What goes wrong on customs declarations, and what does it cost?

Who pays when a declaration is wrong

It depends on how your agent represents you. Under direct representation the agent acts in your name, and you, the importer, are solely liable for the customs debt. The agent only becomes liable too if you gave clear instructions and the agent made a deliberate or unreasonable error.

Under indirect representation the agent acts in its own name, and you are both jointly and severally liable, so HMRC can collect from either of you. Businesses not established in the UK can only be represented indirectly.

What goes wrong

HMRC's own guidance names the risks:

• Goods misdeclared, or information missing or incomplete.
• No licence or certificate in place before the goods are imported.
• Postponed VAT accounting used without the importer's instruction.
• Not enough funds or security on the account used to pay.

The details that cause the most trouble are the commodity code, the customs value and claims for preferential duty, because each one changes how much duty is due.

What it can cost

• The duty and import VAT that should have been paid, often with interest.
• A civil penalty under Customs Notice 301. The maximum is £2,500 per contravention for the more significant irregularities and £1,000 for others. The first penalty is usually £250, and repeat errors of the same kind cost more each time.
• HMRC treats an incorrect declaration as a serious error when the duty, import VAT or both come to more than £10,000.
• Goods held while a document or licence is found, and a customer waiting.

How a mistake is put right

• You have up to 3 years to amend a declaration, counted from when it was accepted or a control was applied to the goods, whichever was earlier.
• Too little paid: apply for a voluntary clearance amendment on form C2001.
• Too much paid: claim a repayment on form C285.
• Tell HMRC first. You will not get a penalty for a mistake you find and disclose voluntarily, in writing, before you had any reason to think HMRC was looking into it.

How we keep declarations right

One account manager who knows your goods checks each declaration against your paperwork before it goes. If we find something wrong in past declarations, we tell you, and help you put it right.

Checked against HMRC guidance on GOV.UK in November 2026: Customs debt liability, Due diligence when making customs declarations, Customs Notice 301, Amend or cancel a CDS import declaration. Rules change, so talk to us before you rely on this for a movement.