This guidance is an explanation of UK-Australia FTA Chapter 2: Trade in Goods
Removal of customs duties
The UK-Australia FTA removes all customs duties on UK originating exports to Australia.
The vast majority of UK originating exports will see all duties removed immediately upon entry into force. This includes key goods such as:
- Whiskies
- Gins
- Liqueurs
- Motor Cars and Passenger Vehicles including electric
- Car Parts
- Pharmaceutical and Medical (where not already included)
- Heavy Machinery
- Dried Vegetables
For a smaller number of goods (namely some steel and cheese products), duties will be phased in over a set number of years.
For those steel products, duties will be removed over 5 equal annual instalments; and for cheese products, remaining duties will be eliminated over 6 equal annual instalments.
The agreement provides a full list of goods and their duty rates.
Rules of Origin (RoO)
Provided the export to Australia meets the Rules of Origin requirements, a declaration regarding the origin can be made on the export invoice, or any other commercial document stating the goods are originating in the UK and meet the requirements of the RoO chapter.
Non-tariff measures
Australia will not maintain any non-tariff measures or adopt any non-tariff measures that are not in accordance with WTO rights and obligations. Details of non-tariff measures that are permitted will be made available to interested parties in the future.
Goods and Services Tax (GST)
Goods and Services Tax is a tax on most goods and services sold in Australia, with the current GST rate set at 10%. UK businesses will need to determine if GST applies.
More information on GST can be found on the Australian Taxation Office website.
There are no substantial changes for this provision of the UK-Australia FTA after CPTPP entered into force between the UK and Australia.