Common user charge: rates and eligibility
Common user charge rates and how the charge will apply to imports entering Great Britain through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel from 30 April 2024.
Applies to England, Scotland and Wales
As part of changes to import controls under the Border Target Operating Model (BTOM), the common user charge will be introduced on 30 April 2024.
The common user charge will apply to commercial movements of animal products, plants and plant products through the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel. This will be charged for:
- imports entering Great Britain
- transits entering and leaving Great Britain
There are currently no physical or identity checks for live animal imports from the EU at border control posts. The common user charge will not apply to live animal imports until checks are introduced.
The term animal products includes:
- animal by-products not intended for human consumption (ABP)
- germinal products
- products of animal origin intended for human consumption (POAO)
For information on why the government is introducing the charge, read the government response to the consultation on charging arrangements at government-run border control posts.
When the charge will apply
From 30 April 2024, you will need to pay the common user charge if you are a UK business importing a consignment of goods that:
- enters or transits through Great Britain through the Port of Dover or Eurotunnel
- is eligible for sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks at a government-run border control post in England
The charge will apply to common health entry document (CHED) notifications on the import of products, animals, food and feed system (IPAFFS) that are submitted or changed on or after 30 April 2024.
Changes or cancellations can be made to CHED notifications up to 2 hours before the entry time stated on the notification. At this point the notification will be locked and the information will be used to calculate the charge.
The charge will apply even if the authorities do not select your consignment for SPS checks.
Participants of the Accredited Trusted Trader Scheme (ATTS) pilot will need to pay the common user charge on imports which are eligible for SPS checks at a government-run BCP. We will review the position as the scheme is developed further.
When the charge will not apply
You will not need to pay the common user charge for:
- low risk plants and plant products – if these goods are pre-notified on IPAFFS, you may still be charged
- plants and plant products checked at an inland control point instead of a government-run BCP
- plants and plant products moving from one country to another and transiting through Great Britain (this is known as ‘using Great Britain as a landbridge’) – if these goods are pre-notified on IPAFFS, you may still be charged
- goods for personal use you’re bringing on the Eurostar, Eurotunnel Le Shuttle or Dover Ferry passenger services
Participants of the Authorised Operator Status (AOS) pilot for plants and plant products will not need to pay the common user charge provided SPS checks take place at an inland control point.
How the charge will be calculated
If your goods are eligible, the common user charge will apply to each commodity line in a CHED. It will apply to separate commodity lines even if they share the same commodity code.
The maximum charge for one CHED will be limited to 5 commodity lines, even if there are more than 5 commodity lines present in the CHED.
A CHED is an import notification you submit on IPAFFS to notify authorities in Great Britain about your import. A commodity line is a quantity of goods entered as a separate line item in a CHED.
Common user charge rates
The following rates will be charged for each commodity line in a CHED.
| Commodity type | Imports | Transits |
|---|---|---|
| Low risk animal products | £10 | £10 |
| Medium risk animal products | £29 | £10 |
| High risk animal products | £29 | £10 |
| High risk food and feed of non-animal origin (HRFNAO) | £29 | No common user charge |
| Low risk plants and plant products | No common user charge | No common user charge |
| Medium risk plants and plant products | £29 | No common user charge |
| High risk plants and plant products | £29 | No common user charge |
The maximum charge for one CHED will be limited to 5 commodity lines, even if there are more than 5 commodity lines present in the CHED. This means that medium and high risk CHEDs will be capped at £145. Low risk animal product CHEDs and animal product transits will be capped at £50.
If your CHED has commodity lines with different risk categories, the rate of the highest risk category will apply to all commodity lines. For example, if low risk and medium risk commodity lines are combined in the same CHED, the medium risk common user charge rate will apply to all commodity lines.
VAT will not be added.
Defra will review and update rates annually.
Defra is developing the common user charge rates for live animals separately and will publish the rates before implementing them.
Example calculations
These examples show how the common user charge will be calculated.
Example 1
The CHED contains 2 medium risk and 2 high risk commodity lines.
| Commodity Line | Commodity Type | Common User Charge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | High risk commodity | £29 |
| 2 | High risk commodity | £29 |
| 3 | Medium risk commodity | £29 |
| 4 | Medium risk commodity | £29 |
The importer will be charged £116 (which is 4 x £29).
Example 2
The CHED contains 5 medium risk and 2 high risk commodity lines.
| Commodity Line | Commodity Type | Common User Charge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | High risk commodity | £29 |
| 2 | High risk commodity | £29 |
| 3 | Medium risk commodity | £29 |
| 4 | Medium risk commodity | £29 |
| 5 | Medium risk commodity | £29 |
| 6 | Medium risk commodity | Not applicable |
| 7 | Medium risk commodity | Not applicable |
A maximum of 5 commodity lines will be charged in a CHED, so the importer will only be charged £145 (which is 5 x £29).
