Rules of origin under the UK and EU trade agreement

Q: How do goods qualify as originating?

There are two routes. Goods are wholly obtained if they are produced in one party without materials from anywhere else, such as minerals extracted there or animals born and raised there. Everything else must be sufficiently worked or processed in line with the product specific rule for its Harmonised System code, set out in Annex 3 of the TCA. HMRC describes three types of rule: a value rule, capping the value of non originating materials as a percentage of the ex works price (shown in the annex as MaxNOM) a change of tariff classification, so that non originating inputs must fall under a different heading from the finished product manufacture from particular materials or through a specific process Meeting the product rule is not enough if the only work done is on the list of insufficient operations in Article 43, such as affixing labels, simple painting or simple assembly. HMRC treats an operation as simple where it needs no special skills and no specially produced or installed machinery.

Q: How do cumulation and tolerance help?

Under Article 40 the UK and EU allow bilateral cumulation: EU originating materials count as originating when used in UK production, and the reverse. The TCA goes further than many agreements by also allowing processing carried out in the other party on non originating materials to be counted, which HMRC calls full bilateral cumulation. Cumulation only works where the processing in the exporting party goes beyond the insufficient operations. Once a component has originating status it counts as 100% originating. HMRC's example is a UK engine containing 30% foreign materials that still meets its rule: when fitted to a car made in the UK or EU, the full value of the engine counts as originating. Tolerance under Article 42 lets a product originate even though a small amount of non originating material breaks its product rule. HMRC's guidance gives the limits as 15% of the weight of the final product for agri food goods and 10% of the ex works price for manufactured goods, with separate thresholds for textiles and clothing in chapters 50 to 63. Tolerance cannot be added on top of a value threshold rule.

Q: What proof do you need to claim a zero tariff?

The TCA allows two proofs of origin. The first is a statement on origin: prescribed wording from Annex 7 which the exporter adds to an invoice or other commercial document describing the goods. A UK exporter identifies itself with its EORI number. HMRC notes that EU exporters use a registered exporter (REX) number, which they need for consignments worth more than 6,000 euros. A statement can cover one consignment, or multiple shipments of identical products over a period of no more than 12 months. HMRC's guidance states that for imports into the UK a statement is valid for 2 years from the date it was made out, and for exports to the EU it is valid for 12 months. The second is importer's knowledge, where the importer holds enough information about the production to show origin itself, such as the HS code and origin criterion used, the production process, and the values or weights of non originating materials. If the exporter will not share commercially sensitive costings, the fallback is to ask for a statement on origin instead. For UK imports, HMRC states that a waiver applies to goods with a total value under £1,000, whether commercial or not, provided they are declared as meeting the origin rules. The waiver does not apply to a series of imports split up to avoid the normal requirements.

Goods move between the UK and the EU at zero tariffs under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement only if they originate in the UK or the EU under its preferential rules of origin and the importer claims preference on the customs declaration. The claim must rest on a proof of origin: a statement on origin made out by the exporter, or the importer’s own knowledge, backed by records kept for at least 4 years.

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What does preferential origin actually get you?

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) gives zero tariffs on goods traded between the UK and the EU, but only where the goods meet the agreement’s rules of origin. HMRC’s introduction to the rules explains that there must be a qualifying level of processing in the country of export. Goods that fail can still be traded, but they pay the standard Most Favoured Nation duty: the UK Global Tariff on imports into the UK, and the Common External Tariff on imports into the EU. For some goods that rate is low or nil, for others it is significant, so a business has to decide whether meeting and proving origin is worth the effort.

Origin is not the same as where goods were shipped from. HMRC’s guidance makes the point that the rules apply equally to EU origin goods that pass through the UK on their way to another EU member state, and to goods brought in from outside both. A UK distributor that buys Chinese stock and sells it on to EU customers without processing it cannot give that stock UK origin.

How do goods qualify as originating?

There are two routes. Goods are wholly obtained if they are produced in one party without materials from anywhere else, such as minerals extracted there or animals born and raised there. Everything else must be sufficiently worked or processed in line with the product specific rule for its Harmonised System code, set out in Annex 3 of the TCA. HMRC describes three types of rule:

a value rule, capping the value of non originating materials as a percentage of the ex works price (shown in the annex as MaxNOM)
a change of tariff classification, so that non originating inputs must fall under a different heading from the finished product
manufacture from particular materials or through a specific process

Meeting the product rule is not enough if the only work done is on the list of insufficient operations in Article 43, such as affixing labels, simple painting or simple assembly. HMRC treats an operation as simple where it needs no special skills and no specially produced or installed machinery.

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How do cumulation and tolerance help?

Under Article 40 the UK and EU allow bilateral cumulation: EU originating materials count as originating when used in UK production, and the reverse. The TCA goes further than many agreements by also allowing processing carried out in the other party on non originating materials to be counted, which HMRC calls full bilateral cumulation. Cumulation only works where the processing in the exporting party goes beyond the insufficient operations.

