How you can prepare for a no-deal Brexit
Understandably, uncertainty over Brexit remains the main economic concern for most business owners at this moment. Here are some actions you can take if a no-deal Brexit happens.
If you sell goods or services to EU countries
Take a look at what might impact your ability to sell goods and services to EU countries, including the potential loss of the EU Trade Agreement and how this will affect tariffs, authorisations, licences and labelling.
If you import goods from EU countries
How resilient is your supply chain to potential border delays? Do any contracts you have include penalties for late delivery?
It’s a good idea to map your supply chain and to make sure you register for an Economic Operators Registration and Identification number or EORI. Without one, you may have increased costs and delays. Get ready to complete and submit new customs declaration forms, and consider pre-orders and stockpiling.
If you buy your components from local suppliers, have you thought about conducting an audit of where they source their materials in case this has any knock-on effects?
HMRC has a comprehensive guide that covers both the selling and importing of goods in services.
If you employ an EU citizen
Do you have anyone in your team from the EU? If so, it’s important that they register with the EU Settlement Scheme, which will allow them to stay in the UK. If anyone on your team is an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, they and their family, will be able to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme from 30 March 2019, although they may be able to apply now if they meet the criteria.
It’s also a good idea to think about who else you’ll need in your team over the next few years and if you may need to hire someone from outside the UK. If so, what steps will you need to take to hire them?
Contract and legal review
Do your contracts refer to any terms that should be reviewed in light of the UK leaving the EU? Do they make references to the UK being a member state or does your contract rely on EU regulation?
It’s a good idea to assess commercial contracts in the UK market, and re-negotiate terms – for instance, delivery terms – to protect against Brexit risks.
Financials
It’s a good idea to look at the potential impact of no-deal on your cash flow. Create a forecast that covers currency fluctuations, changes to customer demand, access to capital, costs and tariffs.
Keeping up to date
It’s a good idea to check in with the UK government‘s technical notices, as well as EU and global government communications and draft regulatory changes. We will continue to keep you updated as and when the situation becomes clearer.
Growing regardless
Business owners have to make judgements all the time. However, deciding what action to take when there is little clarity is very challenging. It’s a great idea to evaluate areas of potential impact and take some steps that can add value to your business whatever direction Brexit heads.
One way to do this is to get back to business fundamentals so you can grow, regardless of the circumstances and outcome. In our webinar on Wednesday 3rd April at 9am, Peter will go through 13 tips to make your business thrive over the coming months.
