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Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →The importer is responsible. For the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), HM Revenue & Customs generally treats the person or organisation named as the importer on the customs declaration as the liable person. A customs agent who prepares or submits the declaration does not automatically become liable. The importer must register when required, keep records, file CBAM returns and pay the tax due on covered goods imported from 1 January 2027.
The short answer: liability follows the importer on the declaration
UK CBAM liability is attached to the importer of the covered goods, not simply to the company that transports them, buys them, or completes customs paperwork. HMRC’s policy summary states: “The person liable for CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) is the importer of the CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) goods.”
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In the usual case, the importer is the individual or organisation whose name appears on the import declaration where customs duties are payable. That business is responsible for the CBAM compliance chain: establishing whether the goods are in scope, checking whether registration is required, maintaining supporting records, submitting returns and paying any amount due to HMRC.
The rule matters when a business uses a freight forwarder, customs broker or other agent. Having an agent submit the declaration is an administrative arrangement; it does not, by itself, transfer the importer’s CBAM liability. The declaration and the agency arrangement must be examined to identify who is legally treated as the importer.
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Importer or customs agent: which party is liable?
When the business remains the importer
If a construction company, distributor or manufacturer imports covered goods in its own name and appoints an agent to make the customs entry, the business remains the CBAM importer. The agent may enter data, communicate with customs and handle documents, but the importer still has the tax obligations.
This is the situation HMRC describes where an agent declares goods on another person’s behalf. The person on whose behalf the declaration is made remains the importer for CBAM purposes.
When another person is treated as the importer
If the customs declaration is genuinely made in another person’s name and on that person’s behalf, that person is the party to assess. Do not infer liability from who physically clicks “submit” or who receives the agent’s invoice. Check the legal names and roles recorded on the declaration.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →| Situation | Whose name and capacity matter | CBAM responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| A UK builder imports steel products in its own name; a broker files the entry. | The builder is named as importer; the broker acts as agent. | The builder is liable for registration, records, returns and payment. |
| A distributor imports cement through an agent acting on the distributor’s behalf. | The distributor is the person for whom the declaration is made. | The distributor remains liable, even though the agent prepared the paperwork. |
| The declaration identifies a different importing party under the actual customs arrangement. | The party named and treated as importer under that arrangement. | That importing party must assess its CBAM duties. |
| A haulier only transports goods after import clearance. | The haulier is not identified as importer merely because it carries the load. | Transport alone does not create CBAM liability. |
Businesses should retain the declaration, agency instructions and commercial contracts that show who imported the goods and on whose behalf any agent acted. If those documents conflict, obtain specialist customs or tax advice before relying on an assumption.
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Are all construction materials covered?
No. “Construction materials” is too broad to determine whether CBAM applies. From its commencement on 1 January 2027, UK CBAM initially covers specified goods in five sectors:
- aluminium
- cement
- fertiliser
- hydrogen
- iron and steel
The exact products are identified by commodity code and the detailed descriptions in HMRC’s scope guidance. A product described commercially as “steel,” “cement” or a “building material” may or may not be included. Conversely, a less obvious product can be covered if its commodity code falls within the specified list.
Check the precise product, grade, form and commodity code against the current HMRC scope pages. Do not decide coverage from a supplier’s marketing description, an invoice heading or the fact that the item will be used on a construction project.
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HMRC’s policy summary says the mechanism applies across the whole UK, including Northern Ireland. The relevant question is whether a covered good is imported under the UK rules, not whether the construction site is in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
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The legal basis
Finance Act 2026, Part 5 establishes the CBAM charge and lists the broad covered classes. The schedules and HMRC commodity-code guidance determine which specific goods fall inside those classes. The charge is linked to the embodied emissions in imported goods rather than to the fact that a business operates in construction.
When does UK CBAM start?
The stated commencement date is 1 January 2027. Covered goods imported from that date are subject to the mechanism under the rules in force at the time. The preparation guidance and threshold details were published during 2026, and HMRC may update implementation instructions before the start date. Recheck the current pages when making a registration or filing decision.
Imports before 1 January 2027 are not imports under the operating CBAM charge described here, although businesses may still need to organise records and systems in advance for later consignments.
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For covered imports, HMRC’s policy summary identifies four practical responsibilities:
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- Register with HMRC when required. The registration guidance describes a £50,000 minimum registration threshold. This is a registration test based on the relevant imports and rules; it is not a CBAM tax rate and should not be treated as a blanket exemption from every obligation.
- Keep records. Records should support the identity of the importer, the commodity code and quantities of covered goods, import dates, declarations, emissions information and calculations used for returns.
