Importing from the UK: the statement on origin

Goods from the UK enter Ireland, and every other EU country, at 0 % customs duty under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, but only when they originate in the UK under the agreement's rules and the importer claims the preference in the customs declaration [3]. The claim rests on a statement on origin made out by the exporter or on the importer's own knowledge; without either, the normal EU duty for the tariff code applies [1] [3]. Import VAT is due in every case [5].

Does the trade agreement remove all duty?

No. The zero rate is for products originating in the UK, which the agreement defines as products wholly obtained there, products made there exclusively from originating materials, or products made with non-originating materials that meet the product-specific rules in its Annex 3 [3]. Materials originating in the EU count as UK materials when they are used in production in the UK [3].

A product made in China and resold from a warehouse in England does not become a UK product. It pays the normal duty, and any anti-dumping duty on Chinese goods, as described in Importing from China. An invoice issued in a third country, on the other hand, is not by itself a reason to refuse the preference [3].

Two goods often bought from the UK, with the CN 2026 duty [1] and what TARIC showed for UK origin on 24 October 2026 [2]:

For jumpers with a customs value of EUR 10,000, a missing claim costs EUR 1,050 in duty, and the Irish import VAT at 23 % [6] then rises from EUR 2,300 to EUR 2,541.50, because VAT is charged on the value plus the duty [5]. The free import duty calculator works it out for any code.

What a statement on origin says

The exporter makes out the statement on an invoice or any other document that describes the product well enough to identify it, using the wording in Annex 7 of the agreement [3]. In English it reads:

The exporter of the products covered by this document (Exporter Reference No ...) declares that, except where otherwise clearly indicated, these products are of ... preferential origin.

The reference number is the one assigned to the exporter under UK rules; the field may stay empty if the exporter has none [3]. The origin is filled in as "the United Kingdom" or "the Union" [3]. A statement is valid for 12 months from the date it was made out [3]. It can cover one shipment, or several shipments of identical products within a stated period of up to 12 months [3]. Customs may not ask the importer for a translation, and minor errors in it are not a reason to refuse the claim [3].

Claiming on the importer's knowledge

The importer can also claim the preference on the basis of its own knowledge that the product originates in the UK, which has to rest on information that demonstrates it [3]. The importer is responsible for the correctness of the claim either way [3]. Keep the statement on origin, or the records behind your own knowledge, for at least three years after the import [3]. A claim forgotten at import can still be made up to three years later, with the duty paid repaid [3].

What the customs broker asks for

The declarant needs the supporting documents in hand when the declaration is lodged [4]. From the UK that is the commercial invoice with the statement on origin on it, the packing list, the transport document, your EORI number [4], and a clear answer to one question: is the claim based on a statement or on your knowledge. The invoice data the declaration needs is in What a customs declaration needs from the invoice.

A business registered for VAT in Ireland can use postponed accounting and account for the import VAT on its VAT 3 return instead of paying it at import [7].

Mistakes that lead to corrections

1. Goods assumed to be British because they ship from Britain. Origin follows the production rules, not the dispatch address [3].
2. No statement on origin, or one without the origin filled in. The normal duty is charged until a valid basis for the claim exists [3].
3. A statement used after 12 months, or for shipments outside the period it states [3].
4. Importer's knowledge claimed without the records to show it when customs asks [3].

Athren works next to the broker or customs team you already have, from the documents you already send them, and holds what it would have prepared next to the declaration that was filed, so you see where the code, the origin claim or the value differs. Goods from the other side of the Atlantic are covered in Importing from the US.