In short: Sea freight to Felixstowe or Southampton, the CDS declaration, duty, 20% import VAT and postponed VAT accounting, and haulage, with a worked example.
An import quote to the UK has the same shape as one into Australia or New Zealand: freight, destination port charges, customs, duty and tax, and delivery. The detail that changes the most is VAT. Whether the importer pays it at the border or accounts for it on their VAT return changes the cash they need before the goods are released, so a complete UK quote says which method you've assumed. This article goes through each part, line by line, with a worked example into Felixstowe.
Felixstowe and Southampton are common discharge ports for deep-sea containers, and the port the carrier uses decides how far the box has to travel by road or rail afterwards. A consignee in the Midlands is a different haulage price from Felixstowe than from Southampton. State the port of discharge, the routing, the transit time and whether the ocean rate is all-in or has surcharges listed separately.
The Incoterm sets where your quote starts. On FOB you quote from the ship's rail at origin. On EXW you also price pickup, export clearance and origin terminal charges. If the request doesn't name the term and the place, ask. Our guide to Incoterms 2020 for forwarders goes through which charges sit on which side.
List the UK-side charges one by one rather than as a lump: terminal handling, the delivery order or documentation fee, and for LCL the CFS unpack and handling charges. Say which are in GBP and which are in the carrier's currency, and what exchange rate you used for any total. Port storage and demurrage can't be predicted at quote time, so state the free time you've assumed and list them as possible extras.
The importer needs an EORI number that starts with GB to import goods into England, Wales or Scotland. A non-GB EORI won't do, and Northern Ireland movements may need an XI number (GOV.UK, get UK customs clearance when importing goods). Ask for the EORI in your first reply, because it's the thing most often missing from a new importer's request.
The same GOV.UK guidance says the importer can hire a transporter or customs agent to make the import declaration. Declarations are lodged on HMRC's Customs Declaration Service (CDS), and HMRC calculates what's owed once the declaration is submitted (GOV.UK, pay for imports declared using CDS). Your quote should show the clearance fee, what it covers (usually a set number of commodity codes, with a per-line charge above that).
Duty depends on the commodity code and the origin of the goods. If the goods qualify for a preferential rate under a UK trade agreement and the importer has the origin evidence, the rate may be lower. You can't confirm the final figure until the declaration is lodged, so give an estimate, state the commodity code and rate you assumed, and say it's confirmed on entry.
The UK standard VAT rate is 20% (GOV.UK, VAT rates). Imported goods are normally charged at the same rate as if they'd been supplied in the UK (GOV.UK, paying VAT on imports).
The VAT value isn't just the invoice value. HMRC starts from the customs value and adds incidental expenses such as commission, packing, transport and insurance up to the goods' first destination in the UK, plus any customs duty and other import charges except the VAT itself. Incidental expenses include customs clearance charges, quay rent, handling, loading and storage (GOV.UK, working out the VAT value). That means some of your own destination lines end up inside the VAT calculation, which is worth one sentence in the quote.
How the VAT is paid matters more to the importer than the rate. There are three common routes:
Put a line in the quote that says which method you've assumed, and ask for the VAT number and written confirmation if it's postponed accounting. Getting this wrong after the declaration is lodged can't be undone.
Quote haulage from the port to the consignee's postcode, and state the vehicle type, the unloading time included, and whether the price covers the empty return. Say whether you've priced a tail-lift or side-loader if the site has no dock. For LCL, quote delivery from the CFS rather than from the port.
1 x 40HC, FOB Shanghai to Felixstowe, delivery to Northampton NN4, two commodity codes, importer VAT registered and using postponed VAT accounting. Freight, local and haulage figures are example rates.
Ocean freight FOB Shanghai - Felixstowe, 1 x 40HC ..... USD 2,350.00
Destination terminal handling (example) ............... GBP 245.00
Documentation / delivery order (example) .............. GBP 65.00
Import declaration on CDS, up to 3 codes (example) .... GBP 95.00
Haulage Felixstowe - Northampton NN4 (example) ........ GBP 520.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duty: estimated on the commodity codes supplied; preferential
rate may apply with valid origin evidence.
VAT: 20% on customs value + incidental costs to first UK
destination + duty. Assumed postponed VAT accounting:
no VAT payable at the border. VAT number required.
Possible extras, only if they arise: customs examination,
port storage or demurrage past free time, extra codes over 3.
The structure carries across. The government lines are what change: see what a complete import quote to New Zealand includes for the levy and biosecurity side there, or the US for ISF, the customs bond, MPF and HMF.
Laneworks drafts import quotes from your rate sheet, states the VAT method it assumed, and lists the possible extras, with the rate row behind every number. See a sample draft, or forward a real quote request to try@getlaneworks.com and a draft comes back in about two minutes.
Forward a quote requestDrafting these by hand? See Freight quote software for UK forwarders: forward a request and get the priced reply back in about two minutes.