Insights

Brexit support training

Name: MHA
Price range: $

Posted on: June 21st 2021 · read

There is still time to apply for a government grant of up to £2,000 for professional advice and support.

Applications will close on 30 June 2021 or earlier if all funding is allocated before this date.

SME Brexit support fund

This is for grants for businesses new to importing and exporting to receive professional support, advice and training.

The UK leaving the EU has meant a huge number of British businesses are now having to account for customs duties and import VAT for the first time and navigate new administrative requirements due to the new trading relationship with the EU.

Trading with the EU and trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland post-Brexit is complex and if mistakes are made these can be costly.

The SME Brexit support fund is a £20 million fund designed to help small and medium sized businesses adapt to the changes to trading with the EU from 1 January 2021.

Each SME business can apply for a grant of up to £2,000 to fund professional advice and support.

Who can apply?

To benefit from the scheme a business must:

Have 500 employees or fewer
Have no more than £100 million annual turnover
Be established in the UK
Not have previously failed to meet its tax or customs obligations
Import or export goods between GB and the EU or move goods between GB and NI

The business must also either:

Complete (or intend to complete) import or export declarations internally for its own goods; or
Use someone else to complete import or export declarations but requires additional capability internally to effectively import or export (such as advice on rules of origin or advice on dealing with a supply chain)

What can the grants be used for?

Grants can be used to help you get professional advice so your business can meet its customs, excise, import VAT or safety and security declaration requirements

The grant can also be used for training and support on:

How to complete customs declarations;
How to manage customs processes and use customs software and systems; or
Specific imports and export related aspects including VAT, excise and rules of origin.

How can we help?

Our VAT team is on hand to assist with any queries you may have arising from Brexit.

Professional advice

We can provide tailored Brexit advice based on the Brexit impact on your business and the areas where you need support, along with supporting you with the grant application.

We can provide advice on a specific problem area or undertake a more holistic review.

We have developed a Post-Brexit VAT review to support businesses trading with the EU including:

Buying from the EU
Selling to the EU
Trading with Northern Ireland
VAT return completion
Postponed Import VAT accounting

This is ideal for businesses struggling with trading post-Brexit or simply wanting assurance that they are getting things right!

Training

In addition, our MHA network member firm MHA MacIntyre Hudson have developed an in-depth, practical training course designed for businesses impacted by the customs changes resulting from Brexit. The training course is currently delivered via video conferencing.

The training covers all the aspects of customs that your business will need to learn such as:

How Brexit will impact on your business – what are the legal requirements and easements provided by the UK
How to classify your goods
How to value your imports for customs purposes
Customs Duties – What are they and how are they calculated
Rules of Origin. What are they and how are they used
Import declaration process and how to minimise errors.
Roles and responsibilities of the importer, exporter and freight forwarder
Customs Procedures such as Customs Warehousing, Inward Processing and Temporary Admission
HMRC Customs Audits

Apply now: https://www.customsintermediarygrant.co.uk/sme-brexit-support-fund