What role does the New Computerised Transit System play under the 2026 UK/EU Treaty in relation to Gibraltar?
Short answer
The New Computerised Transit System (NCTS) is the existing EU electronic system used to track goods moving under customs transit. Since the treaty's provisional application on 15 July 2026, goods moving between Gibraltar and the EU travel under new NCTS transit procedures (T2GI for EU goods and T1GI for non-EU goods) between Gibraltar and a Designated Customs Post in the EU, where customs formalities are completed.
Detailed answer
Under the treaty's customs arrangements, most goods entering or leaving Gibraltar are cleared at Designated Customs Posts (DCPs) located in the EU. HM Government of Gibraltar has identified these as Algeciras, La Linea and Sagunto, with a post in Portugal available as a fallback if the others are inaccessible. NCTS links each stage of the journey electronically: Imports of EU goods: goods travel from their point of departure in the EU to a DCP under a standard T2 transit. Once cleared, the DCP opens a new T2GI transit in NCTS for the final leg to Gibraltar. HM Customs Gibraltar closes the transit on arrival and collects Transaction Tax and any excise duty if the goods are to be sold in Gibraltar. Exports to the EU: HM Customs opens a T2GI transit in NCTS from Gibraltar to a DCP. The DCP completes the EU entry formalities, closes the T2GI and opens a standard T2 transit to the final EU destination. Non-EU goods follow the same route using T1 and T1GI procedures, with any EU customs duties levied at the DCP. NCTS itself was not created by the treaty; it is the EU's established transit system, adapted with Gibraltar-specific procedure codes. Traders moving goods under these procedures may need a Spanish NIF and EORI number and a customs guarantee, unless a customs agent handles the formalities on their behalf. The Government has confirmed that obtaining a NIF for customs purposes does not make a business taxable in Spain.