Customs forms for sending abroad

From 29 December 2020, you will need to complete customs forms for goods sent to countries outside of the UK, this includes EU countries, apart from sending items from Northern Ireland.

You can get all the customs forms you need in-branch. But to speed the process up, you can also print these forms at home. You can always ask a member of staff in branch if you have any questions.

How it works

If you’re filling out a customs declaration form you will need to follow the steps below. Letters and large letters containing only correspondence, commercial invoices or shipping documents do not require a customs declaration.

Before preparing any goods for sending, please check whether or not an item is prohibited or restricted. There can be certain restrictions, on what you can send to certain individuals, organisations or countries.

You can always ask a member of staff in branch if you have additional questions.

1) Find the customs form you need

Items sent via Royal Mail:

For items worth up to £270, make sure you include a completed and signed CN22 customs label.

If you are sending your item by a Royal Mail International Tracked, Signed or Tracked & Signed service, you can download this label here.

Here's how to complete a CN22 form.

If you are sending your item by Royal mail International Standard or Economy, your Post Office branch can give you the appropriate (barcoded) CN22 label.

For items worth over £270, complete and sign a CN23 form. You can download one, here. You can ask staff for help with this in-branch.

Items sent with Parcelforce:

Irrespective of value, items will require a customs declaration form which you can pick up in-branch. Any items sent with Parcelforce globalexpress will require the customs declaration form CP72 regardless of the destination

2) Complete, sign and attach custom forms

The sender is legally responsible for the information on the customs declaration, so it’s important to ensure that it is accurate and complete.

Put your customs form on the front of the item, as near as possible to the top left-hand corner - just don't cover up the address.

How to complete a CN22 customs form

CN22 are customs forms, used when sending goods internationally. The forms are scanned by optical character recognition, so it is important to fill them in legibly, with as much information as you can, to avoid delays in your items being received.

There are two different CN22 labels that have the same content. The label for International Standard or Economy services carries a barcode and is available only in branch.

Here we describe the form used with Royal Mail International Tracked Signed and Tracked & Signed services.

1 This means that customs officials can open the item if they need to inspect the contents
2 Write your name and address in block capitals
3 Completing this section will speed up clearance when your item reaches its destination – some countries have a different threshold for paying duty on gifts
4 Be as clear and detailed about the contents of your item as you can – it will help avoid delays or customs officials having to open your item
5 This is the total gross weight, including packaging
6 This box only needs to be completed if you are a business sending commercial items – if so, you need to provide the HS tariff code (you can find this on the WCO). You will also need to attach an invoice to the item
7 If your business is VAT registered, give the number here.
8 Signing here confirms that you as the sender are liable for the item, that the information you’ve provided is correct and that you are not sending anything dangerous
9 The registration marks in the corners help the optical character recognition to align the form.