Business - EU exit information

Guidance

Now that the UK has left the EU there is continuing guidance being issued to advise businesses on what they need to do now.

The latest UK guidance can be found at this link:

• Moving goods into, out of, or through NI from 1 January 2021

Practical steps to take

There are practical steps which business must take to prepare for the new rules that came into effect on 1 January 2021.

You should:

• complete the EU exit readiness checklist - 10 steps to take
• sign up for the UK Government’s free Trader Support Service

and

• sign up for gov.uk updates on post-EU exit arrangements

Advice and support

Invest NI offers a range of support services to companies, including:

• one-to-one advice clinics where your company can speak to an advisor
• a Brexit preparation grant 

and

• online tutorials which provide access to specialist advisers in people movement and immigration, preparing your data for EU Exit, and VAT implications

Find out more information at these links:

• nibusinessinfo
• Invest NI 

InterTradeIreland’s Brexit Advisory Service provides financial support and professional support on customs, supply chain, rules of origin with online learning supplemented by specialist webinars aimed at the cross-border market.

• InterTradeIreland 

More information from the UK government is available at this link:

• Guidance for UK businesses moving goods into, out of, or through Northern Ireland

Information and support for NI businesses making, selling or distributing chemicals is available from the Health and Safety Executive NI.

• Brexit guidance for NI businesses after transition period

Trader Support Service

At the end of the transition period, when the Northern Ireland Protocol comes into force, there are changes to the way goods move between Great Britain and NI.

The UK government has launched a Trader Support Service (TSS) to help businesses affected by this.

The service can:

• provide information and guidance for moving goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland
• facilitate the customs declarations that are now required for moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland
• help when sending parcels between Great Britain and Northern Ireland

The Trader Support Service will be free to use and will guide you through any changes to the way goods move between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

It can help if you:

• are moving the goods yourself
• act on behalf of someone
• send parcels between Great Britain and Northern Ireland

You can sign up now using the Trader Support Service website.

Exporting to EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) countries

The UK government has been delivering a programme of work to 'roll over' around 40 EU Free Trade Agreements (FTAs)  into UK continuity agreements. 

To date the majority of these have been agreed. 

Updates to these agreements can be found at this link:

• UK trade agreements with non-EU countries

It's important to note that the agreements with Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Lichtenstein are goods only agreements.

You can find more information about trading on Most Favoured Nation (MFN) terms at this link:

• Trading under World Trade Organisation rules 

How you know what terms you're exporting on

If you're exporting internationally you can check:

• duties and customs procedures for exporting goods

and

• applicable tariffs using the tariff tool

How to raise questions or escalate issues about trading internationally

Businesses should direct international trade enquiries to the EU exit enquiry service.

Also, businesses have access to their relevant UK embassy, high commission or consulate and can seek advice from a local International Trade Advisor working for DIT.

Businesses are also encouraged to report any new or persistent exporting barriers to the UK’s Digital Market Access Service.