UK and Ireland
What moves each way, the scams to watch for, and what to check before you trade.
Trade safely with Ireland
The scams, documents and rules that matter on this corridor. Written and reviewed by our team, and dated.
Corridor-specific scam patterns and rules are still being reviewed by our team and will appear here once published.
- Confirm the company exists in an official register and that its name matches the one on the invoice.
- Before paying into a new or changed bank account, phone the company on a number you already hold, not one from the invoice or email.
- Test the container number, ship number, ports and dates on the bill of lading with the Document checker.
- Be wary of paying in advance for goods you have not seen, or of fees demanded to release a shipment.
- Ask the carrier directly to confirm the shipment exists and where it is.
In 2025, the UK sold Ireland about $23.6 billion of goods. The biggest products were petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons, petroleum oils and oils from bituminous… and medicaments, which together make up 21% of the total. The total has fallen by about 9.2% a year since 2022. Among the leading products, electrical energy is growing fastest, at about 73% a year.
In 2025, the UK bought about $21.5 billion of goods from Ireland. The biggest products were medicaments, meat of bovine animals, fresh or chilled and human blood, animal blood for therapeutic, which together make up 19% of the total. The total has grown by about 4.9% a year since 2022. Among the leading products, cheese and curd is growing fastest, at about 25% a year.
Trade by year
Total trade each year, as reported in the tables below. A missing bar means no report for that year, not zero trade.
View as a table
| Year | UK sells to Ireland | UK buys from Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $31.5bn | $18.6bn |
| 2023 | $28.6bn | $20.9bn |
| 2024 | $24.1bn | $20.2bn |
| 2025 | $23.6bn | $21.5bn |
What UK sells to Ireland
Ranked by value in 2025, by 4-digit product code. Growth is the yearly rate since 2022.
| Product | Value | Share | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons Product code 2711 · Fuels and oils | $1.9bn | 8.0% | -21.3% a year |
| Petroleum oils and oils from bituminous minerals, not crude (preparations not listed elsewhere, containing by… Product code 2710 · Fuels and oils | $1.8bn | 7.8% | -23.8% a year |
| Medicaments ((not goods of heading no. 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therape… Product code 3004 · Pharmaceuticals | $1.3bn | 5.6% | -5.8% a year |
Biggest product groups: Fuels and oils (18%), Machinery (12%), Electrical equipment (8%), Pharmaceuticals (7%), Vehicles (5%) .
What UK buys from Ireland
Ranked by value in 2025, by 4-digit product code. Growth is the yearly rate since 2022.
| Product | Value | Share | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medicaments ((not goods of heading no. 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therape… Product code 3004 · Pharmaceuticals | $1.8bn | 8.4% | +11.2% a year |
| Meat of bovine animals (fresh or chilled) Product code 0201 · Meat | $1.2bn | 5.5% | +13.2% a year |
| Human blood (animal blood for therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic uses, antisera, other blood fractions, i… Product code 3002 · Pharmaceuticals | $1.2bn | 5.5% | +1.6% a year |
Biggest product groups: Pharmaceuticals (14%), Meat (9%), Optical and medical instruments (6%), Machinery (6%), Dairy, eggs and honey (6%) .
Where the opportunities are
Products that are moving on this corridor. Only products of a meaningful size are listed. Treat these as leads to check, not promises: a fast rise can reverse.
Room to grow
Products that a market buys a lot of, where this corridor supplies only a small part. Shares are for the latest year both sides reported. A small share can also mean a hard market, so check the rules and the buyer first.
A free account shows the complete product lists, every fast-growing and new product, and the markets where this corridor supplies little. Accounts are checked by hand, so use your business email.
Create a free account Sign inHow to read these figures
Value is what was traded in the year, in US dollars. A big number means a big market, not necessarily an easy one to enter.
Share is that product's part of the total in the table above. A product with a large share is what this corridor already trades most of.
Growth is the average yearly change since the first year shown. A green figure means trade in that product is rising.
Product code is the international customs code (HS) for the product group. Your customs agent and the guide below will ask for it, and it decides the duty you pay.
These are totals reported by customs authorities, not prices or orders. Use them to see where demand exists, then check the rules and the company you plan to deal with.
Next steps
Some figures come from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) overseas trade statistics, with pounds converted to US dollars at the Bank of England's monthly average rate. The rest are what each country reported to the UN (Comtrade), in US dollars. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Imports are usually reported including freight and insurance, exports without, so the two sides of a corridor will not match exactly. Company counts are companies listed on ExporterIQ.