Royal Logistics News: British Customs announced that it will introduce a new export declaration system in phases.

The new phased approach means selected high-volume exporters will be moved from the existing system to the new Customs Declarations Service (CDS) by 30 November.

However, all other businesses now have until March 30 to migrate to CDS.

Under previous plans, all businesses were supposed to migrate to the new system by November 30.

HMRC said it had decided to adopt a phased approach based on industry feedback.

The switch to imports took place last October.

The move was welcomed by the BIFA freight forwarders association, although the association believed the decision was hasty.

The association: stated that “the CDS has been in development for a long time and there have been many changes to the implementation timeline.”

“This amendment imposes a very short deadline for companies to submit export declarations through the CDS system, and any company must continue to work hard to transition from CHIEF to CDS, as most BIFA members are already doing.

“The statement clarifies the deal and demonstrates that HMRC has been listening to lobbying by BIFA and other countries on this issue.

“BIFA members now have a clear timetable and should ensure they have their implementation plans in place and test the system as much as possible.

“Industry associations will continue to engage with HMRC on behalf of our members and request the department to provide webinars and training materials to help revise the implementation timetable.”

Earlier this week, freight forwarder Rhenus urged UK exporters to prepare for the shift to avoid shipment delays.

Rob Mulligan, the company’s UK customs manager, said exporters should be “registered, authorized and prepared to ensure the transshipment process is successful”.