- Submit CBAM returns. Returns must report the information required for the relevant period under HMRC’s filing rules.
- Pay tax due. The importer, as liable person, must settle the amount HMRC requires for the covered imports and embodied emissions reported.
The £50,000 figure should be applied only after checking the current HMRC test, the relevant measurement period and the goods included. It does not mean that a business can ignore scope checks or retain no evidence below the threshold. Registration timing also depends on the facts, so use HMRC’s current registration guidance rather than assuming that one annual total answers the question.
How to determine responsibility: a practical process
- Collect the customs declarations. For each potentially covered consignment, identify the importer name and the customs procedure under which the goods entered the UK.
- Map the agency relationship. Read the broker’s appointment, power of attorney and instructions. Establish whether the agent declared on behalf of your business or whether another party was the importer.
- Identify the exact goods. Record the commodity code, product description, material composition, form and quantity. Avoid relying on a generic label such as “construction material.”
- Check HMRC’s current scope list. Compare the commodity code with the specified CBAM goods in the aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, and iron and steel sectors.
- Test registration requirements. Apply the current £50,000 threshold guidance and its timing rules to the importer’s covered imports. Record the calculation and the date on which the business concluded that registration was, or was not, required.
- Build the evidence file. Keep declarations, invoices, contracts, agent correspondence, commodity-code decisions, quantities, emissions data and calculation worksheets together so a return can be supported.
- Set ownership for each return. Assign a named person inside the importing organisation to gather data, approve the figures and ensure payment is made by the deadline.
- Recheck before filing. Confirm that later consignments have not changed the commodity code, importer, origin, quantity or emissions information used in the return.
What information should construction businesses control?
Importer identity
Use the legal entity shown on the import declaration, not merely the project name, trading name or site address. Groups with several subsidiaries should determine which company imports each shipment; one company’s registration does not automatically cover another company’s imports.
Commodity-code decisions
Classification is central because scope is code-based. Keep the product specification and the reasoning behind the code used. If a supplier changes the product form or a broker proposes a different code, reassess CBAM coverage before the next import.
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Emissions evidence
Because the charge is tied to embodied emissions, retain the information and methodology used to calculate or report emissions for each covered product. The evidence should be traceable to the relevant supplier, production facility, shipment and quantity. Do not substitute a broad sector average for the method required by the rules in force when the return is made.
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Agent controls
Ask the customs agent to identify the importer exactly as it will appear on the declaration and to provide copies of completed entries. Include CBAM responsibilities in written instructions, but remember that a contractual promise by an agent to provide data does not by itself change who HMRC treats as liable.
Common mistakes and how to correct them
- “Our broker files it, so the broker pays.” Correct the assumption by checking whose name is on the declaration and on whose behalf it was made.
- “Every steel or cement item is covered.” Reclassify by exact commodity code and consult the current HMRC scope guidance.
- “Below £50,000 means no CBAM work at all.” Treat the figure as a registration threshold test, document the calculation and check the other current requirements.
- “The supplier’s invoice gives us everything needed.” Verify that the invoice, declaration, quantities and emissions information relate to the same product and shipment.
- “The 2026 guidance cannot change.” Recheck HMRC instructions before 1 January 2027 and before the first return, because implementation details may be updated.
- “The project location decides coverage.” Coverage depends on the imported good and its commodity code, not on whether it is destined for a housing, infrastructure or commercial project.
What to do before 1 January 2027
Construction businesses that import materials should begin with an import-by-import review rather than a company-wide assumption. List every legal entity that appears as importer, identify agents and declarations, and match products to commodity codes. Then apply the current registration test and design a recordkeeping process that can connect emissions data to each covered import.
Give procurement, logistics, finance and the customs agent the same written responsibility map. Procurement can request emissions data, logistics can retain declarations, finance can monitor the threshold and payments, and a designated compliance owner can approve returns. This division prevents a common failure in which each team assumes another party is responsible.
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Finally, check HMRC’s latest guidance immediately before the regime begins. The rules described in 2026 establish the start date, sectors and importer principle, but the operational details, commodity-code lists and registration instructions should be followed in their current form.
Bottom line for a construction importer
If your business is named as importer of a covered aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, or iron and steel product, your business is the party HMRC expects to assess for CBAM. A customs agent can handle declarations and supply information, but filing on your behalf does not normally move the liability to the agent. Confirm the commodity code, apply the current £50,000 registration test, keep evidence, file the required returns and pay the amount due from 1 January 2027.
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