temporary Staged Customs Controls allowed GB importers of non-controlled EU goods the opportunity to defer submission of the full customs declaration for up to 175 days after the movement of goods.
    
  • This had a reducing effect on the number of received customs declarations for EU imports in 2021, most notably in the first few months of the year.
    
    

• Change in declaring behaviour over time:
  
  

  • The declaring behaviour of declarants is not necessarily consistent over time.
  • Declarants may increase or decrease the number of customs declarations they submit for equivalent volumes of goods for a variety of reasons, such as a change in the way they may use certain customs facilitations, and they may do so at any point within a given period.
    
    
• Impact of the Bulk Import Reduced Dataset (BIRD) facilitation:
  
  
  • The introduction of the BIRD facilitation has allowed authorised declarants the option of grouping together multiple low value consignments into a single customs declaration.
    
  • This will have had a reducing effect on the number of submitted customs declarations for all imports in 2021.
    
    
• Impact of Customs Warehousing on customs declaration volumes:
  
  
  • Data includes declarations for goods both entering and exiting a Customs Warehouse, with the potential for more than one Customs declaration being submitted for a single consignment of goods.
    
  • Customs declarations for goods exiting a Customs Warehouse do not contain data for the original port of entry which make up many submitted import declarations.
    
    
• Impact of unarrived customs declarations:
  
  
  • When goods are imported or exported to and from the United Kingdom, HMRC needs to be notified that the goods have physically arrived at UK border locations.
    
  • HMRC is aware of cases where this has not occurred, meaning HMRC is unable to clear these goods.
    
  • Therefore, declarations for goods that were not cleared by customs will not be included in this release.
    
    
• Other data caveats:
  
  
  • Entry and exit location codes used within this release may not have equivalent trade data available in other trade in goods publications.
    
  • Figures for the number of customs declarations in this release have been compiled from both CHIEF and CDS data, of which have different data requirements.
    
  • Entry summary declarations (ENS) do not feature in this release as they are not submitted to CHIEF or CDS.

3.2 Key terms and definitions

Terms used within this release:

• Customs declaration
  • An electronic submission of data which provides legally required information about the goods being imported/exported, including the customs procedure which the goods are being entered to
    
    
• Consignment
  • A shipment of goods sent by a single exporter which is destined for a single importer. A Customs declaration has the potential to be made up of multiple consignments
    
    
• Consignor
  • The business responsible for sending a consignment of goods (exporter)
    
    
• Consignee
  • The business responsible for receiving a consignment of goods (importer)
    
    
• Declarant
  • The business submitting a customs declaration
    
    
• Self-representation
  • Where the importer or exporter is also the declarant in the submission of a customs declaration (no use of a third-party declarant)
    
    
• Direct representation
  • Where a third-party declarant business is acting in the name of and on behalf of the importer/exporter in the submission of a customs declaration, whereby the third party must hold written authority of their power to act as the direct representative
    
    
• Indirect representation
  • Where a third-party declarant business is acting in their own name but on behalf of the importer/exporter in the submission of a customs declaration, whereby both parties accept joint liability for all information provided
    
    
• Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF)
  • CHIEF records the information collected from customs declarations
    
    
• Customs Declaration Service (CDS)
  • CDS records the information collect from customs declarations and has been introduced to replace CHIEF by 31st March 2023
    
    
• Entry date
  • The date in which the entry is lodged onto CHIEF or CDS, which can be done prior to the goods being presented to customs (pre-lodgement)
    
    
• Acceptance date
  • The tax point for imported/exported goods. At ports of entry/exit that allow for pre-lodgement of declarations, the acceptance date reflects when the goods arrived at or departed from the UK. At other ports of entry/exit, it reflects the date in which the goods are declared to a customs procedure (e.g. into free circulation)
    
    
• Clearance date
  • The date when the customs authority releases the goods having carried out whatever checks they deemed necessary
    
