WHEN the UK voted to leave the EU, part of the agreement was that there would not be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in order to protect the Good Friday Agreement and to protect the ongoing Peace Process.
The end result is a Protocol Border down the middle of the Irish Sea which means all goods arriving in Northern Ireland are inspected under EU import legislation. Vehicles supplied and transported to an end user with an address in Northern Ireland come under this ruling.
Both Governments have set up complicated systems to ensure the correct VAT and various taxes are being paid at source and that the vehicle is not being exported over the actual land border into the Republic of Ireland.
Unfortunately these new systems are complicated and time consuming which has had the effect that some mainland companies have withdrawn sales to NI – due to failing to understanding the actual reasons for these rules.
A common thought is that there is an asset risk for the owner of the goods ( Funders ) but as the vehicle is being delivered and used by a British subject based in NI (still a country within the UK and covered by British laws ) there should not be any threat to ownership or in fact it should be just the same as any vehicle being used in Scotland, England or Wales as all vehicles are registered by the DVLA in Swansea.
Funders have taken differing views on the situation, some will only supply vehicles delivered by local NI Franchised Dealers to an end user with a NI address some have no problems in continuing with the existing system as long as the full Protocol systems are adhered to (each Funder must be registered with their own EOIR number for transportation ) and some have added various stipulations for trading.
Therefore it is important to know who the Funder is right at the outset in order to know how they are treating the situation and then go from there.
When transporting goods from the UK Mainland to NI all Funders must obtain their own EOIR number which allows for transportation and this number should be used for all deliveries as it specific to that company. Â When this number is used there must be a registration number available for the vehicle in order to apply for an XI number which along with the registration number should be given to the transport / shipping company to allow the vehicle to be delivered / shipped to NI.
This process shows the UK / EU where all VAT and relative taxes were paid. On the 4th of every month after a vehicle is delivered a 20 page report must be completed for the Traders Supplies Service mainly to show that the vehicle is not “At Risk” of exportation to the ROI.
As you can see, it is not rocket science but is very time consuming and awkward and as with any Government directive which must be followed.
However this scenario is not restricted to vehicle movements. John Henry of Northern Ireland- based broker Contraflex lists some of the other restrictions that NI is having with this protocol:
“NI fishermen are not allowed to land their catches in NI and must travel to either Dublin or Donegal. Potatoes and flora, in fact any root items are not allowed from the mainland in case there is soil from Britain attached to the item. Â Â Transportation of livestock must be covered by EU veterinarian regulations.
“Any living animal or animal product including milk that does not have EU acceptance is banned.
And lastly to bring your pet on holiday with you to the mainland requires £200 of vets bills to prove that rabies etc doesn’t exist. This is required for the return journey only.   Rabies has not been known on the island of Ireland for hundreds of years!
“As a company and operating partner of Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Contraflex has taken unprecedented action and have employed professionals to teach all our staff in the whys and wherefores of this protocol because we believe if you get it wrong it will have consequences and therefore it is much better to be knowledgeable and safe.”
A number of brokers contacted by the Leasing Broker Federation said they had experienced some difficulties in getting funding for vehicles going to NI.
Henry added: “So whilst the leasing world is just a small cog in the whole situation it is still very important to those involved – we hope you find this information to be of use in continuing to trade in Northern Ireland.”
