The current Trader Support Service stops accepting new movements on 20 October. If you move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, here is what to do before then.
From 20 October 2026, every goods movement between Great Britain and Northern Ireland that goes through the Trader Support Service has to be submitted on the new platform. The current service will not accept new movements from that date. Customs rules do not change, but a movement that is filed on the wrong system does not get filed. Treat 20 October as a hard business deadline.
What is changing
The Trader Support Service is the free HMRC service that helps businesses move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework. It can complete customs and safety and security declarations on your behalf where they are required, so you do not have to use HMRC's systems directly.
Since 2020, it has been run by a Fujitsu-led consortium. The new platform is delivered by Netcompany under a five-year contract and is hosted on GOV.UK. HMRC says the customs processes and your legal obligations stay the same, and that the platform brings better functionality and support.
The dates that matter
- From 1 October: businesses that use the service receive an email with instructions on how to pre-enrol on the new platform.
- Before 20 October: complete the pre-enrolment. HMRC says existing users will be migrated and do not need to register from scratch.
- On or after 20 October: every new movement must be created on the new platform. A movement due to move before 20 October should be created and completed on the current service. A movement due on or after 20 October must not be.
- 30 November 2026: you can still look at your historical data on the outgoing platform until this date.
Your checklist
- Find the invitation email and pre-enrol. If you cannot find it, check your spam folder, then use the contact details on the GOV.UK page, not details from an email you were not expecting.
- List who files for you. Your hauliers, agents and colleagues may all need access. Tell them the date.
- Sort your movements by date. Anything moving from 20 October onwards goes on the new platform, even if you planned it weeks ago.
- Save what you need. Export any historical records you rely on before 30 November.
- Be careful with email. Deadlines attract scam emails. Only sign in using links on the official GOV.UK pages, and be suspicious of anything that asks you to confirm account details by return email.
How to use ExporterIQ for this
- Find a broker or forwarder who handles Northern Ireland. The Trade Services directory lists customs brokers and freight forwarders that our team has reviewed, with reviews from buyers who really worked with them. Ask any provider you contact whether they handle Great Britain to Northern Ireland movements.
- Check an unfamiliar sender. If a new haulier, broker or customer emails you in the middle of the migration, paste the address into Check a contact. It tells you which company the address belongs to, warns you about lookalike domains and known fakes, or says plainly that there is no match. It does not check government addresses, so for anything that claims to come from HMRC, use the official GOV.UK contact details.
- Know your counterparty. Before you take on a new customer or supplier in Northern Ireland, open their profile in the company directory and see whether our team has verified them and what that rests on.
- Keep up with deadlines. Subscribe to the ExporterIQ newsletter on our home page for new posts like this one.
Sources
Written by Andre B, ExporterIQ.
