Customs Importer and Exporter Population 2024
Published 10 April 2025
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Introduction
This reports the number of businesses importing and exporting goods in 2024. These businesses are listed on a Customs declaration. The goods move between Great Britain (GB) and the European Union (EU), or the United Kingdom (UK) and countries outside the EU. You can read more about these businesses in the methodology document.
Previous publications
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) advises not to compare this data with UK importer and exporter data from before 2021. The data sources have changed, so comparisons may not be accurate.
Summary statistics
Total number of businesses named on a Customs declaration in 2024
354,936 The number of businesses moving goods increased by 4,829. This is 1% more than the 2023 population of 350,107.
Number of businesses moving goods to or from EU countries in 2024
222,788 The number of businesses moving goods to or from EU countries decreased by 9,521. This is 4% less than the 2023 population of 232,309.
Number of businesses moving goods to or from non-EU countries in 2024
245,973 The number of businesses moving goods to or from non-EU countries increased by 12,186. This is 5% more than the 2023 population of 233,787.
Number of businesses importing goods in 2024
321,493 The population of businesses importing goods increased by 8,938. This is 3% more than the 2023 population of 312,555.
Number of businesses exporting goods in 2024
133,285 The population of businesses exporting goods decreased by 9,399. This is 7% less than the 2023 population of 142,684.
Business counts by trade partner region
Table 1: Customs importer and exporter population for goods movements in 2023 and 2024, by trade partner region
Table 1 shows the change in population from 2023 to 2024, for each trade partner region:
| Trade partner region | Business count 2023 | Business count 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| EU only | 116,320 | 108,963 |
| Non-EU only | 117,798 | 132,148 |
| EU and non-EU | 115,989 | 113,825 |
| Total | 350,107 | 354,936 |
Of the 354,936 businesses moving goods during 2024:
- 108,963 were moving goods to or from EU countries only, this decreased by 7,357 or 6%
- 132,148 were moving goods to or from non-EU countries only, this increased by 14,350 or 12%
- 113,825 were moving goods to or from both EU and non-EU countries, this decreased by 2,164 or 2%
Most businesses (68%) were moving goods to or from just one trade partner region (EU or non-EU countries only). The remaining businesses (32%) were moving goods to or from both EU and non-EU countries.
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. Adding EU to both EU and non-EU will give the total number of businesses who moved goods to or from EU countries. Adding non-EU to both EU and non-EU will give the total number of businesses who moved goods to or from non-EU countries.
Table 2: Customs importer and exporter population for goods movements in 2023 and 2024, by trade partner region and direction of movement
Table 2 shows the change in population from 2023 to 2024, for each trade partner region and direction of movement combination.
| Trade partner region | Direction of movement | Business count 2023 | Business count 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| EU countries only | Importing only | 82,043 | 80,479 |
| EU countries only | Exporting only | 17,776 | 14,331 |
| EU countries only | Importing and exporting | 16,501 | 14,153 |
| Non-EU countries only | Importing only | 98,226 | 112,846 |
| Non-EU countries only | Exporting only | 14,021 | 13,366 |
| Non-EU countries only | Importing and exporting | 5,551 | 5,936 |
| EU and non-EU | Importing only | 27,154 | 28,326 |
| EU and non-EU | Exporting only | 5,755 | 5,746 |
| EU and non-EU | Importing and exporting | 83,080 | 79,753 |
| Total | Not Applicable | 350,107 | 354,936 |
Of the 108,963 businesses moving goods to or from EU countries only in 2024:
- 80,479 were importing but not exporting goods, this decreased by 1,564 or 2%
- 14,331 were exporting but not importing goods, this decreased by 3,445 or 19%
- 14,153 were both importing and exporting goods, this decreased by 2,348 or 14%
Of the 132,148 businesses moving goods to or from non-EU countries only in 2024:
- 112,846 were importing but not exporting goods, this increased by 14,620 or 15%
- 13,366 were exporting but not importing goods, this decreased by 655 or 5%
- 5,936 were both importing and exporting goods, this increased by 385 or 7%
Of the 113,825 businesses moving goods to or from both EU and non-EU countries in 2024:
- 28,326 were importing but not exporting goods, this increased by 1,172 or 4%
- 5,746 were exporting but not importing goods, this decreased by 9 or 0%
- 79,753 were both importing and exporting goods, this decreased by 3,327 or 4%
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. Importing refers to imports from both EU and non-EU countries. Exporting refers to exports to both EU and non-EU countries.
