Official Notice 5 - Guidance on Applying for a UK Certificate of Origin on behalf of another company

This notice provides guidance for applications who wish to apply for a UK Certificate of Origin on behalf of another company.

1 . Authorisation Requirements

If you intended to apply for a UK Certificate of Origin on behalf of another company, you must first obtain a Letter of Authority from that company.

·       The Letter of Authority must clearly state you have permission to make the application on their behalf. It must be completed on headed paper and signed by the company. The only time you do not require a Letter of Authorisation is if you are making the application for a foreign entity of your own company.

·       You must also provide a copy of the invoice issued by your customer showing the transaction of the goods from the consignor to the consignee.

2. Completion of Box 1 – Consignor Details

When applying on behalf on a non-UK company, Box 1 must include details from both parties in the following format:

[Full name and address of UK company] on behalf of [Full name and address of non UK company]

This is because there needs to be a UK registered company in Box 1. If you are applying on behalf on another UK company, you can just include the Consignor details,

3. Completion of Box 9 – Applicant Details

When the applicant and the exporter are not the same entity, Box 9 must be completed to reflect this.

4. When exporting directly to your customers customer

There may be instances where your customer requests a Certificate of Origin because you export the goods directly to their customer. In such cases:

You may submit the application in your own name using your own invoice as you are the exporter and their customer would be the importer.

If desired, you may include a note in Box 2 or 5 indicating your customers invoice address (note this must be evidenced somewhere in the invoice)

This approach may also be used when your customer prefers not to share their own invoice.

5. Key Consideration

A Certificate of Origin confirms the export of goods from the address shown in Box 1 to the address shown in Box 2. Before applying on behalf of another company you should consider whether you are the actual exporter.

If you are the exporter, it would be more appropriate to apply in your own name rather than on behalf of another business