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Customs Import / Export Audits

Comprehensive Customs Audits

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) place elevated levels of responsibility on businesses that import and export. HMRC perform comprehensive audits of businesses with the hope of rating companies as “compliant” so they can focus on non-compliant businesses.

Customs Declarations and Recordkeeping

HMRC state that all businesses must keep and preserve certain records and accounts and be able to present these upon request. If your business is importing or exporting, you must declare any goods you move and keep appropriate records. Many businesses leave recordkeeping to their freight forwarding agent and do not ensure that declarations made on their behalf are correct, some businesses do not even obtain copies of customs entries. Many businesses are not aware the submission of customs declarations is their responsibility and that incorrect declarations can unfavourably impact the amount of duty paid.

HMRC audits invariably concentrate on these areas:

Documentation
Recordkeeping
Valuation of Goods
Commodity Codes
Reconciliation of Payments
Customs Procedures Codes
Special Regimes and Preference
Evidence of Export

Import / Export Guides

Import / Export Audit

During an Import Audit, HMRC may require the following:

Sales Contracts, Purchase Orders and Emails
Commercial Invoices stating the Incoterms
Transport Documents and Packing Lists
Shipping Invoices
Customs Entries C88 / SAD
Payment Terms and Bank Payments
Evidence of Valuation Declared

During an Export Audit, HMRC will review the following:

Declared Values
Licensable Goods
Export Preference Declarations
Evidence of Export

Pre-Audit Assessment

Having in-house pre-audit assessments ahead of any customs authority audit will reduce your exposure to liabilities, fines and penalties.

Our compliance audit will highlight inconsistencies in the company’s processes, showing where there might be opportunities for improvement. Additionally, our audit will identify exactly where there are global supply chain inefficiencies, where your procedures are not compliant with customs authorities and primarily what cost savings are possible.

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