As of 13 August 2026, AI cannot complete a UK customs import declaration.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   Someone with a licence or accountable authority has to sign this before it counts.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface gets you a draft, but you cannot verify it yourself. That is the catch.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open GOV.UK customs guidance and the UK Trade Tariff, then note the current instructions and tariff entries relevant to the goods.
   2. Gather the commercial invoice, packing list, transport document, purchase order, freight and insurance details, origin evidence, licences and any supplier product specification.
   3. Record the importer’s legal name, address, EORI, VAT details where relevant, shipment route, delivery terms, currency, quantities, weights and intended use without filling gaps by estimation.
   4. Paste the documents and recorded facts into a chatbot with the supplied prompt, asking it to produce a draft data sheet, evidence trail and questions for a customs professional.
   5. Compare every proposed commodity code, origin, customs value, preference, procedure, licence and authorisation against the UK Trade Tariff, the documents and the supplier’s written evidence.
   6. Send the draft and supporting documents to a customs agent or other suitably qualified customs professional, ask them to correct and approve the declaration data, and have them or your authorised business process the submission.

   Prompt

   Help me prepare, but not submit, a UK customs import declaration for the shipment described below. Use only the information I provide and current GOV.UK guidance that you can identify. Invent nothing. For every proposed field, give the value, the source document or statement supporting it, and a short reason. Separate confirmed information from assumptions and missing information. Do not choose or guess a commodity code, customs value, origin, preference, procedure, licence, relief or authorisation where the evidence is insufficient. Flag each item that needs confirmation from the UK Trade Tariff, HMRC, the carrier, the supplier or a customs professional. Produce a structured draft data sheet, a missing-information list and a list of questions for a customs agent. State clearly that this is not professional advice and that I must have the finished declaration checked before submission. Do not submit anything.
   
   Importer details: [legal name, address, EORI, VAT number if relevant]
   Supplier and exporter: [names and addresses]
   Shipment: [goods description, quantities, weights, packaging, transport mode, departure and arrival details]
   Documents: [paste or attach the commercial invoice, packing list, transport document and any licences or origin evidence]
   Commercial terms: [currency, invoice value, Incoterm and any freight or insurance information]
   Destination and use: [UK destination and intended use of the goods]
   Known information: [any proposed commodity code, origin, preference or procedure, clearly marked as unconfirmed] 

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.