UK companies' demand for European warehousing soars, with the Netherlands becoming the main destination

According to foreign media reports, more and more British companies are seeking to open warehouses on the European continent or use customs warehouses and temporary storage facilities (including special customs procedures) to reduce the additional customs procedures and tax costs incurred when trading with the EU .

More than a fifth of companies said they were interested in exploring customs warehousing in the future, according to a poll conducted by the IOE&IT at a January 5 seminar on rules of origin .

European warehousing demand soars, with the Netherlands becoming a major destination

Since the beginning of the year, many businesses have been frustrated by rising customer service costs and cumbersome customs procedures in Europe. Warehousing and logistics companies such as KWL are promoting the commercial benefits of warehousing in Europe.

It is understood that the warehousing rules in the EU are: goods outside the EU can be stored in customs warehouses within the EU without restrictions, unless they are harmful to health or the environment. In EU warehouses, goods will be subject to customs supervision and no import duties or other fees related to imported goods or import licenses need to be paid.

This is a huge benefit and convenience for many British companies, and a large number of British companies have begun to seek to build warehouses in Europe. According to the British "Guardian" report, Dutch logistics and warehousing companies are being overwhelmed by the frenetic demand of British companies , who hope to use warehousing to obtain tax benefits.

Jochem Sanders, business development manager at the Netherlands International Distribution Board , said he was contacted by more than one UK company every day throughout December and January , and the situation was getting worse .

Many British companies have already taken action

Sporting goods company Leon Paul is understood to be considering opening a warehouse in Europe, where a third of its £7m turnover comes from.

Alex Paul, head of the company , said that since the end of the transition period on December 31, new export taxes , courier fees and value-added tax have made the costs beyond the company's ability to bear. Leon Paul will save some of the costs of doing business in Europe by setting up warehouses in Europe .

Scottish hosiery company Snag Tights , which has a turnover of £24m and fulfils 21,000 orders a week , has also decided to open a warehouse in the Netherlands to handle all non-UK orders .

Chief executive Brie Read said: “ With a third of sales currently coming from within the EU, it no longer makes sense to import our products from Italy to the UK and then export them back to the EU . We therefore had to build a new warehouse. ”

Large companies such as Hornby and JD Sport have also relocated to Europe and are restructuring their warehouse facilities in Europe.

Europe

Warehousing

Netherlands