Compound Penalties

The GOV.UK website has been updated with compound penalties issued for exporting control goods without a license.

Further details can be found here. 

Export control breaches are criminal offences, but the 1979 Customs and Excise Management Act allows HMRC to 'compound' offences and offer civil settlement penalties in lieu of referring the matter to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). A compound penalty can be up to three times the value of the goods exported, but a significant discount can be offered if a firm discloses potential breaches to HMRC on a voluntary basis - and subsequently agrees to cooperate with its investigation.

Between January and May 2023, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) issued compound settlement offers to four UK exporters totalling over £1.1 million.

These related to unlicensed exports of dual use goods, military goods and related activity controlled by The Export Control Order 2008 and Retained Regulation 428/2009. Offences are contrary to section 68 Customs and Excise Management Act 1979.

Webinar: Doing business with the Netherlands - all you need to know
Wednesday 7 June, 2.00-3.30pm

You will learn about:

• Why the Netherlands is a great place for trade and investment
  
• The economic climate both currently and looking ahead
  
• What the Netherlands has to offer around infrastructure, human resources, sustainability etc
  
• The opportunities in different regions in the Netherlands
  
• How the NBCC can help and support you.
  

Register here.

Cambridge Networking Lunch: Manage your foreign exchange risk
Thursday 29 June, 12.00-2.00pm
Novotel Cambridge North

Join us in Cambridge for a networking lunch that we expect to be very popular!

Make new connections in a room full of decision makers, enjoy an impressive buffet lunch and hear a talk from our guest speaker Sophia Awan, Strategic Partnerships Manager at Moneycorp.

Sophia will explain how to manage your foreign exchange risk in today’s economy.

Moneycorp is the provider of Chamber Foreign Exchange. They can save your business money by creating a foreign exchange strategy tailored to your business needs.

Further details and booking here.

You can view the full list of all our courses on the Chamber website.

Courses can also be tailored to meet your company’s specific requirements. For more information about a bespoke course for your company, which can be delivered remotely or in person, please contact the Chamber on 01223 237414.

The UK Trade and Business Commission’s report on the State of UK Trade was published last week.

The UK’s trade deals with Australia and New Zealand entered into force on Wednesday morning and can now be used by importing and exporting businesses. Read the British Chambers of Commerce blog on what both deals mean for business.

The final series of EU regulations to implement the Windsor Framework deal with the UK on GB to NI goods movements were passed last week.