Check if you can get a guarantee waiver for a duty deferment account in Great Britain
Find out what you need to do to get a guarantee waiver for a duty deferment account in Great Britain.
Applies to England, Scotland and Wales
If you are established outside of the UK, you cannot apply for a guarantee waiver.
If you want to apply for a new duty deferment account without using a guarantee, you can apply for a guarantee waiver approval as part of the same application.
You can also amend your existing duty deferment account and apply for a guarantee waiver.
There are 2 types of guarantee waiver approvals:
- approval for a guarantee waiver to defer customs duty, import VAT and excise up to £10,000 per month
- approval for a guarantee waiver to defer customs duty, import VAT and excise up to a specified amount over £10,000 per month
Who can apply
You can apply for a waiver if you have:
- no serious or repeated infringements of customs or tax rules in the past 3 years
- no record of serious criminal offences related to your business activities in the past 3 years
- held positive net assets (excluding goodwill) at the date of your application and for the past 3 years (or, if shorter, for the period you have been trading)
- positive net assets (excluding goodwill) greater than the value of the waiver you are applying for at the date of your application, and at your most recent balance sheet date, to qualify for a guarantee waiver for an amount over £10,000
If you need to defer amounts above £10,000 per month but do not meet the requirements for a full guarantee waiver, you may still be eligible for a partial waiver of up to £10,000. You will be asked to provide a guarantee for the additional amount only.
You must also be established in the UK.
If you are an Authorised Economic Operator for Customs (AEOC and AEOF) you qualify for a guarantee waiver at the level of your deferral limit.
How to apply
If you have an existing duty deferment account, you can apply to amend your account and apply for a guarantee waiver.
If you do not have a duty deferment account, you can apply for an account and a guarantee waiver at the same time.
If you are established outside of the UK
If you are a business established outside the UK and do not have a duty deferment account, you can apply for an account without a guarantee waiver.
If you do not get authorisation
If you already have a duty deferment account, you can still use it as long as it continues to be secured with either a full or partial guarantee.
If you do not already have a duty deferment account, you can still get one if you provide a guarantee. After you have applied, we will write to you and let you know if you need a partial guarantee and how to get one.
Making changes to your guarantee waiver
If you want to amend your guarantee waiver amount you can do this by using the online form.
If you are granted a guarantee waiver and your circumstances change so that you no longer meet the conditions for the guarantee waiver, you must:
- tell HMRC about your change of circumstances without delay
- provide a guarantee for your duty deferment account or apply to close it
HMRC will regularly check the use of your duty deferment account to ensure that you do not exceed your deferral limit.
Last updated 31 January 2022 + show all updates
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The guidance has been updated to clarify that if you need to defer amounts above £10,000 per month but do not meet the requirements for a full guarantee waiver, you may still be eligible for a partial waiver of up to £10,000.
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Guidance has been updated to include information about applying for a duty deferment account in Great Britain if you are established outside of the UK.
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Information about how to apply for a guarantee waiver has been updated.
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First published.