The United Kingdom officially left the EU on January 1, 2021.
We at Deutsche Post will, however, of course remain your reliable partner for cross-border services to and from the UK.
The process for shipping to Great Britain and handling UK export business to Europe and the rest of the world will soon be changing.
On December 24, 2020, an agreement governing future trade relations was reached between the European Union and the United Kingdom, and this agreement entered provisionally into force on January 1, 2021. In spite of this agreement, a customs border now exists between the United Kingdom and the European Union. This change in status in turn entails various amendments to ensure all documentation is in line with shipping processes – this applies for example to the requirement to provide customs declarations and the levying of VAT. As such, published shipping information remains valid and must be observed.
To make sure you’re up to speed on what this means, we’ve put together the key information on the new shipping requirements for you to download. Any tax-related queries should, however, be clarified on your own authority.
Should you have any questions, please contact your account manager or sales representative – they'll be happy to help.
Important: Please be sure to use our customer portal whenever you need to create a Deutsche Post Packet label or integrate our API into your systems. This will ensure that a CN22 customs declaration form is automatically generated for all labels when shipping to the UK. The information contained in these labels is then transferred directly to the customs authorities in the UK. For more information, visit
www.deutschepost.com/integration.
- What will the Trade and Cooperation Agreement concluded between the EU and the UK in December 2020* mean for cross-border shipping? Will everything remain as it was before Brexit?
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The Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union on December 24, 2020, concluded that the vast majority of goods moving between the UK and the EU (excluding e.g. alcohol and cigarettes ) will not be subject to customs duties. The trade agreement does not affect the VAT measures described in our dispatch information brochures. Each shipment must be declared and a customs declaration must be made.
- Shipping from the UK to the EU: What costs are entailed for an order value of less than €22?
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In most European countries, the majority of goods are not subject to taxes or customs duties if the value of the goods (including shipping costs) is less than €22. In such cases, shipments are delivered at no additional cost. Different regulations apply, however, in France and Sweden, for example. EU-wide changes in tax law are expected to enter into force on July 1, 2021, and this change in legislation is likely to bring about the elimination of this €22 tax-free limit.
- Shipping from the UK to the EU: What costs are entailed for an order value of more than €22?
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If the value of the order (including shipping costs) exceeds €22, VAT and possibly customs duties will apply in most European countries. The amount of taxes and customs duties to be paid depends primarily on the goods in question. Payment is usually made to the mail carrier of the respective postal company upon delivery of the item. In addition to VAT, an additional service charge may be applied. Deutsche Post, for example, charges a collection fee of currently € 6 per item.
The answers to many more questions about Brexit can be found in our shipping information brochures which are available to download on this page.
* The free trade agreement is provisional, as the ratification process by the EU Parliament has not yet been completed.