CHIEF is the customs declarations system that has been used by HMRC for decades. Because of its age and complexity, it was not practical to try to adapt CHIEF to comply with EU customs requirements set forth in the Union Custom Code (UCC). CHIEF’s replacement, CDS, is a flexible, modular platform that is built to scale with the growth of international trade. According to the Directors General for Borders and Trade at HMRC, “CDS is a key part of the government’s plans for a world-leading fully digitised border that will help UK businesses to trade and to prosper.”

Right now, you need to make sure you have four initial steps ticked off your list:

1. Get an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number and register for a Government Gateway account

2. Register for access to CDS

3. Review the payment methods you use

4. Review the trade tariff tool

5. Register for access to the Trader Dress Rehearsal (TDR) to familiarise yourself with the new declaration system and processes ahead of your planned migration date. 

Read the HMRC documentation on ‘making an import declaration on CDS’ outlining the differences in data elements and its groups.

Are you thinking, “I’ve had enough of all these changes. Why can’t this be easy?” We’re glad you asked. That’s where CAS comes in. CAS is our digital customs management solution with legal compliance built in. We stay ahead of the curve so each change that happens is compliant with HMRC requirements and the EU Multi-Annual Strategic Plan (MASP) for the Standardisation of Customs. This way, your goods will continue to ship without delay. And CAS does this at a fraction of the cost of working with a customs broker.

For CAS customers, the switch to CDS will be relatively seamless, as both CAS and CDS align with the UCC data model. Each C4T customer’s data will be checked and, if any minor changes are needed, a migration plan will be outlined.