visits uk customer dispatch (sensitive)

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Uk Visit visa email

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Post by Kbeg8880 » Wed Mar 27, 2019 8:10 pm

Re: Uk Visit visa email

Post by alterhase58 » Wed Mar 27, 2019 8:21 pm

Post by Kbeg8880 » Wed Mar 27, 2019 8:29 pm

Post by BHATTI3000 » Thu Mar 28, 2019 8:29 pm

Kbeg8880 wrote: ↑ Wed Mar 27, 2019 8:29 pm Ok thanks for your reply

Post by Kbeg8880 » Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:11 pm

Post by BHATTI3000 » Fri Mar 29, 2019 5:58 pm

Kbeg8880 wrote: ↑ Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:11 pm Hi my mother in law recieved another email today Dear Xxxxxxx, The processed visa application for GWF reference number - GWFxxxxx. was received at the UK Visa Application Centre on 3/29/2019 . If a courier service was purchased from VFS Global, your processed application will be delivered to the chosen address. If not, your documents can be collected during the designated passport collection times. Please note this is an auto generated e-mail. Please do NOT reply to this email. Also in subject it said visa application centre: CRM xxxx Any ideas??

Post by MRazaUK » Mon May 06, 2019 2:00 pm

Post by Kbeg8880 » Mon May 06, 2019 2:34 pm

Post by sumayyahhai » Thu May 09, 2019 1:58 pm

Post by MRazaUK » Thu May 09, 2019 2:30 pm

Post by Kbeg8880 » Fri May 10, 2019 9:00 pm

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Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators

Templates for Customer Visits

This page provides templates that you can use as starting points for improving your documentation through customer visits.

Customer Contact Letter You can use this letter as the starting point of contacting possible customers to visit.

Questionnaire This document contains a set of questions you can ask your customer.

Confirmation Letter You can use this letter to confirm your visit.

Customer Visit Report After visiting your customer, you need to write a report for your manager detailing what you learned from your visit. You can use this sample report as a template.

Thank You Letter You need to thank your customer for meeting with you and providing feedback on the documentation.

Thanks to Frabcisco Abedrabbo and Lypp-tek Khoo-Ellis of Oracle for these templates, which they reference in their article “Getting the most from customer visits” in the Summer 2004 Communicator.

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How to Conduct the Perfect Customer Visit

By Natsha Ness

Customers are the lifeblood of any organization. Whether you have the ability to meet with them face-to-face, or are required to so over Zoom due to our ever-changing reality, customer visits require intentionality. They also provide a golden opportunity to make your customers the North Star they should be – and improve literally everything about your organization as a result. Why a Customer Visit is Worth Its Weight … in Actual Gold

How do we know a customer visit is critical to success? In 2019, we conducted research into sales and marketing alignment, in partnership with DRIFT . In it, we found a significant correlation between the most aligned sales and marketing teams (which were also the most revenue-generating teams) and their focus, not only around customers-centric metrics, but also regular visits with customers.

Planning Customer Visits is Key

Sometimes customer visits are inexpensive (like when they happen on Zoom ). Still, just because you’re  remote doesn’t mean the interaction has to feel inexpensive. In fact, you can still invest in the same sorts of things you did on-site. Think about buying lunch with an UberEats code. Or sending your customers a box with a bunch of goodies for the meeting. In other words, think about how you can make the “visit” an experience.

If someone falls into your target account list, and is likely to have a strong lifetime value in your business, they’re worth visiting. But you have to first make sure there’s mutual agreement around the desired outcome of such a meeting. In other words, why are you getting together?

There could be plenty of possibilities, but three main reasons almost always necessitate a customer visit:

• You’re close to creating a proposal. If you’re about to put together a proposal, a customer visit will help you achieve the tight alignment you need to make sure what you’re offering is a good fit with what the customer needs. This will likely come after multiple discovery calls and deep dives. You’ve figured out which challenge you want to solve, and have had conversations with various people that lead you to believe it’s time to create an official proposal.
• You recently created a proposal. (My recommendation is to make the customer visit happen before the creation of the proposal, but it’s better to go after than not at all).
• Upsell. An often underutilized function of customer visits are to the folks who already invested with you, but of course, this can be leveraged to further the relationship and ensure it stays. It can also be used to uncover additional insights into other products or services that may fit additional, previously undiscovered, challenges. You can also work to prevent customer churn by conducting a customer visit.

