- You need an EORI number to move goods across a UK customs border, whether or not your business is VAT registered.
- Applying is free through GOV.UK, and most GB EORI numbers arrive immediately, with HMRC checks adding up to five working days.
- Businesses moving goods into Northern Ireland from Great Britain usually need a second number starting with XI alongside their GB one.
An EORI number is the reference HMRC uses to identify your business when goods move into or out of Great Britain. You need one if you import or export goods, whether or not you’re VAT registered, and it’s free to apply for through GOV.UK.
Most GB applications come back with a number straight away. If HMRC runs checks, it can take up to five working days.
Businesses moving goods to or from Northern Ireland often need a second number starting with XI on top of that. The EORI application isn’t something Sleek’s accounting service does for you. The import VAT that lands the moment your goods clear customs is.
Do you need an EORI number?
You need an EORI number if your business moves goods across a customs border, and that catches far more small companies than most business owners expect. HMRC’s test is about the movement itself, not your turnover or how long you’ve been trading.
Run through these. One yes means you need one.
- Do you move goods between Great Britain, or the Isle of Man, and any other country, including the EU?
- Do you move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Do you move goods between Great Britain and the Channel Islands, or between Northern Ireland and a country outside the EU?
- Are you applying for an export licence, making a customs declaration, or using customs systems like the Customs Declaration Service?
Two exceptions are worth knowing. You don’t need an EORI number for goods that are both non-controlled and for personal use only. And if your business is based in the Channel Islands and you’re moving goods to or from the UK, you don’t need one either.
What is an EORI number, and what does it actually do?
An EORI number is a unique reference that customs authorities use to identify a trader on a declaration. It stands for Economic Operators Registration and Identification, which tells you very little, so here’s the useful version: it’s what ties a shipment to your company inside HMRC’s systems. Without it on the paperwork, customs has no registered trader to attach the goods to.
A GB EORI is the letters GB followed by 12 digits. If you’re VAT registered, the first nine digits are your VAT registration number and the last three are 000, giving something like GB123456789000.
People confuse it with their company registration number constantly. The company registration number identifies your company at Companies House. The EORI number identifies your business at the border. Different issuer, different job, and you’ll be asked for both.
How many UK businesses need an EORI number?
HMRC counted 362,992 UK businesses named on a customs declaration during 2025, up 2% on the 354,936 recorded in 2024. Every one of them needed an EORI number to appear on that paperwork.
Importing is where the growth sits. The number of businesses importing goods rose 4% to 334,294, while the number exporting fell 5%.
|
Customs population, 2025 |
Businesses |
Change on 2024 |
|
Named on a customs declaration |
362,992 |
Up 2% |
|
Importing goods |
334,294 |
Up 4% |
|
Exporting goods |
126,029 |
Down 5% |
|
Moving goods to or from non-EU countries |
256,372 |
Up 4% |
|
Moving goods to or from EU countries |
218,611 |
Down 2% |
One figure matters more than the rest if you’re reading this because a courier has just asked you for a number. Of the businesses moving goods in 2025, 101,130 weren’t in the 2024 population at all. That’s 28% of the total, and nearly all of them went through the EORI application for the first time that year. Full figures are in HMRC’s Customs Importer and Exporter Population 2025.
GB EORI or XI EORI: which EORI number do you need?
Most UK businesses need a GB EORI number and nothing else. An XI number sits on top of it, and only certain Northern Ireland movements trigger the need for one.
|
Movement |
GB EORI |
XI EORI |
|
Great Britain and any other country, including the EU |
Yes |
No |
|
Great Britain into Northern Ireland |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Northern Ireland to a country outside the EU |
Yes |
Yes |
|
A declaration or customs decision made in Northern Ireland |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Only within the island of Ireland, or Northern Ireland to an EU country |
Not for these movements |
No |
Order matters here. You have to have applied for a GB EORI number before HMRC will issue you an XI one, so there’s no shortcut for a business that only cares about Northern Ireland traffic.
When you don’t need an XI EORI number
You can skip the XI application if any of these apply:
- You already hold an EORI number issued by an EU country
- You only move goods on the island of Ireland, or between Northern Ireland and an EU country
- Your business has premises in an EU country but not in Northern Ireland, in which case you apply in that EU country instead
If your business has no premises in Northern Ireland or the EU, you register with the customs authority of wherever you first make a declaration.
How do you apply for an EORI number?
You apply for an EORI number yourself through the GOV.UK service, and HMRC doesn’t charge a penny for it. No agent, accountant or freight forwarder needs to do this on your behalf, and there’s no fee anyone can reasonably charge you for it.
- Gather your details. Your UTR, your business start date and SIC code (both on the Companies House register), your VAT number and effective date of registration if you’re VAT registered, and your National Insurance number if you’re an individual or sole trader.
- Sign in to the GOV.UK “Get an EORI number” service. If you don’t already have Government Gateway sign-in details, you can create them during the application.
- Submit the GB application. You’ll usually get the number immediately. If HMRC needs to make checks, allow up to 5 working days.
- Apply for XI separately if you need it. Once your GB number is in hand, fill in the XI registration form. You’ll need your XI VAT number if you have one, any EU-issued VAT numbers, and two documents proving permanent business premises in Northern Ireland, such as a bank statement and a utility bill. XI numbers come through within 5 days.
Businesses based outside the UK don’t need a UTR, SIC code or National Insurance number to apply. The full requirements are on the GOV.UK guide to getting an EORI number.
