Primarily for general aviation discussion, but other aviation topics are also welcome.
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By bogopper
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885373
Received via airfield management, GAR reporting is changing from 1st Jan.

Having read the enclosed document (see below) I'm a little confused as to how it will work.
Change to 2 hours PNR for return is good but 4 hours has never really been an issue.
Specifically, "New Clearance Requirements" for Outbound flights that were not previously required.

I am expecting some kind of Yes/No response from the authorities that allows me to depart. Can they stop me leaving?

Has anyone any experience of this? or any other info?

regards

Mark

New Customs Reporting Requirements for General
Aviation (GA) moving from/to Great Britain

This guide sets out new customs reporting requirements for General Aviation (GA) aircraft travelling from Great Britain (GB) to the European Union (EU) from 1 January 2022. It also explains new time limits for the reporting of aircraft from this date. General Aviation covers owners and commanders of private or commercial aircraft making civil flights over the Common Travel Area and internationally.

What is changing?
GA aircraft are currently required to submit General Aviation Reports (GARs) for certain journeys in and out of GB. This is known as ‘outward clearance’ and ‘inward reporting’ and it allows the government to risk assess journeys and identify potential customs and immigration violations. Due to the UK’s exit from the EU, this will also be required for journeys from GB to the EU. There will also be a reduction to the current time limits for reporting of aircraft to Border Force for customs purposes to at least two hours before departure from GB or at least two hours before departure from the last destination before the aircraft arrives in GB. Reporting timeframes and requirements under the Terrorism Act 2000 remain unchanged.
The tables below show which journeys are changing.

Outward Clearance
GB to EU Member Countries New Clearance Requirements (Changed)
GB to the rest of the world Clearance Still Required (Unchanged)
GB to Channel Islands Clearance Still Required (Unchanged)
GB to NI No Customs Clearance Required, however
notification to the relevant police force is still required if departing from or arriving at a port that is not police designated (Unchanged)

Inward Reporting
EU Member Countries to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)
Rest of the world to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)
Channel Islands to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)
NI to GB No Customs Clearance Required, however
notification to the relevant police force is still required if departing from or arriving at a port that is not police designated (Unchanged)


When will these changes come into effect?
You will need to start submitting reports for journeys from GB to the EU from 00:00 GMT on 1 January 2022. The reduction in time limits will also apply from 1 January 2022.

How do I submit reports?

General Aviation Reports (GARs) can be submitted by the owner or commander of the aircraft.

Reporting for customs purposes is required at least two hours before departure (a reduction from the current time limits). The new time limits will be the same irrespective of where your flight is departing to or arriving into GB. These will be:

1. in the case of arrivals: no later than two hours before departure from the last destination before arriving into GB.
2. in the case of departures: no later than two hours before departure of the aircraft from GB.

If you are travelling between GB and another country within the Common Travel Area (NI, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) and are using a port that is not police designated, you must still notify police at least 12 hours in advance of your journey. Failure to seek approval is a criminal offence under the Terrorism Act 2000.

The easiest way to submit a GAR is through the Border Force “Submit a GAR portal”. This is a digital free to use service and is already used for reporting journeys. You can register for the service by visiting http://www.GOV.UK/submit-gar. You may also use third party applications which have secure links to Home Office systems for the transmission of this information. Please note that third party applications may incur a service/membership charge.

You may also submit a GAR by completing and emailing the GAR electronically in an excel format to the National Co-ordination Unit (NCU):
ncu@hmrc.gov.uk. The latest GAR form is available on GOV.UK.


Non-customs and excise designated aerodromes
Non-customs and excise designated aerodromes that handle GA permitted international flights are now covered by a blanket interim Certificate of Agreement (CoA) until 31 December 2023.
CoA aerodromes that handle limited freight will not be captured by this blanket and will need to apply full customs controls from 1 January 2022.
The new reporting requirements will apply for flights departing from both of these types of aerodromes.

User avatar
By Dave W
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885374
Well, that came out of nowhere! Good and bad.

@bogopper - Do you have a link from your airfield to anything available online?

I'll check at the strip tomorrow to see if we've received anything, given last year's application for a Certificate of Agreement.

PS:
bogopper wrote:I am expecting some kind of Yes/No response from the authorities that allows me to depart. Can they stop me leaving?

Unless it is a fundamental change in concept, which the quote you give doesn't suggest, it remains "notification" - very much not "permission".

The notification period is to provide time for Border Force to attend or communicate, but (if the same as today, which I would expect) there is no requirement to wait for a response otherwise.
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By bogopper
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885375
@Dave W this is everything unfortunately.

