UK – TRANSFER OF RESIDENCE (ToR) - PROCEDURE • Please note that as of 1 st April, 2017, there was a change in legislation imposed by HMRC, that has directly affected Entry of Used Household Goods Consignments arriving into the UK from outside the EU. The former C3 Document (UK customs form) has been officially withdrawn, and there is a New TOR Application now in place. • Anyone wishing to set up residence, and wishing to transfer their respective used household goods and personal effects to the UK will now need to comply with certain directives in order to obtain a unique reference number (URN). The URN is required in order for clearance of their household goods and personal effects to be granted once their shipment(s) have arrived into the UK. • The TOR Application form can be found online at the following link... https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/application-for-transfer-of-residence-tor- relief-tor01 In conjunction with submitting the completed application form, the shipper will also be required to provide supporting documentation to HMRC. These documents are confirmed on the TOR Application form and will include; Copy of shipper’s passport (and VISA if applicable), Employment Contract, Work Permit ( if applicable), Proof of Tenancy Agreements (from both Origin and Destination, draft copies sufficient), two copies of signed Inventories obtained at time of Survey, etc. Additional documents will also be required if the shipper is bringing pets into the UK or any dutiable items (alcohol, newly purchased items, etc). • The requested documents must be submitted with a completed copy of the shippers TOR application form to the following e-mail addresses... NCH@HMRC.GSI.GOV.UK / NCH.TOR@HMRC.GSI.GOV.UK • The onus sits initially with the shipper and it is their sole responsibility to complete and submit a TOR Application as early as possible in the move planning. Please note that as it can take anything from 1-6 weeks for the URN to be generated, we strongly recommend that applications are submitted as soon as the pre-move survey is completed at origin (when the survey inventories are available). Page 1.
• The shipper is the only person authorised to communicate with HMRC regarding their application, so neither the destination agent or clearance broker are able to follow up the progress of the shippers application on their behalf. The shipper can contact the TOR team at HMRC directly on the following telephone number...+ 44 (0) 3000 588 454. • Multiple shipments (ie: air and sea freight), must be declared (and supporting documentation such as the inventories supplied) at the time of submitting the TOR application in order for the UK broker to apply for clearance on the same unique reference number. The TOR application cannot be amended at a later date to cover both shipments, so if the documents for multiple shipments were not submitted on the same application, separate entries will be required (ie: a TOR application made for each individual shipment). • In order for the UK clearance broker to apply for clearance, they also require confirmation of the UK address stated on the TOR application and an estimated second hand value for the effects being imported. Although HMRC are currently accepting total second hand valuations, there is a possibility that this will be changed to requiring individual second hand values for each inventoried item. It is therefore recommended that a copy of the packing inventory is supplied to the shipper by their move coordinator at origin and that beside each item the value is stated (rather than preparing a completely separate inventory for valuation purposes only). These must be realistic valuations, as any second hand values deemed to be unrealistic by HMRC will be scrutinised and may cause delays in the clearance process. • The UK destination agent must have received confirmation of the URN, UK address details and second hand value from the shipper prior to the shipment(s) arriving into port (ideally during the packing stage at origin). If these are not in place for the shipments arrival, it may result in the shipment(s) being held by UK customs, causing severe delays in the clearance process. There is also the possibility of costly quay rent & demurrage / airline storage charges being incurred and/or potential penalties being issued by UK customs. • In the absence of a URN, shipments can be customs cleared under a “commercial status”. In this instance, a commercial invoice stating the value of each item would be required in addition to standard shipping documents required for UK customs clearance (Bill Of Lading / AWB, packing inventory, etc). VAT & Duty charges would then be calculated by the UK clearance broker on each inventoried item. Please note that rates of duty differ substantially between the type of items being imported, as each has it’s own HS (Harmonised System) Code. For example; an armchair upholstered in leather would have a different HS code to that of an armchair upholstered in any other type of fabric, so the rate of duty applied may differ. It is therefore essential, that (if a shipment is to be customs cleared under a “commercial status”) the commercial invoice supplied states detailed descriptions of each inventoried item (make, manufacturer, model, material, etc). Page 2.
• Shipments returning to the UK from outside the EU and within 3 years of being exported from the UK can also be customs cleared under a “Returned Goods Relief”. The shipper will not be required to submit a TOR application or obtain a unique reference number, but will be required to supply to either the UK destination agent or UK clearance broker, “proof of export” documents in order for the relief to be granted. Please find the documents / information required for this relief to be granted as follows. Please kindly note that in the absence of written confirmation from HMRC (in which they advise the shipper that their effects are eligible for this kind of relief), there is no guarantee that the “Returned Goods Relief” will be granted. In this instance, the shipper would then be required to submit a TOR Application and wait for a URN to be generated before their shipment could be customs cleared. This would in turn cause severe delays in the clearance process, so it is absolutely imperative that written confirmation from HMRC to the shipper can be provided. v Proof of export (in the form of a Bill Of Lading, available from the agent who shipped the effects from the UK) v A second hand valuation for the shipment v A full UK delivery address v Written confirmation from HMRC to the shipper, in confirmation that their effects are eligible for this type of customs clearance v A written explanation from the shipper as to why the effects are being returned to the UK Further information pertaining to the “Returned Goods Relief” can be found on the UK government website or by following the below link... https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-236-returned-goods-relief/notice-236- returned-goods-relief Page 3.
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