Case study: using the IOSS to ship to the EU

2021 was a tough year for global sellers. Post-Brexit rules came into force, and so did the new EU trade rules. This disrupted the way sellers must collect VAT and declare their goods in customs. Many businesses were not ready to face those changes and lost their EU customers.

OTC Ltd and Print My PDF Ltd are two UK companies that focus on printing services. They dispatch orders globally, and they have been in business for many years.

Facing new regulations after the Brexit

UK businesses are having a hard time reaching EU customers. Not only the UK left the EU single market, but also new EU trade regulations came into force last year.

OTC Ltd and Print my PDF Ltd are no exception to the rule:”we have been sending around the world for years with no problem. And suddenly, goods were not getting to the customers, they were being held up at customs. Or customers were being asked to pay money to have their goods released.”

Jeff quickly reacted and started to look for options. But he realized that simple answers were not manageable for his business. The first option was to give up on the EU market entirely and stop dispatching orders to EU clients. The second option was to open a business in the EU. But when you have 2 companies and a small structure, it is very complicated and expensive to set up.

So, Jeff’s team looked around and found out about Eurora’s IOSS service.

Turning to Eurora’s IOSS solution

Jeff turned to Eurora because trading with EU customers after Brexit became impossible. Our IOSS solution was the best option for him to avoid customs delays and hidden extra costs.

As he said himself: “You seemed to be the easiest approach, and it wasn’t too expensive”.

What primarily mattered for Jeff was the cost of the IOSS. If such a solution is too costly there is no point in clinging to the EU market.

Jeff also appreciated the easy onboarding process we have in place at Eurora: “It was very quick. The whole process from the first time I talked to you to the moment I had my IOSS number was 3 or 4 days”.

Using Eurora’s IOSS service

As soon as Eurora issues your IOSS number, you can sell your goods in all Member States without extra paperwork. You just need to report your EU sales data and pay your VAT.

Jeff sends out a spreadsheet to calculate how much VAT is due each month to his personal tax consultant at Eurora. “That takes 1 or 2 hours per month, that’s all. So, it doesn’t take too long.”

It is also effortless for his employees: “for the staff, it’s very easy. They don’t have to do anything, the IOSS number is automatically included on the label.” Jeff doesn’t need to worry either if there is any misuse or fraud with his IOSS number. We guarantee full representation and protection before EU Tax Authorities.

Jeff concludes that working with our IOSS service has been absolutely fine so far. And he plans to continue using our services in the future.

He is also convinced that small UK businesses will have to partner with companies like Eurora because of Brexit.

I think that UK businesses will either stop selling to Europe or have to use a service like yours. There is no real option otherwise

Jeff Seymour

OTC, Print My PDF, and Eurora

OTC Ltd was founded in 1978. It supplies printed manuals for cameras and smartphones. When you buy a phone, it only comes with an online manual. And if you want to print the manual yourself at home, it can be very costly. So, OTC prints the online manual and makes it into a book.

Print My PDF Ltd will celebrate its 10th birthday this year. It turns large PDF reports and manuals into bound books. Printing a huge PDF document yourself is costly. You can therefore upload it on www.Print-my-PDF.com, and they will send you a printed version.

Eurora is an intelligent cross-border solution. We combine machine learning technology with a personal approach. We are the first company that officially gave out an IOSS number to a client.

The IOSS is only one of the many services we can offer to make sure you comply with every global trade rule. We offer UK VAT agent services, automated Custom Clearance, Duty&Tax Calculation, HS code Allocation, and even Restriction Screening.