Example 3
The CHED contains 4 low risk animal product commodity lines.
| Commodity Line | Commodity Type | Common User Charge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Low risk animal product commodity | £10 |
| 2 | Low risk animal product commodity | £10 |
| 3 | Low risk animal product commodity | £10 |
| 4 | Low risk animal product commodity | £10 |
The importer will be charged £40 (which is 4 x £10).
Example 4
The CHED contains 3 low risk and 1 medium risk animal product commodity lines.
| Commodity Line | Commodity Type | Common User Charge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Medium risk animal product commodity | £29 |
| 2 | Low risk animal product commodity | £29 |
| 3 | Low risk animal product commodity | £29 |
| 4 | Low risk animal product commodity | £29 |
The importer will be charged £116 because each commodity line is charged at the rate of the highest risk category present in the CHED (which is 4 x £29).
Other charges
The common user charge will be in addition to any inspection fees applied by the:
- port health authority (for animal products and HRFNAO)
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (for plants and plant products)
There will be additional charges for failing to comply with paying the common user charge. Read the ‘compliance with paying the charge’ section below.
Billing
The importer, or agent working on behalf of the importer, must provide up-to-date billing details in the first IPAFFS notification raised on or after 30 April 2024. These will be used for invoices.
Billing details include:
- a postal address
- an email address
- a phone number
These billing details will then appear as the default details for all future IPAFFS notifications.
To change the billing details, you can amend an existing notification or change the details when you submit a new notification.
If an importer raises their own notifications on IPAFFS, they will be responsible for paying the common user charge. They should provide their own billing details in the IPAFFS notification.
Animal products and high risk food and feed of non-animal origin (HRFNAO)
If an agent raises notifications on IPAFFS on behalf of one importer, the agent and importer will need to agree who is responsible for paying the common user charge. If the:
- agent is responsible, the agent should provide their own billing details in the IPAFFS notification
- importer is responsible, the agent should provide the importer’s billing details in the IPAFFS notification - agents must get permission from the importer to use their billing details
If you’re an agent who raises IPAFFS notifications for more than one importer, you must use your own billing details in the IPAFFS notification. If you use an importers billing details, they could be charged for all of the notifications you raise, including those for other importers.
Plants and Plant Products
If an importer has granted Delegation of Authority to an agent, the agent must provide the importer’s billing details in the IPAFFS notification. Agents must get permission from the importer to use their billing details.
If an agent working under Delegation of Authority provides their own billing details, they could be charged for all notifications raised for that importer. This includes notifications raised by other agents.
Defra will issue monthly invoices in arrears. Invoices will come from Shared Services Connected Ltd. (SSCL), who will answer queries about invoices.
The first invoices will be issued no sooner than 12 weeks after 30 April 2024.
Invoices will include details for CHEDs which were charged during the invoicing period, including:
- CHED reference numbers - each CHED will appear on a new line
- CHED risk levels
- the number of commodity lines within each CHED
- the total charge for each CHED
Invoices will not include specific commodity information.
Invoices can be paid by:
- GOV.UK pay, using the link on the invoice
- bank transfer or BACS
- over the phone by debit or credit card
- cheque
Invoices must be paid within 30 days.
Compliance with paying the charge
We will put in place measures to deter late payment and payment avoidance, including charges for late payment.
We’ll publish further information on compliance measures before the first invoices are issued.
How common user charge rates have been set
Rates for the common user charge have been set by calculating the estimated annual operating costs at government-run BCP facilities and dividing this by the estimated annual number of SPS commodity lines that enter through Port of Dover and Eurotunnel.
Operating costs include:
- business rates
- costs associated with administering the charge
- costs associated with payment collection
- maintenance costs
- sewerage costs
- site operator costs
- site management costs
- utilities costs
Guidance on import controls for SPS goods
Read about:
Last updated 25 April 2024 + show all updates
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Information about the billing details used to pay the common user charge when an agent importing animal products or high risk food and feed of non-animal origin (HRFNAO) acts on behalf of more than one importer have been updated. References to 'POAO' have been corrected to 'animal products', to include animal by-products, germinal products and products of animal origin.
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Example calculations have been added. More information about who is responsible for paying invoices and how to pay invoices has been added to the 'billing' section.
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High-risk food and feed not of animal origin has been added to the table of common user charge rates.
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First published.