The Declaration Unique Consignment Reference (DUCR) and the optional Part suffix is the main reference key to any Customs Handling of Import & Export Freight (CHIEF) declaration. It is also the primary data item for matching import consignments containing plants, flowers, fresh fruit and vegetables on the CHIEF Import declaration and any Procedure for Electronic Application for Certificates (PEACH) Advance Notification.

The standard format of a DUCR to be used in the National Export System is up to 35 characters, in 4 parts as follows: -

  • 1st part - year in which the DUCR was allocated i.e., ‘2’ for 2022
  • 2nd part – the country where the DUCR was allocated, typically GB for UK exports
  • 3rd part – EORI number of the trader (12 characters), followed by a hyphen (-)
  • 4th part - Unique series of characters, devised by the trader to enable an audit trail within their commercial records. This part is restricted to numbers, upper-case letters and certain special characters, namely 0 to 9, A to Z or a hyphen (-)

Example based on the above: 9GB123456789012-ABC1234

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Judith K

5 Star Review

The CustomsLink team were amazingly helpful recently on a very fraught and last minute request. Mel and Phoebe mostly dealt with me, and even though I panicked they remained calm and helpful at all times. I would definitely recommend.

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Craig M

5 Star Review

I called this morning and spoke to Mel. I haven't sent a truck from the UK to France before and was in a dilemma as the documentation I was given did not have a GMR document. Phoebe put all my information together and produced the GMR. Thank you both for making a bad day better. Much appreciated. Thank you for your swift response and hard work. I will be using CustomsLink in the future. 5 🌟 Many thanks again.

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T Moore

5 Star Review

Very helpful, many thanks to Phoebe and Katie! We have used customs link for a few years and find friendly, knowledgeable staff to sort out documentation. Great job!

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Michael M

5 Star Review

Our experience with customs link was very much positive. The staff were very kind, considerate, and helpful. They were professional in all their dealings with us. Many thanks.