    
• Simplified Customs Declaration Procedure (SCDP)
  • A customs facilitation that gives authorised businesses the option of submitting a customs declaration in two parts - an initial simplified declaration or making an entry in their records, to allow goods to move across the border quickly, with a subsequent full declaration being required by the 4th working day of the following month
    
    
• Bulk Import Reduced Dataset (BIRD)
  • A customs facilitation that gives authorised businesses the option of grouping together multiple low value consignments into one bulked declaration with reduced information required
    
    
• Customs Warehousing
  • A customs facilitation that allows businesses to store goods with duty or import VAT payments suspended, until such goods are either released into free circulation, re-exported or moved to another customs procedure
    
    

3.3 Key data notes and understanding

The following details how the underlying data has been processed to produce the figures provided in this release:

• Data has been sourced from both CHIEF and CDS, as of 8th July 2022.
  
  

• Data includes all submitted declarations to HMRC via CHIEF or CDS for international trade. This includes declarations which may have subsequently been cancelled or rejected.
  
  

• The latest generation of customs declaration data has been used, which reflects the most recent stage of each individual customs declaration.
  
  

• The date of a given customs declaration has been based on date of clearance for imports and date of entry for exports.
  
  

• The partner country of a given customs declaration has been based on the country of dispatch for imports and the country of destination for exports.
  
  

• Customs declarations for trade movements between Northern Ireland and Great Britain have been excluded, in addition to UK trade movements with the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey and the UK continental shelf.
  
  

• Customs declarations for trade movements between Northern Ireland and the European Union are not mandated, however a small number are submitted, which have been categorised under ‘Other’.
  
  

• Customs declarations for goods imported from or exported to multiple partner countries that span different regions (i.e. both EU and Non-EU countries) have also been categorised under ‘Other’.
  
  

• Customs declarations where partner country information was not provided have also been categorised under ‘Other’. Missing partner country information can arise where it is not mandatory to provide this information, from for example, use of certain customs procedures or facilitations.
  
  

• Customs declarations where port of entry/exit was not provided have been categorised as ‘Unknown’. Missing port code information is most commonly associated with customs declarations for goods exiting a Customs Warehouse.
  
  

• The port code ‘DEU’ is used by declarants for pre-lodged declarations of goods whose route via either Dover or the Eurotunnel was not yet determined at the time of submission.
  
  

• Declaration types have been grouped into the following categories:
  
  

  • Standard customs declarations – declarations which require full details of goods being imported or exported (codes ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘D’ and ‘E’)
    
    

  • Simplified frontier declarations (SFD) – declarations which are submitted to release goods which have arrived at the frontier (codes ‘C’, ‘F’, ‘G’ and ‘H’)
    
    

  • C21 – a clearance form which requests the release of goods at a location with an inventory linked system (codes ‘J’ and ‘K’)
    
    

  • Supplementary declarations – declarations which require full details of goods being imported or exported having used the SCDP facilitations (codes ‘Y’ and ‘Z’)
    
    

  • Exit Summary Declarations (EXS) – export declarations that are required when safety and security requirements for a full customs export declaration have not been fulfilled.
    
    

• CHIEF incomplete declarations are declared using declaration types A & D, In CDS, the equivalent of a CHIEF incomplete declaration is made using additional declaration type B & E – where allowed. In both cases, any revenue due will be collected against the incomplete declaration and no supplementary declaration will be submitted.
  
  

• Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand throughout. The sum of breakdowns may therefore not sum to totals given.

4. Key Links

CHIEF Import tariff

CHIEF Export tariff

CDS Import and export tariffs

CHIEF and CDS

Simplified Customs Declaration Procedure (SCDP)

Bulk Import Reduced Dataset (BIRD)

Customs warehousing

Entry and exit location codes

Exit Summary Declarations (EXS)

Statistical contacts:
D Ball
F Barclay
Email: [email protected]