Supplier's Declaration vs Statement on Origin: Which One You Actually Need

Two documents with similar-sounding names sit at the heart of claiming 0% duty on UK-EU trade, and they are routinely mixed up — including in plenty of guidance online. The statement on origin is what you, the exporter, put on your commercial invoice so your EU customer can claim 0% import duty under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The supplier's declaration is something different: a document your UK suppliers give you to evidence where the materials or goods they sold you came from. You may well need both — but they do different jobs, and using the wrong term (or the wrong document) can cost your buyer the preferential rate. Here's what each one is, what it must say, and how they fit together.

The Statement on Origin: What Goes on Your Invoice

The statement on origin is a declaration — on the commercial invoice or on any other commercial document that describes the goods in enough detail to identify them — in which the UK exporter certifies that the goods being shipped originate in the United Kingdom. "Originating" has a specific legal meaning under the TCA: the goods must be wholly obtained in the UK or substantially processed there according to the TCA's product-specific rules of origin.

This statement is the mechanism by which your EU buyer claims the 0% preferential duty rate at their customs border. Without it, they must either pay standard EU import duty or go through a lengthier process to claim a refund after the fact. For a regular customer buying repeatedly from you, the absence of the statement means they pay duty on every order — which either eats into their margin or causes them to find a closer supplier. See when a certificate of origin is required for context on the broader landscape of origin documentation.

The Exact Wording Required

The TCA prescribes the exact text of the statement on origin (set out in Annex 7 of the agreement, and reproduced in HMRC's guidance). The wording must appear verbatim — paraphrasing or summarising is not acceptable. The approved statement is:

For a UK exporter, the Exporter Reference Number is your EORI number, and you include it on every statement regardless of the consignment value — there is no value limit for exporters in Great Britain. (If you've seen references to a £5,500/€6,000 threshold and REX registration, that applies to EU exporters sending goods the other way, not to GB exporters.)

What "Originating" Means Under the TCA

Goods are considered to originate in the UK under the TCA if they meet one of two conditions:

• Wholly obtained: the goods are entirely produced in the UK — for example, a craft made from UK materials by a UK maker, agricultural produce grown in the UK, or minerals extracted in the UK.
• Sufficiently processed: the goods are made from materials sourced outside the UK, but those materials have been substantially transformed in the UK. What counts as "sufficient processing" is product-specific under the TCA's rules of origin schedules.

Clothing shows how demanding these rules can be: under the TCA, a garment generally has to be made in the UK from the yarn stage onwards — the fabric woven or knitted here, then cut and sewn. Importing finished fabric from India and merely cutting, sewing, or re-labelling it in the UK does not qualify.

The distinction matters enormously for businesses sourcing materials internationally. UK trade agreements and preferential rates only deliver value when the rules of origin are met — and met correctly.

The Supplier's Declaration: What Your Suppliers Give You

This is where the terminology trips people up. A supplier's declaration is not something you put on your export invoice. It's a document a UK supplier gives to a UK exporter or producer, stating the originating status of the materials or goods they supplied. If you buy fabric, components, or finished goods from UK suppliers and you rely on those inputs being UK-originating when you certify your own goods, the supplier's declaration is your evidence for that reliance.

A supplier's declaration can cover a single consignment, or — where a supplier regularly sends you goods of the same origin status — a long-term supplier's declaration covering repeat supplies over a period (up to two years), so you don't need a fresh declaration with every delivery.

Why HMRC cares: when you make a statement on origin, HMRC can ask you to prove it. If your claim to UK origin depends on inputs you bought rather than made, the supplier's declarations sitting in your files are the audit trail behind your statement. Collect them before you claim preference, not after — chasing a supplier for retrospective declarations during an HMRC enquiry is not a position you want to be in.

Your Responsibility to Have Supporting Evidence

Making a statement on origin is not a mere formality. You are legally certifying the origin of the goods, and you must have evidence to substantiate that certification. HMRC can request this evidence at any time.

Acceptable evidence includes:

• Records of UK-sourced materials used in production
• Manufacturing records showing the processing steps carried out in the UK
• Cost breakdowns demonstrating that UK processing accounts for the required proportion of final value
• Supplier's declarations from your own UK material suppliers — including long-term supplier's declarations for repeat supplies, as described above

If HMRC investigates and you cannot produce evidence to support your statements, penalties apply — and your EU customers may receive retrospective duty demands. A false declaration is a criminal offence. This is one of the most consequential export mistakes a UK business can make.

Where to Include the Statement on Origin

The statement can appear directly on the commercial invoice — beneath the line items and totals, before the signature block — or on any other commercial document that describes the goods in enough detail to identify them. It must include your EORI number.

The statement does not need to be on a specific government form. It's prescribed wording placed on your own documentation. There is no filing or advance approval required — you don't apply to HMRC before making it.

ClearDocs Includes It Automatically

ClearDocs includes the correctly worded TCA statement on origin on every EU export document it generates. You enter your EORI number once when setting up your exporter profile, and the statement appears automatically on every commercial invoice you produce for EU destinations — correct wording, correct placement, every time. No copy-pasting from HMRC guidance, no risk of using an outdated version.