I’ve checked with a friend that runs a CofA strip and they have not had this email.

I think an email to HMRC/BF for lots more clarification is needed.
By johnm
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885380
There’s no logic to this that I can see. We used to need immigration notification on return because we weren’t in Schengen. Now we need customs too because we are no longer in the single market. Why we would need to notify outbound is a mystery known only to Border Farce.
meznas, NickS liked this
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By Pete L
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885397
johnm wrote:There’s no logic to this that I can see. We used to need immigration notification on return because we weren’t in Schengen. Now we need customs too because we are no longer in the single market. Why we would need to notify outbound is a mystery known only to Border Farce.


Perhaps the UK is finally going back to actually counting how many people leave.
User avatar
By imperialsam
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885400
If you are travelling between GB and another country within the Common Travel Area (NI, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) and are using a port that is not police designated, you must still notify police at least 12 hours in advance of your journey. Failure to seek approval is a criminal offence under the Terrorism Act 2000.


Terrorism Act 2000 wrote:3)Where an aircraft is employed on a journey to which this paragraph applies otherwise than to carry passengers for reward, the captain of the aircraft shall not permit it to call at or leave a port in Great Britain or Northern Ireland unless—

(a)the port is a designated port, or

(b)he gives at least 12 hours’ notice in writing to a constable for the police area in which the port is situated (or, where the port is in Northern Ireland, to a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary).


Perhaps it’s just careless drafting in that FAQ, but it’s notice, not approval, that is required for flights without paying passengers within the Common Travel Area.

As far as flights to the EU are concerned the word ‘clearance’ sounds a bit ominous, but by saying that the procedures for outbound ‘clearance’ to other non-EU destinations are unchanged, it suggests that by clearance they just mean just filling in the GAR. Perhaps they mean clearance in the sense of ‘clearing customs’ rather than a ‘cleared for takeoff’-like explicit authorisation.

Assuming it is just notice and not authorisation that is required, adding two hours to the outbound notification time seems like a reasonable trade-off for losing it from the inbound. I’m not sure if many people set off for Europe without knowing about it two hours beforehand. But having a bit more flexibility on the return trip might be useful, e.g. if wanting to come home earlier than planned due to unexpected deteriorating weather.
User avatar
By Dave W
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885407
imperialsam wrote:
Failure to seek approval is a criminal offence under the Terrorism Act 2000.

I'll mention that when I write to them. It's obviously a significant discrepancy!
imperialsam, johnm liked this
User avatar
By A le Ron
#1885409
It doesn’t seem like an alleviation of the requirements returning to the UK to me. For example, at the moment, if I wish to depart Cannes and fly to Sherburn, I can submit my GAR form as I taxi to the Hold. This gives the required four hours notice of arrival. Now I will have to submit it two hours earlier.
User avatar
By Dave W
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885410
I'll ask for clarification on the timings being based on departure rather than arrival for inbound flights. That makes little practical sense and (?) could be a drafting error - particularly since elsewhere in the document, as quoted above, it states:
Inward Reporting
EU Member Countries to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)
Rest of the world to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)
Channel Islands to GB Reporting Still Required (Unchanged)

The relevant word being "Unchanged".

Also - Just noticed: This is a (positive and previously unreported) change, too. Previously the blanket interim Cert of Agreement was due to expire at the end of June 2022.

Non-customs and excise designated aerodromes that handle GA permitted international flights are now covered by a blanket interim Certificate of Agreement (CoA) until 31 December 2023.
By GAFlyer4Fun
#1885414
Dave W wrote:...
Unless it is a fundamental change in concept, which the quote you give doesn't suggest, it remains "notification" - very much not "permission".

The notification period is to provide time for Border Force to attend or communicate, but (if the same as today, which I would expect) there is no requirement to wait for a response otherwise.


Whilst that has been my experience, there is a theoretical possibility they could actually respond to a notification with an instruction not to cross the border. Surely they have the authority to do that.
User avatar
By Dave W
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885420
They would, AIUI, need firm legal grounds to do that.

All the law requires is for pilots to provide notification, which enables Border Force (and/or the police, depending on the journey) to enquire further - which may include visiting the airfield.
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By PeteSpencer
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885421
Has anybody who has had a Border Force inspection for the granting of a Certificate of Agreement heard anything yet.?
Our inspection was in May and we haven' heard a dickey-bird.
By johnm
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1885428
I think in the mind of Border Farce they are metaphorically raising and lowering the drawbridge :roll:
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