Shipping Your Personal Effects to UK

Moving to the UK but aren’t sure how to move your household goods? Hiring an international removal company like iContainers can help of course, but that’s only half the battle. The actual process of packing and shipping your belongings is a little bit more involved.

If you want to know the best way to go about shipping your personal effects to the United Kingdom, especially from the US, then keep reading.

Shipping Personal Belongings From the USA to UK

When choosing a shipping company for your international moving, you want transparent pricing, door to door service, an easy booking process, and the capacity to track your shipment 24⁄7 during the 12 months of the year. Costs should cover everything from pick up, delivery, land transportation, ocean freight transportation, to customs clearance and documentation.

Once you’ve found a company that offers all of the above, you’ll have to decide on the type of shipping container you’ll need. There are up to three different types of shipping options, beginning with the standard 20 ft and 40 ft dry containers or choosing a LCL option, in order to just pay for the exact space needed inside the container.

To give you a better idea of which may be best suited for you and your cargo, your standard 20 ft dry shipping container can fit the items of a standard-sized apartment, and then some. But you can get a better understaning here. However, for large apartments or houses, 40ft container is recommended, and you can check here what fits inside a 40ft. Of course, your international movers will help you figure out the specifics.

In addition, you will get help senging your goods to your door. This makes life easier as the moving service with pick up your personal belongings, take care of the shipping and customs clearance, and then deliver your things right to your new doorstep. All you have to worry about is packing everything properly, creating a detailed packing list (like an inventory), and hopping on a plane to your new location.

QUOTE MY MOVING TO UK

Shipping Locations Inside United Kingdom

One of the best ways to send personal effects to the UK is by sea freight. This option is the most cost-effective alternative when you are facing a whole home removal. There are five major seaports in United Kingdom:

• The Port of Felixstowe in Southeast England
• The Port of Southampton in South England
• The Port of Immingham in Northeast England
• The Belfast Harbour in Northern Ireland
• The Port of Grangemouth in Scotland

Of course, where you direct your moving services depends on which part of the UK you’re moving to, and we** will help you cover all the process to your destination**. In addition to getting to know your new location, you’ll have to deal with a few other things when moving.

United Kingdom Customs and Regulations

Customs regulations for most countries are strict and the UK is no exception. Regardless, it’s the biggest challenge you’ll face when shipping your personal belongings to the UK (or elsewhere).

All ports, including airports in the UK, use a system of “red” and “green” channels. Red refers to having something to declare while green means having nothing to declare, i.e., no goods for the purpose of distribution, nothing prohibited items or restricted, no more than what customs regulations allow, and so on.

Typically when you take up residence in the UK, you can import your belongings duty free and tax-free. Any imposed duty and taxes will be based upon where you’re coming from, where you’ve purchased your belongings, how long you’ve owned them, and whether or not duty and taxes have been paid on them in another country. Luckily, there are no restrictions on goods purchased elsewhere in the UK or EU, but there are limitations to things like tobacco, beer, and wine.

If you’re coming from the US, and you’ve owned your household effects for at least six months prior to moving, they’ll most likely get in duty and tax-free. Custom agents will, however, inspect all of your things—especially vehicles. They may even go to the extent of taking your entire vehicle apart in search of contraband or illegal substances.

When shipping personal items from the USA to the UK, you’re expected to create an itemized inventory list complete (the packing list) the monetary value of each item. Each item should be coordinated with the box they’re packed in.

For example: Item # 1: Nikon Camera Value: $450 US Location: Box #1

Your international movers should also provide you with a customs form C3 to complete and sign, and they should be able to handle the rest of the customs clearance and associated paperwork for you.