HMRC has announced the replacement of the Automatic Licence Verification System (ALVS) for Northern Ireland with the EU licence verification system called CERTEX.
The new system will be operation from the 28th of June 2025.
In order to avoid declaration rejections for shipments arriving on or after 28th of June, all declarations should be pre-lodged according to the shared guidance.
Please see the below HMRC announcement and the attached guides for more information:
Moving licensed goods into or out of Northern Ireland from 28 June 2025
From 28 June 2025, licence data on declarations for goods movements will be verified by a system called CERTEX. This replaces the Automatic Licence Verification System (ALVS) for Northern Ireland.
Where a licence is required, this change will impact the following document types:
· Certificates of Organic Conformity (COI)
· Plants and plant products (CHED.PP)
· Food and feed of non-animal origin (CHED.D)
· Food and products of animal origin (CHED.P)
· Live animals (CHED.A)
· Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS)
· Fluorinated Gases (FGAS)
For these licensed goods moving into or out of Northern Ireland by import, export or transit, information on declarations such as commodity code, net mass, and supplementary units must match with licences. This is essential to avoid unnecessary delays to the movement of goods.
Also, from 28 June 2025, the Common Health Entry Document (CHED) reference must also be provided on the declaration in the new format. The reference format must be letters followed by numbers and include the full stop character. For example, ‘CHEDA.XI.2025.1234567’.
If you or a trader are pre-lodging a declaration that will be arrived from 28 June this will need to include the new CHED format. If you/they have already pre-lodged a declaration for arrival from 28 June using the old CHED format, you/they will need to use the Customs Declaration Service (CDS) and amend this prior to the arrival of the goods. You/they must continue to use the old CHED format if you/they are pre-lodging a declaration that will arrive prior to 28 June. Failure to use the correct CHED format will result in rejections once the goods arrive and potentially delays in getting the goods released.
Processes for making a declaration or obtaining a licence remain unchanged.
More information available on GOV.UK guidance.
Additional support for traders
For support for goods in movement, contact the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (DAERA) on 0300 200 7852 or email daera.helpline@daera-ni.gov.uk.
For general support with freight movements, traders can contact the Trader Support Service team, or call the HMRC Customs and International Trade helpline on 0300 322 9434 (textphone 0300 200 3719).
For support with parcels movements, traders can contact their parcel express operator. Please note this change does not impact express operators moving consumer parcels under the UK Carrier Scheme.
Additional support for hauliers
Goods Vehicle Movement Service (GVMS) notifications will inform hauliers whether the goods they are moving need to be checked.
Guide Documents
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