British Common User Charge (CUC) invoices issued
Businesses that imported Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) goods on or after 30 April 2024, which were eligible for checks at Sevington Border Control Post (BCP), would have received their first digital CUC invoice by email from Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL).
The CUC will apply to imports of animal products, plants and plant products entering Great Britain through the Port of Dover or Eurotunnel which are eligible for checks at a government-run BCP. The CUC applies to all businesses and, from an Irish perspective, it will only cover consignments using the land-bridge and coming through those BCPs.
The first digital invoices would have been een issued from 10pm on the 5th of August for charges incurred between 30 April 2024 (the date of introduction of the new SPS controls as part of the UK’s Border Target Operating Model (BTOM)) and 31 July 2024. Subsequent digital invoices will be issued and emailed monthly, in arrears, for common user charges covering the previous month.
Organisations will receive their invoices from this email address O2C.mail@gov.sscl.com with “Defra invoice” as the email subject heading. Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL) will manage CUC billing, payments and payment recovery processes on behalf of Defra. The invoice will state payment is due “IMMEDIATELY”. DEFRA encourages immediate payment because the charges are applied in arrears. However, bill payers, including agents who are acting on behalf of businesses, will have up to 30 days from the date on the invoice to pay the common user charges. Payment for the invoices on 5 August, will be due by 4 September 2024.
Detailed and updated guidance on CUC including how to set up payments and ways to pay the CUC invoice is available at GOV.UK. As of now, SSCL should be the first point of contact for any CUC invoice-related queries, including where there is a query about the amount businesses have been charged and their ability to pay on time. Details of how to contact SSCL will be included in your invoice.
For questions on this topic, please contact SFA Public Affairs Lead, Jonathan McDade - Tel: 01 605 1688 or Email: jonathan.mcdade@sfa.ie.
