EU says it won’t ease customs controls on UK after Brexit

The European Union will impose full customs controls and checks on goods from the U.K. from 2021, declining to reciprocate London’s plan to offer traders a six-month grace period.

“You can count on us to be forcible and systematic in implementing the deal, and in doing so certainly protecting the single market,” Joao Vale de Almeida, the EU’s ambassador to the U.K., said on a Chatham House webinar on Thursday, when asked if the bloc would mirror Britain’s stance. “We took note of the British decision, but we are not at the point in time where we either need or wish to take decisions on our side.”

Even if the U.K. and EU agree a free-trade agreement this year, replacing Britain’s decades-long membership of the bloc, companies will have to handle a wave of new paperwork and administrative costs. Goods crossing the U.K.-EU border will require customs declarations and products of animal origin will need health certificates. Without the right documents, there is the risk of border disruption and goods being held up at ports.

“I don’t think everybody has fully grasped this new reality,” de Almeida said. “We have to raise the awareness about the implications of this, with deal or no-deal.”

The U.K. is planning a ‘shock and awe’ information campaign from July onwards to encourage businesses to make preparations. Last week, the British government said it would initially relax the customs requirements on imports from the EU when the Brexit transition period finishes at the end of this year to help companies manage the new burden.