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HMRC internal manual

Holding and Movements Assurance Guidance

From:
HM Revenue & Customs
Published:
Updated:
, see all updates

  1. Contents
  2. HMAG
  3. HMAG60000
  4. HMAG60800
  5. HMAG60835

Excise Movement and Control System: EMCS search results: non-UK search results

Guidance for searching non-UK EMCS databases can be found in GLU0013407. There is no central EU database of EMCS movements. Each MS maintains a database of movements to and from their own traders. Messages passing between MS can be rejected or affected by processing failures. When this occurs, the status of the movement can be different across the two MS involved in the movement. The EU specification requires MS to make movement details available to other MS using defined search parameters, which are those shown on the search screen. There is no provision for using any other search parameters to locate movements on other MS databases.

Searching another database could be a response to not finding the ARC on the UK database. A nil response from the UK database prompts you to search another MS database. Reasons for wanting to search another database include:

  • The UK system has rejected an eAD from another MS whereby the ARC is not stored on the UK database, and you may want to confirm that an eAD has actually been created to authorise the movement. The NSD may be able to verify that the movement has actually been started.
  • The eAD may be stored on the UK database, but another message, such as a Cancellation or a CoD has been rejected whereby the status of the movement has not been updated on the UK database.
  • Another MS RoR has been rejected by the UK. The movement will be ‘Delivered’ on the other MS database, but ‘Accepted’ on the UK database.
  • The UK is the MS of ‘transit’, perhaps for movements between Ireland and another MS.

If a search yields no ARC, consider whether the ARC details are correct. Has ‘0’ (zero) been entered instead of the letter ‘O’ or a ‘5’ rather than an ‘S’? When searches are processed, the system should firstly return the status of the movement and then the message details, which are retained on the UK system for 5 days. An unsatisfactory response could be an indicator of an illegal movement, whereby a trader is trying to move goods without a movement authorisation.

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