The solution was approved by HMRC and Border Force at the end of January 2020 for use in the event of a no-deal Brexit, and will be adapted to comply with the required processes at the end of the implementation period, once clarity over those processes is gained.
The solution is an extension of the CCS-UK Advance Information System (AIS), which is already used to provide airline temporary storage facilities with advance information of both intra-UK and international truck movements and road feeder services. AIS helps these temporary storage facilities plan and manage their workloads better, helping eliminate truck queues.
The AIS RoRo solution enables vehicles arriving at UK ports carrying EU-origin cargo to proceed immediately to a designated CCS-UK temporary storage facility. This provides an alternative to using Common Transit and means the vehicles do not need to use a port-linked clearance facility – which could cause congestion, delays and the added cost of acquiring a badge at the port concerned. As well as streamlining cross-border movements, the solution will speed up declaration processing at destination, owing to its integration with the CCS-UK inventory.
Says CCS-UK User Group Chairman, Steve Parker: “The new RoRo module will facilitate smooth and congestion-free transit of cargo through the Channel ports, the Channel Tunnel and other ports in the UK, while enabling HMRC to collect duties, and Border Force to maintain robust security.
“Our discussions with forwarders, international hauliers, port authorities and ferry operators have revealed a great deal of interest. Using this method of reporting cargo movements, they all believe their processes would continue to work effectively, even without a continuation of frictionless trade.”
The CCS-UK Cargo Community User Group is a non-profit body that represents the 900 members of the CCS-UK community, acting as the go-between with Customs, airport authorities, trade bodies and legislators.
