Written before the Brexit transition ended on 31 December 2020, this article set out two changes for sellers shipping to the EU: customs declarations on every order, which Zendbox completed automatically, and new VAT and duty rules. Orders shipped on DDP terms, and sellers needed to confirm HS tariff codes for every SKU.
At Zendbox, we have been working hard for the last nine months to reduce the impact of Brexit to your business as much as possible to ensure continued smooth trading into Europe.
If you are a seller trading into the EU, there are two main changes you should be aware of:
All orders going into the EU, now require us to provide customs declaration information. We have been working with our shipping partners to be able to digitally pass them all the information required. This means that as a Zendbox customer, all customs declarations will be completed automatically by us on your behalf, minimising delays to your customer.Note: If additional information about your product is needed, someone from our service team will contact you shortly.
Previous to January 31st 2020, you charge VAT at the point of sale no matter the value. From 1st January 2021, this will change based on the value of the transaction.
If you are unsure, how to implement, then we recommend speaking to an accountant who can advise.
Currently there is no duty paid when goods move throughout the EU. As of 1st January 2021, goods sold in the UK moving into the EU will attract duty if the value of the goods being sold exceeds £135. The rate of duty is based on the HS tariff code (commodity code) and country of origin that is applied to your product. Given the generous threshold before duty becomes payable, it should only impact a very small percentage of your orders.
Again, Zendbox will be shipping your parcels to Europe on Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) terms, so we will pay the duties and taxes to clear the goods and then charge this back to you.
All orders for the EU will now need to provide customs declarations. An HS tariff code is a harmonized system code, you may have also heard them called commodity codes or comm codes, and these codes combined with the country of origin indicate the duty that needs to be paid on goods over £135.
The good news is that Zendbox is able to pass all the information required for customs declarations on to our shipping partners for you, provided we have the correct HS tariff codes in our system.
This means that as a Zendbox customer, all customs declarations will be completed automatically by us on your behalf. All you need to do now is provide confirmation of your codes.
•You will receive an email from Zendbox asking you to confirm your HS tariff codes for all your SKUs shortly, you may have already received it. Please confirm these codes to us as soon as you can. It is your responsibility to make sure we are operating with the correct codes.
•Going forwards, you will need to enter the HS tariff code for all new product SKUs you add to your inventory. Zendportal now has new fields to accommodate the additional information required. See details of the Zendportal changes.
Shipping to the EU is as simple as shipping to the UK with Zendbox. Deliveries are timely and reliable for the distances involved.
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