Gift items can be sent tax and duty-free provided the shipment is valued at less than £40 / $70CAD, it must be addressed to an individual and should be individually packaged/ wrapped. The package can contain multiple individually wrapped gifts with each different recipient’s name. A detailed description of each item should be added as well as the value of the gift should be clearly stated on the commercial invoice. The address of the receiver must be a residential address, not a business/ work address otherwise, the gift will be viewed as a commercial shipment and be treated as such which means it will not be exempt from any duties and taxes.

Personal items can be shipped tax and duty-free, although you may be asked to provide proof of ownership of these items using documents such as purchase invoices or receipts, items warranty documents, insurance documents, and more

For Student

If you are moving from Canada to the UK to study for at least 12 months, you are afforded the ability to ship your personal items to the UK duty and tax-free. On your Commercial invoice, you must specify in the general description or remarks section that your items are “Personal Items”. You will also need to add your Proof of Enrolment from your school to be included with your shipment. You do not need to complete the TOR1(Transfer of residence) form

For Non-Student

If you are moving to the UK for at least 12 months or returning to the UK and you are not a student, you will have to apply for Transfer of Residence relief.

If you are moving temporarily to the UK for a lesser amount of time than 12 months, you will need to apply for Temporary Admission of Goods.

A sample is usually a free product sent from a seller to a potential buyer. Your goods won’t be accepted as samples unless they meet certain standards. Some of the criteria include:

• Sample goods must have been “defaced” for instance
  • Sample Bags
    Bags should have a tag sewn into them in a visible place or a permanent marking with the words ‘sample or not for resale’ clearly visible.
  • Clothing Sample
    A cut, or a tear should be made in the exterior part of the clothing but not at the bottom. This cut or opening should be visible when the clothes are worn. You can also make a print on the clothing item with the words ‘sample, not for resale’ in permanent ink.
  • Shoe Sample
    A hole can be made in the sole of the shoe or ‘sample, not for resale’ printed on the exterior of the shoe in permanent ink.
  • Books and makeup samples
    These should be clearly labeled either with a sticker or printed on with permanent ink as a sample and is not for resale.
  • Furniture and household objects sample
    The words ‘sample, not for resale’ should be carved on the outside visibly.
  • Food and Drink Samples
    Any edible samples should be packaged in little packaging that clearly states, “sample not for resale”.
• The commercial invoice must note that the item is a sample and not for resale.
• Only a single sample of each item.

Commercial or “Salesman’s Samples”

Sending Commercial or salesman samples to the UK from Canada you may be able to claim relief from Customs Duty and VAT although you may still need to pay special handling fees. Click here to check if you qualify to apply

Indicate “Company Transfer,” not sold

Value is low as it is not sold and traveling between the same company

To import your goods duty and tax-free to the UK, you need to:

1. Fill out a Commercial Invoice.
   
   Trade show booth or specialized equipment you need apply for a Temporary Admission (TA) along with filling out a commercial invoice for more information, please visit this TA may be time-consuming but this would help to make certain that your shipment does not incur any duties and taxes.Although you can also apply for and use an ATA Carnet (ATA Carnet is an international customs document that permits duty-free and tax-free temporary import of goods for up to one year) to ship your items in and out of the UK as it is one of the 176 countries worldwide accept this document for shipping. To apply for ATA Carnet in Canada click
2. The goods must be exported from the UK within 2 years
3. The goods cannot be sold or exchanged for monetary value, mortgaged, rented out, discarded, or modified in any manner without getting the necessary approval of the authorities
4. The commercial invoice must state “Temporary Import/Not for Sale” as well as the “return date” in the description of goods.

All products sold that enter the United Kingdom. If you export regularly, you may need to get a UK broker. The government also requires some items have CE (Conformité Européene) markings on them. Click here to see the list of products that need this marking and how to get it.

• “REPAIR & RETURN” and estimated time of return should be clearly stated on Commercial in the General Description.
• If it’s a part that is broken under warranty, indicate the information in the description
• Serial or product number as well as the cost of repairs should be added to the Description of Goods.
• The original import document or tracking details that was used to get the item to Canada initially should be included as not having the details or tacking for the item when it was shipped to you initially in Canada from the UK may result in customs delay and incur tax and duty charges.