Returned goods relief grace period extended by six months

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has announced a 6-month extension to the 1-year grace period previously put in place by the government for returned goods relief.

The announcement follows representations from the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and British Marine asking for a 3-year transition period. The organisations say the 1-year period of grace effective from 1 January 2021, in respect of the three-year condition for RGR, was not sufficient as many factors affect the repatriation of vessels, including travel restrictions, the Schengen area immigration restrictions, insurance restrictions and the length of sailing season.

The new announcement extends the grace period for RGR until 30 June 2022 for all goods including recreational craft, regardless of when they left the UK.

“Following many months of dialogue with officials we welcome this news from HMRC,” says Howard Pridding, RYA director of external affairs. “The extension of 30 June 2022 for boat owners to repatriate their vessels will allow many recreational boaters the opportunity to return to the UK without incurring additional VAT costs. The HMRC announcement is timely, as we have seen additional concerns from members about the new restrictions on leaving the UK announced this week.

“We will continue our constructive dialogue with HMRC on all outstanding post-Brexit issues, including the repatriation of boats that have not been in the UK under their current ownership, and look forward to receiving a full response from the HMRC chief executive on the points that we have raised.”