Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the potential impact of technical issues associated with the (a) Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight, (b) common health entry document and (c) Cargo Community Systems for the UK on costs incurred by exporters since January 2024.

HMRC’s Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system is no longer in use. No new declarations have been made on CHIEF since July 2024, and the system was fully decommissioned in December 2024. HMRC’s customs systems, including CHIEF prior to its decommissioning, have remained resilient, and in the unlikely event of system issues HMRC has contingency processes to maintain the flow of goods.

Common health entry documents (CHEDs) for UK exporters are a requirement of EU member states that they are exporting to, and the associated systems and processes are outside the control of UK Government. CHEDs for UK imports are issued by the Import of Products, Animals, Food, and Feed System (IPAFFS) and system reliability to enable CHEDs to be issued to traders has generally been good.

Cargo Community Systems for the UK is a recognised Community System Provider but is a private sector entity responsible for its own systems and processes, including resolution of technical issues.