Rules
As of 01 April 2017, the U.K. is implementing new procedures when importing your personal goods..
You MUST apply online for Transfer of Residence, tax relief, AT LEAST 3 weeks prior to arrival. Once your ToR application is approved, you will not be charged tax or duty on importing your goods to the U.K.
Please read the instruction sheet below, and if you have any questions, or concerns, please talk to us.
UK CUSTOMS INSTRUCTION SHEET Transferring of Residence (TOR) Relief
The change in emphasis is that the owner of the personal property/household effects should now be making the TOR Application in their own name. This is because any approval to use the Relief relies upon knowing that they, their goods and their post-import intentions with their goods all qualify the relevant criteria to permit them ToR Relief. This makes the person actually involved in Transferring their Residence to UK properly responsible and liable for the goods within the consignment and for any tax relief they wish to apply for.
Airfreight Baggage Company are unable to assist you by completing the form due to the fact that when you go through the form you will be asked questions and from that answer it will then open up a further series of questions. There are lots of questions aimed at finding out if the importer is bringing goods from/to a secondary residence. Please be aware there are no tax free allowances for secondary residences, so there would be Duties and Tax charged on these shipments.
How to Apply for Transfer of Residence Relief
You have to apply for the TOR relief yourself. It’s best to do this before we uplift your goods and definitely before your goods are sent to the UK.
Airfreight Baggage Company cannot be held responsibility for delays or associated charges if you do not apply for relief prior to the shipment arriving into the United Kingdom.
Complete form ToR01 Application for Transfer of Residence
Once completed please email it to: nch.tor@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk
We are recommending emailing the application so that you have a paper trail of the application.
If your application is successful you’ll be sent a Unique Authorisation Code/s which you will need to give to Airfreight Baggage Company.
Please also keep a copy on your email, so you can send this to your UK clearance agent.
This will be emailed to you from HMRC so please just forward that email on to us at Airfreight Baggage.
As part of the process HMRC will request far more information from the shipper than is requested currently (see below).
Basic Conditions to qualify for Transfer of Residence Relief
To obtain the relief you must:
- Be moving from a country outside the European Union (EU) to the UK, in order to live in the UK, thereby transferring your normal place of residence to the UK;
- Have lived outside the EU for at least the last 12 consecutive months;
- Have used and had possession of the goods for at least the last 6 consecutive months;
- Have used the goods and are going to continue using them in the new place of residence in the UK for at least the next 12 months;
- Be importing the goods within 12 months of coming to live in the UK;
- Not lend out, pledge, give away, hire out or transfer the goods within the first 12 months after the date on which they were imported.
The following documents are examples could be enclosed with your application:
- A copy of your passport, including your visa if available;
- Proof of registration. This document should show you’ve taken up residence in the UK and the date on which you did so, or any other document which provide reasonable evidence of this;
- List of goods which you wish to import into the UK;
- Invoices, proofs of guarantee etc. for the goods you wish to import (commercial documents) only;
Enclose copies of any documents which show you’re going to live in the UK, for example:
- Your employment contract;
- Your employer’s statement;
- Your work permit;
- Your tenancy or purchase agreement for the home you plan to live in.
Please note that ToR can only be permitted by HMRC to those persons setting up their residence in the UK only.
We also believe it would also be a good idea to complete the old C3 form for the first few months so that you have a backup option whilst this new system is implemented.