Business Counts by Direction of Movement
Table 3: Customs importer and exporter population for trade in goods, 2023 and 2024 by direction of movement
Table 3 shows the change in population from 2023 to 2024, for each direction of movement:
| Direction of movement | Business count 2023 | Business count 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Importing only | 207,423 | 221,651 |
| Exporting only | 37,552 | 33,443 |
| Importing and exporting | 105,132 | 99,842 |
| Total | 350,107 | 354,936 |
Of the 354,936 businesses moving goods during 2024:
- 221,651 were importing but not exporting goods, this increased by 14,228 or 7%
- 33,443 were exporting but not importing goods, this decreased by 4,109 or 11%
- 99,842 were both importing and exporting goods, this decreased by 5,290 or 5%
Most businesses (72%) were moving goods in just one direction. The remaining businesses (28%) both imported and exported goods.
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Download Table 3: Customs population moving goods, 2023 and 2024 by direction of movement (11.7 KB)
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. To get total number of importers, add importing only to both importing and exporting. To get total number of exporters, add exporting only to both importing and exporting.
Table 4: Customs importer and exporter population for goods movements in 2023 and 2024, by direction of movement and trade partner region
Table 4 shows the change in population from 2023 to 2024, for each direction of movement and trade partner region combination.
| Direction of movement | Trade partner region | Business count 2023 | Business count 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Importing only | EU only | 82,043 | 80,479 |
| Importing only | Non-EU only | 98,226 | 112,846 |
| Importing only | EU and non-EU | 27,154 | 28,326 |
| Exporting only | EU only | 17,776 | 14,331 |
| Exporting only | Non-EU only | 14,021 | 13,366 |
| Exporting only | EU and non-EU | 5,755 | 5,746 |
| Importing and exporting | EU only | 16,501 | 14,153 |
| Importing and exporting | Non-EU only | 5,551 | 5,936 |
| Importing and exporting | EU and non-EU | 83,080 | 79,753 |
| Total | Not applicable | 350,107 | 354,936 |
Of the 221,651 businesses only importing but not exporting goods in 2024:
- 80,479 were importing goods from EU countries only, this decreased by 1,564 or 2%
- 112,846 were importing goods from non-EU countries only, this increased by 14,620 or 15%
- 28,326 were importing goods from both EU and non-EU countries, this increased by 1,172 or 4%
Of the 33,443 businesses only exporting but not importing goods in 2024:
- 14,331 were exporting goods from EU countries only, this decreased by 3,445 or 19%
- 13,366 were exporting goods from non-EU countries only, this decreased by 655 or 5%
- 5,746 were exporting goods from both EU and non-EU countries, this decreased by 9 or 0%
Of the 99,842 businesses only exporting but not importing goods in 2024:
- 14,153 were both importing from and exporting to EU countries only, this decreased by 2,348 or 14%
- 5,936 were both importing and exporting goods to non-EU countries only, this increased by 385 or 7%
- 79,753 both importing and exporting goods to and from both EU and non-EU countries, this decreased by 3,327 or 4%
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. Importing refers to imports from both EU and non-EU countries. Exporting refers to exports to both EU and non-EU countries.
Business churn
Business churn compares the 2023 and 2024 Customs populations.
Table 5: Customs population for goods movements in 2023, by annual business churn
Table 5 shows the number of businesses moving goods in 2023. Businesses are split into two groups. Those moving goods during 2023 but not in 2024, and those moving goods in both 2023 and 2024.
| Years moving goods | Business count |
|---|---|
| 2023 only | 92,817 |
| 2023 and 2024 | 257,290 |
| 2023 Total | 350,107 |
Of the 350,107 businesses moving goods in 2023:
- 92,817 or 27% were not in the 2024 population
- 257,290 or 73% were in 2023 and 2024 populations
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. This analysis only compares the current year to the previous year. Previous business behaviour was not taken into account.
Table 6: Customs population for goods movements in 2024, by annual business churn
Table 6 shows the number of businesses moving goods in 2024. Businesses are split into two groups. Those previously moving goods in 2023, continuing in 2024. And those moving goods in 2024, having not done so in 2023.
| Years moving goods | Business count |
|---|---|
| 2023 and 2024 | 257,290 |
| 2024 only | 97,646 |
| 2024 Total | 354,936 |
Of the 354,936 businesses moving goods in 2024:
- 257,290 or 72% were in 2023 and 2024 populations
- 97,646 or 28% were not in the 2023 population
Source: Customs importer and exporter population 2024, from HM Revenue & Customs.
Notes: Customs declarations are needed to move goods between GB and EU, and between UK and non-EU countries. This analysis only compares the current year to the previous year. Previous business behaviour was not taken into account.