Check whether your business already has a GB EORI before you apply. HMRC runs a free EORI checker, and a duplicate application only adds delay.
Do you need to be VAT registered before you get an EORI number?
VAT registration isn’t a condition of getting an EORI number, and plenty of businesses hold one without being registered at all. HMRC asks for your VAT details during the application if you have them and builds the number around your VAT registration number, but the application works fine without.
Where the two collide is the moment goods land. Import VAT is charged on goods entering Great Britain regardless of your registration status, and only a VAT-registered business can reclaim it.
When importing changes your VAT position
For a lot of first-time importers, the real question isn’t the EORI number at all. It’s whether importing has pushed turnover past the VAT registration threshold of £90,000, or whether voluntary registration now makes sense purely because of the import VAT they’re absorbing and can’t claim back.
If you’re weighing that up, our guide to registering for VAT covers the process and the timing.
What happens if your goods arrive without an EORI number?
Goods that reach the border without a valid EORI number on the declaration don’t clear customs, and the costs start running immediately. Your shipment sits at the port or in a customs warehouse while somebody sorts it out, and storage is billed by the day.
What that looks like in practice:
- Delays while the declaration is corrected and resubmitted
- Storage and demurrage charges from the port or handling agent
- A courier or freight forwarder refusing to move the goods until a valid number is supplied
- Missed delivery dates to your own customers, with the knock-on costs that brings
There’s no fixed penalty here. It’s simply the cost of goods standing still, and it climbs quietly. If you’re starting an ecommerce business and your opening stock order is already on a boat, this is the sequence that catches people out. The application takes minutes. The delay it prevents doesn’t.
Do sole traders and partnerships need an EORI number?
Sole traders and partnerships need an EORI number on exactly the same terms as limited companies, because the test is the movement of goods rather than the legal structure behind it. A sole trader importing stock from Turkey needs one just as much as a company does.
The application differs slightly. As an individual or sole trader you give HMRC your National Insurance number alongside your UTR, where a company supplies its business start date and SIC code from the Companies House register.
VAT is usually the part that trips sole traders up. VAT registration as a sole trader works on the same £90,000 threshold as it does for companies, and import VAT only becomes reclaimable once you’re registered.
How does an EORI number connect to import VAT?
Your EORI number is what links each import back to your business in HMRC’s systems, which makes it the foundation of your import VAT records. Get it wrong on a declaration and the statement that supports your VAT reclaim won’t reach you.
VAT-registered importers can also use postponed VAT accounting, declaring import VAT on the VAT return rather than paying it at the border and reclaiming it months later. The cash never leaves the business, which matters a great deal when you’re buying stock.
The detail sits outside this guide. Our guide to VAT on imports and exports covers the rates, the reclaim process and the monthly postponed import VAT statements in full.
How Sleek helps with EORI numbers and import VAT
Sleek doesn’t apply for EORI numbers, and you shouldn’t pay anyone who offers to. It’s a free HMRC service that takes about twenty minutes.
What arrives afterwards is where an accountant actually earns the fee. Import VAT, postponed VAT accounting, registration timing once importing lifts your turnover, and the monthly statements that back up every reclaim. Our VAT returns service handles the filing, with a qualified in-house accountant on your account rather than a ticket queue.
Disclaimer: The preceding information is not legal advice. This content is aimed to provide general guidance. For more formal or legal advice, contact Sleek directly.
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FAQs on EORI numbers
Can I import goods without an EORI number if I use a courier?
No. The declaration still needs an EORI number for the party acting as importer, and that’s usually you. A courier or freight forwarder can handle the paperwork, but they can’t lend you their number for goods you own. If you’re not eligible to hold one yourself, you must formally appoint someone to deal with customs on your behalf, and they get the number instead.
Can a business based outside the UK get a GB EORI number?
Yes, in defined circumstances. HMRC normally expects your business to have premises in the country you’re importing to or exporting from, meaning a registered office, headquarters or permanent establishment. Businesses without UK premises can still apply if they’re making transit, temporary admission, entry or exit summary declarations, acting as a carrier, or applying for a customs decision.
Do I need an EU EORI number as well as a GB one?
Possibly. A GB EORI only works for UK customs. If your business is named as the importer of record when goods enter the EU, you’ll need an EORI issued by an EU member state, applied for in that country. Where your EU customer acts as importer instead, they use their own number and you won’t need one.
How do I check whether an EORI number is valid?
HMRC publishes a free EORI checker on GOV.UK. Enter the number and it confirms whether it’s valid and registered. Worth doing before you apply, since VAT-registered businesses sometimes already hold one, and worth doing again if a supplier or agent gives you a number to quote on a declaration you’re responsible for.
Can I apply for an EORI number before my company is registered at Companies House?
Not as a company. The application asks for your UTR, your business start date and your SIC code, and those only exist once the company is incorporated and registered for tax. If you need to move goods before then, you can apply as a sole trader using your National Insurance number and personal UTR instead.
View more
Do I need an EORI number to send samples or promotional goods abroad?
Yes, in almost all cases. The exemption only covers goods that are both non-controlled and for personal use, and business samples fail the second test because they’re moving for commercial reasons. Product samples, trade show stock and promotional items all sit inside the customs system and need a valid number on the declaration.
What do I do if my business details change after I get an EORI number?
Report the change to HMRC through the EORI service rather than applying again. Address changes, name changes and changes to your VAT registration all need updating, because declarations are matched against the registered details. If you stop moving goods entirely, you can ask HMRC to cancel the number instead of leaving it dormant.
