Policy & Compliance
What’s in store for our sector – a high-level overview
One of two key programmes that may have an impact on our industry is the Single Trade Window (STW), along with the Modernising Authorisations Programme
A general election is always a good time to re fl ect on what the future might bring, be it in terms of policy or IT system developments in the freight forwarding sector. The last eight years can hardly be described as uneventful. The EU Exit, CDS replacing CHIEF, a raft of new policies and a flurry of new computer systems (GVMS and IPAFFS to name just a couple) have all redefined and reshaped our daily operations. Yet, there is more in store. One of the key programmes that may have an impact on our industry is the Single Trade Window (STW). The concept itself is not new nor revolutionary, as we demonstrated in July’s issue of BIFALink , yet we believe that it has a significant amount of potential to streamline many administrative processes while also offering a number of operational BIFA Members can already try to test the ENS functionality, which will go live before the requirement to lodge safety and security data for imports from the EU (EEA), with more to follow soon. BIFA has been following the STW’s development closely and is planning to continue doing so in future. When talking about the STW, it is impossible not to mention the Modernising Authorisations Programme. Announced at the Spring Budget 2023, the programme aims at improving the HMRC authorisation process by reducing the administrative burden functionalities that may help traders in their day-to-day- operations. ENS functionality
“ We believe that the STW has a significant amount of potential to streamline many processes while also offering a number of operational function- alities that may help traders in their day- to-day- operations admin - istrative
and removing duplicative processes. Something that our industry has been advocating for a long time. Anyone who has had to go through more than one authorisation process will have experienced excessive data requirements, duplication of processing and confusing guidance. These issues are supposed to be addressed over the coming months, resulting in a more efficient environment and a faster path to authorisation. The STW and the Modernising Authorisations programmes are both very pragmatic but also follow a general direction of travel when it comes to data sharing and system efficiencies. There are, however, developments that have the potential to make the freight forwarder’s life a little challenging, if not a little harder, under certain circumstances. One of these developments is the introduction of the UK Carbon Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) from 2027. Although lighter in its
scope than the EU scheme and, in its current form, making no provision for the forwarder’s active involvement, the scheme will still require IT developments, which may in turn impact on what happens at the frontier. Speculative territory Going further into more speculative territory, we are wondering whether the UK is going to implement an equivalent of the EU Deforestation Regulation. The EU regulation’s scope is far wider than what the name might imply, and it can create operational challenges for anyone working at the border. Regardless of the outcome, it is becoming clear that our role may involve more than just moving goods across frontiers. And with a wider adoption of AI solutions, our roles are set to be profoundly redefined over the coming years. BIFA will be monitoring industry trends and will keep Members up to date.
August 2024 | 9
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