Once a component has originating status it counts as 100% originating. HMRC’s example is a UK engine containing 30% foreign materials that still meets its rule: when fitted to a car made in the UK or EU, the full value of the engine counts as originating.

Tolerance under Article 42 lets a product originate even though a small amount of non originating material breaks its product rule. HMRC’s guidance gives the limits as 15% of the weight of the final product for agri food goods and 10% of the ex works price for manufactured goods, with separate thresholds for textiles and clothing in chapters 50 to 63. Tolerance cannot be added on top of a value threshold rule.

What proof do you need to claim a zero tariff?

The TCA allows two proofs of origin. The first is a statement on origin: prescribed wording from Annex 7 which the exporter adds to an invoice or other commercial document describing the goods. A UK exporter identifies itself with its EORI number. HMRC notes that EU exporters use a registered exporter (REX) number, which they need for consignments worth more than 6,000 euros. A statement can cover one consignment, or multiple shipments of identical products over a period of no more than 12 months. HMRC’s guidance states that for imports into the UK a statement is valid for 2 years from the date it was made out, and for exports to the EU it is valid for 12 months.

The second is importer’s knowledge, where the importer holds enough information about the production to show origin itself, such as the HS code and origin criterion used, the production process, and the values or weights of non originating materials. If the exporter will not share commercially sensitive costings, the fallback is to ask for a statement on origin instead.

For UK imports, HMRC states that a waiver applies to goods with a total value under £1,000, whether commercial or not, provided they are declared as meeting the origin rules. The waiver does not apply to a series of imports split up to avoid the normal requirements.

When are supplier declarations needed?

An exporter must hold evidence of origin before issuing a statement on origin. Where its own manufacturing does not meet the rule on its own, that evidence usually includes supplier declarations from UK suppliers, in the form in Annex 6. HMRC gives the example of a 40% non originating limit where materials make up 45% of the ex works price: declarations are needed to cover the excess 5%. Declarations are also needed for goods bought and exported in the same state, and where cumulation relies on processing done in the EU.

A long term supplier declaration can cover regular supplies for up to 2 years. Its start date can be no more than 12 months before or 6 months after the date of issue, and its end date no more than 24 months after the start date.

How do you claim preference, including after import?

The claim is normally made on the import declaration. HMRC’s guidance for the Customs Declaration Service lists document codes U110 (statement on origin for a single shipment), U111 (statement for multiple shipments) and U112 (importer’s knowledge) in data element 2/3, a preference code in the 300 series in data element 4/17, and the country of preferential origin in data element 5/16. If preference was not claimed at the time, a claim can be made within 3 years of the importation date with a valid proof of origin, and the duty repaid. In the UK repayments are claimed on form C285.

The importer must keep the statement on origin, or the records supporting importer’s knowledge, for 4 years from importation. The exporter must keep a copy of the statement and the supporting records, such as supplier declarations and invoices, for 4 years from the date it was made out.

What happens if customs checks the claim?

The importing customs authority can verify origin before or after release. For claims on importer’s knowledge, the importer must answer the information request within 3 months. For claims on a statement on origin, the importing authority can ask the exporting country’s customs to check the exporter, with a written report due within 10 months. Preference can be denied if the importer does not provide information or no adequate reply arrives in time, but not for minor errors that do not cast doubt on origin.

The commercial risk often falls on the customer. HMRC warns that if a UK exporter cannot evidence origin when its EU customer is verified, the EU customer pays the full rate of duty. An exporter who finds a statement was wrong must tell the customer in writing straight away.

A worked example

Illustration only. A UK workshop makes wooden tables. HMRC’s guidance gives the rule for heading 9403 as MaxNOM 50%. The ex works price of a table is £1,000. It uses Asian fittings worth £300 and EU timber worth £250, supported by a statement on origin from the EU sawmill.

Approach	Non originating value	Share of ex works price	Result
Ignoring cumulation	£550	55%	Fails the 50% rule
With bilateral cumulation	£300	30%	Meets the rule

The workshop’s cutting, joining and finishing go well beyond simple assembly, so the table can be exported to the EU with a statement on origin. If the workshop merely screwed bought in legs onto bought in tops, HMRC’s own table example shows it would not originate, even within the value limit.

What are the common mistakes?

Treating a “made in” label or the country of dispatch as proof of preferential origin.
Issuing statements on origin without holding supplier declarations or costings that prove the rule is met.
Claiming preference on EU goods resold from a UK warehouse without processing.
Forgetting the 3 year window to reclaim duty where preference was missed.
Assuming origin and duty relief are alternatives: HMRC confirms the TCA allows duty drawback schemes such as inward processing alongside preference.

Rules of origin sit alongside the VAT side of the same movement. See selling goods to EU customers, zero rating exports of goods and postponed VAT accounting for imports. Goods moving to or from Northern Ireland follow different rules, covered in VAT on Northern Ireland goods. Many traders rely on a broker for the declaration itself, and the liability that follows depends on whether the broker acts as a direct or indirect representative.

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Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 8 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.