A new standard for customs intermediaries: why Intelclear intends to adopt it

The UK customs intermediary sector has a new benchmark for good practice.

PAS 41201:2026, sponsored by HMRC and published by BSI, sets out a voluntary standard for customs agents, freight forwarders, express operators and other intermediaries submitting customs declarations on behalf of traders.

For the first time, our industry has a clearly defined standard for what good customs intermediary practice should look like.

At Intelclear, we welcome that development and intend to introduce PAS 41201 as a standard across our own customs brokerage operations.

Raising the standard of customs brokerage

Customs intermediaries play an important role in keeping international trade moving, but it is also a role that carries significant responsibility.

PAS 41201 introduces clearer expectations around how intermediaries manage that responsibility, covering areas including auditing, due diligence, error correction, transparency, record-keeping and staff competence.

Among its requirements, the standard expects intermediaries to audit a sample of the declarations they submit every quarter, document their findings and notify clients where an issue has negatively affected them.

It also establishes expectations around correcting intermediary errors, conducting appropriate due diligence and being transparent about areas such as subcontracting and the use of AI.

These are sensible principles. More importantly, they give businesses a clearer benchmark against which to assess the customs intermediaries they entrust with their trade.

Better brokers don’t remove importer responsibility

There is, however, an important distinction for importers to understand.

Raising the standard of customs brokerage does not transfer responsibility for customs compliance away from the trader.

When a customs declaration is submitted under your EORI, your business remains responsible for the information being declared. If a commodity code is incorrect, a valuation is wrong, or duty is underpaid, the financial and compliance consequences can ultimately sit with the importer.

And there is a limit to what an intermediary audit can identify.

A broker can check whether a declaration accurately reflects the information it has been given. Determining whether that information was correct in the first place can require detailed knowledge of your products, suppliers, contracts and supply chain.

That knowledge sits within your business.

PAS 41201 should therefore be seen as part of stronger customs governance, rather than a substitute for it.

A welcome step towards greater transparency

One aspect of the standard I particularly welcome is its emphasis on transparency.

Importers should understand how their customs declarations are being prepared, who is involved and what controls are in place to identify errors.

PAS 41201 creates clearer expectations around these areas, including disclosure of subcontracting and the use of AI in preparing declarations.

For businesses managing significant volumes of international trade, that visibility matters.

Customs errors rarely exist in isolation. An incorrect commodity code or valuation methodology repeated across hundreds or thousands of declarations can quickly become a significant financial exposure.

Finding an issue early is considerably better than discovering it following an HMRC enquiry.

What should importers do now?

PAS 41201 is voluntary and, at present, there is no certification or accreditation that a customs intermediary can obtain against it. A certification scheme is being developed, but businesses should be wary of anyone claiming to be “PAS 41201 accredited” today.

Instead, I think importers should start a conversation with their customs partners.

Ask whether they intend to adopt PAS 41201. Understand how frequently they audit the declarations submitted on your behalf. Ask what happens when errors are identified and whether any part of your customs activity is subcontracted.

But don’t stop with your broker.

Look at your own customs governance too. If HMRC asked you to demonstrate how declarations submitted under your EORI are checked, could you provide clear evidence of the controls you have in place?

Setting a higher standard at Intelclear

At Intelclear, our view has always been that good customs brokerage should provide businesses with more than the ability to submit a declaration.

It should give them confidence in the quality of their customs data, greater visibility over their international trade and access to the expertise needed to identify risk before it becomes a problem.

That’s why we intend to adopt PAS 41201 within Intelclear.

The standard may be voluntary today, but the principles behind it are ones we believe the customs intermediary sector should embrace: accountability, transparency, consistency and continuous improvement.

For importers, that can only be a positive development.

To discuss PAS 41201, reach out to the Intelclear team today!