Guidance

List of ports using the Goods Vehicle Movement Service

Find out which locations are using the Goods Vehicle Movement Service.

Moving goods in and out of Northern Ireland

If you use one of the following ports with the specified carrier, you must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service:

  • Belfast, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Larne, if the carrier is P&O
  • Warrenpoint, if the carrier is Cronus or Seatruck

Moving goods into Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) from outside the UK

Locations where you’ll always need to use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service

If you use one of the following ports, you must always use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service for roll on roll off (RoRo) movements:

  • Dover 
  • Eurotunnel 
  • Fishguard (from 31 January 2024) 
  • Heysham (from 31 January 2024) 
  • Holyhead (from 31 January 2024) 
  • Liverpool 
  • Pembroke (from 31 January 2024) 
  • Newhaven

Locations where you must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service for some carriers

If you’re using one of the following ports, your carrier may require you to use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service:

  • Birkenhead, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Felixstowe, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Harwich, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Hull, if the carrier is P&O
  • Immingham, if the carrier is DFDSDFDS, or Stena Line or A2B-online
  • Killingholme, if the carrier is Stena Line, CLdN or DFDS
  • Manchester Ship Canal, if the carrier is Suardiaz
  • Plymouth, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Poole, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Port of Tyne, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Portsmouth, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Purfleet, if the carrier is CLdN
  • Teesport, if the carrier is P&O or CLdN
  • Tilbury 2, if the carrier is P&O or DFDS

These ports also offer temporary storage. You should check with the carrier to find out if you can use temporary storage.

Moving goods out of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales)

Locations where the export declaration must be submitted as ‘arrived’

You must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service and submit the export declaration as ‘arrived’ before the goods start their journey, if you’re using one of the following specified carriers for RoRo movements and the goods are leaving from:

  • Birkenhead, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Dover, if the carrier is Irish Ferries, P&O or DFDS
  • Eurotunnel
  • Fishguard, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Heysham, if the carrier is Stena Line or Seatruck
  • Holyhead, if the carrier is Irish Ferries or Stena Line
  • Liverpool, if the carrier is P&O, Stena Line, Seatruck or CLdN
  • Pembroke, if the carrier is Irish Ferries

Locations where the export declaration must be submitted as ‘pre-lodged’

You must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service and submit a ‘pre-lodged’ export declaration before the goods arrive at the port, if you’re using one of the following specified carriers for RoRo movements and the goods are leaving from:

  • Manchester Ship Canal, if the carrier is Suardiaz
  • Newhaven, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Plymouth, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Poole, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Portsmouth, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Tilbury 2, if the carrier is DFDS

Locations providing Offices of Transit digitally

The border locations using the Goods Vehicle Movement Service to support Offices of Transit are:

  • Aberdeen, if the carrier is SeaCargo
  • Belfast, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Dover, if the carrier is Irish Ferries, P&O or DFDS
  • Eurotunnel
  • Fishguard, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Felixstowe, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Harwich, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Heysham, if the carrier is Stena Line or Seatruck
  • Holyhead, if the carrier is Irish Ferries or Stena Line
  • Hull, if the carrier is P&O
  • Immingham, if the carrier is DFDS, SeaCargoSeaCargo, or Stena Line or A2B-online
  • Killingholme, if the carrier is Stena Line, CLdN or DFDS
  • Larne, if the carrier is P&O
  • Liverpool, if the carrier is P&O,Stena Stena,Line, Seatruck or CLdN
  • Newhaven, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Pembroke, if the carrier is Irish Ferries
  • Poole, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries
  • Port of Tyne, if the carrier is DFDS
  • Port of Loch Ryan, if the carrier is Stena Line
  • Port of Cairnryan, if the carrier is P&O
  • Portsmouth, if the carrier is Brittany Ferries or Condor
  • Purfleet, if the carrier is CLdN
  • Teesport, if the carrier is P&O
  • Tilbury 2, if the carrier is P&O or DFDS
  • Warrenpoint, if the carrier is Seatruck

Locations of Common Transit UK offices

Find out the UK locations of Common Transit UK offices, including Offices of Transit, Destination and Departure.

Published 11 December 2020
Last updated 2512 JanuaryFebruary 2024 + show all updates
  1. Entries for Birkenhead have been added. Entries for Immingham and Liverpool have been amended.

  2. Fishguard, Heysham, Holyhead and Pembroke have been added to the list of locations where you will always need to use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service when moving goods into Great Britain from outside the UK (from 31 January 2024).

  3. ‘Manchester Ship Canal, if the carrier is Suardiaz' has been added to the ‘Locations where you must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service for some carriers’ and ‘Locations where the export declaration must be submitted as 'pre-lodged'’ sections.

  4. Addition of DFDS as a carrier for Tilbury 2 port. Removal of Sheerness port from all sections.

  5. The list of locations where you must use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service for some carriers has been updated to include CLdN for Teesport.

  6. Plymouth, Poole and Portsmouth support pre-lodged customs controls for movements out of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) from 29 August 2022.

  7. From 1 January 2022, the border locations using the Goods Vehicle Movement Service to support pre-lodged customs controls in Northern Ireland, the locations supporting pre-lodged customs controls for movements into Great Britain, the locations supporting pre-lodged customs controls for movements out of Great Britain, and the border locations using the Goods Vehicle Movement Service to support Offices of Transit have all been updated.

  8. Aberdeen has been added to the list of locations providing Offices of Transit digitally and the entry for Immingham has been updated.

  9. Sheerness has been added to the list of locations providing Offices of Transit digitally.

  10. The entry for Hull on the list of locations providing Offices of Transit digitally has been updated.

  11. Updated list of locations providing Offices of Transit digitally.

  12. Updated list of locations providing Offices of Transit digitally.

  13. First published.