EORI Numbers: GB, XI and EU, and Which Ones You Actually Need

An EORI number is the identifier customs uses to recognise your business, and you need one to move goods between Great Britain, the Isle of Man and anywhere else, the EU included. Obtaining one is straightforward enough; it is working out which ones you need that catches businesses out.

The three you might need

GB EORI. The standard UK number, formatted as GB followed by 12 digits. This covers movements into and out of Great Britain, and it is the one almost every UK trader starts with.

XI EORI. For goods moving in Northern Ireland under the arrangements that apply there. You cannot apply for an XI number first: HMRC requires you to hold a GB EORI before it will issue one.

EU EORI. This is the one that catches people out. A GB EORI is not valid for an EU import declaration. If your business needs to act as the declarant clearing goods into the EU, you need an EORI issued by an EU member state's customs authority.

The mistake that stops shipments

A UK exporter sells DDP to a customer in Germany, meaning the seller handles import clearance. The exporter holds a GB EORI, assumes it covers the EU leg, and discovers at the border that it does not. The goods sit while somebody scrambles to either obtain an EU EORI or renegotiate the terms.

What triggers the requirement is not where your goods end up but who is named as the declarant on the import. If that is you, clearing into the EU, then you need an EU EORI and usually either an EU establishment or an indirect representative acting on your behalf. If your customer imports instead, their number is used and yours has no bearing on that leg at all.

It is worth checking your Incoterms before assuming which applies, since DDP puts the import obligation on you while most other terms leave it with the buyer.

Getting one

You apply online through the GOV.UK EORI service, and most applicants receive a GB EORI straight away, although HMRC checks can take up to five working days and there is no fee either way.

You do not need one at all if the goods are for personal use only and are not controlled goods.

Where this leads

An EORI is the entry point rather than the destination, because it identifies you to customs without telling them anything about how reliable you are. Everything that follows from there, whether that is simplified procedures, deferred duty or reduced inspection rates, has to be earned by showing control over your customs processes.

That is the gap Authorised Economic Operator status closes, taking you from customs knowing who you are to customs treating you as low risk. If you are setting up EORI registrations now, it is worth understanding early what that next step asks for, since the evidence an AEO application needs is largely a record of how you have been operating all along.

Requirements change. Confirm current EORI guidance on GOV.UK before acting on it.