HMRC are sending a letter to traders about acting now to move to the Customs Declaration Service.
This applies if you make your own declarations or if someone submits import and export declarations on your behalf. You may not be able to continue trading if you do not move to the Customs Declaration Service in time.
After 30 September 2022, the Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system will close for import declarations, and these will need to be made on the Customs Declaration Service. The ability to make export declarations will end and the CHIEF service will close on 31 March 2023.
Businesses must make sure they have a customs agent who is ready to make their import declarations on the Customs Declaration Service or set themselves up to make their own declarations by the 30 September 2022 deadline.
Postal operators, such as Royal Mail, will continue to make customs declarations on behalf of UK small businesses who receive goods from abroad by post, and inform them of any tax or duty owed.
To help all businesses and agents prepare for the Customs Declaration Service, more information is available on GOV.UK, including a Customs Declaration Service toolkit and checklists, which break down the steps traders need to take. Traders can also register or check they have access to the Customs Declaration Service on GOV.UK and access live customer support services for additional help.
The Customs Declaration Service will become the UK’s single customs platform after 31 March 2023, replacing CHIEF. After 31 March, businesses will have to use the Customs Declaration Service to make export declarations for goods they send out of the UK.
There is more information about using the Customs Declaration Service on GOV.UK