Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to issue Economic Operator Registration Identification scheme numbers to non-VAT registered traders.

The current UK registration process for non-VAT registered traders to obtain an Economic Operator Registration Identification scheme number (EORI) takes on average 19 hours for the EORI number to be issued and ready for use. Applicants are advised to allow 3 working days for an EORI to be granted. This timescale is based on HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) being provided with all the information necessary on the application form and this information being validated successfully. The application form is accessed through the Gov.uk web pages, which hosts all the information related to Customs activities, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/economic-operator-registration-and-identification-scheme-supporting-guidance.

HMRC is also developing a new Customs Declaration Service which should significantly reduce the time taken to finalise an application for an EORI.