Who should be involved in a client visit?

After the “why” comes the “who.” Who needs to attend your customer visit to achieve your desired outcome? There could be a wide variety of internal stakeholders that you want to include. You might have people from business development, marketing, analytics, general managers or directors and/or someone from the C-Suite. There should only be people there who have direct input into and/or influence over the subject matter at hand; no one extra. Once you figure out who should be there, think about each of their differing priorities. If you’re unsure of someone’s priorities, ask them in advance. This will help you show up prepared.

Then consider who should be there from your side. Again, don’t bring anyone who doesn’t have a clear role. There’s no dedicated team that should go to customer visits; it varies based on the goal and the customer. You should know what the customer cares about before you head there. This helps you decide whether you need your CEO present or whether the principal on the account is sufficient.

Before the Visit 

One of the best tips I can give you is to get all the skeletons out of the closet before you get in front of someone. For example, if your customer’s marketing leader beams about his 600 pieces of content, but the business development group complains they are out of date and impossible to find, do you want the first time the marketing leader hears that to be real-time, while you’re onsite? Trust me; you don’t. The whole meeting could go downhill fast. You can work through potential issues by asking if there will be multiple budget stakeholders in the room. If so, as it relates to this project, find out whether they will be contributing some of their budget to the meeting’s desired outcome. If so, what does that look like? These questions can help you spot any areas of potential friction before you’re ever in the room.

Preparation is Prince

The content of your meeting is king, but preparing properly to share that content is certainly a strong runner up. Make sure each attendee has a very specific role, and then prepare the right presentation. Consider the following question to guide your preparation:

• Are you sharing a slideshow? Audio? Video?
• What assets will you use before the meeting, during the meeting and after the meeting?
• How will you leverage small, breakout rooms to facilitate conversations vs. all-together, large group dynamics?
• Do you need slides, overheads, pens, markers, etc.? If so, it’s a good idea to send these ahead!
• Do you need a backup plan? For instance, what if your computers don’t work; do you have a hard copy of your presentation?

Then, it’s time to rehearse. Spend time with your team actually going through the presentation before heading to the customer. Talk about who will cover which slides, and how the flow will go. Make sure you’re bringing value to the customer and the tone of the meeting will be what they’re expecting. Finally, send over a message summarizing the purpose of getting together. I like to call this the DOGMA – Details Outlining Goals & Meeting Agenda. I tell them this is what we agreed to, and offer them a chance to come back and add to it or edit what I’ve sent.

During the Client Visit

Here are a few tips for the meeting itself:

• Watch for signs of misalignment. This often looks like one person repeatedly whispering to another, or in Zoom world, obviously Slacking. If someone is smiling during your presentation and you’re being serious, they’re probably talking about something else with someone on their computer. Even if you notice this, don’t mention it in front of the whole group. Instead, note it for later.
• What you can explore directly and immediately are the subtle expressions that indicate someone doesn’t buy into what’s being presented. If these things happen, try to draw it out so it can be addressed in the room. Don’t be afraid to just say, “Sally, it looks like you might have something to share.” If there are corporate politics involved and you can’t draw out the issue, try to have a conversation privately in person or via  a private Zoom chat. But stay in tune with all parties as much as you can by reading body language, tone of voice and so on.

Note: This insinuates that when on Zoom everyone has their camera on. Everyone should have their camera on.

• Record the meeting. Some people get weird about recordings, but having your meeting recorded can go a long way in helping you clarify issues later or capture something that even the best notetaker might miss. If you think someone might not like the idea, have a colleague dial into the meeting and record the call. You can say something like, “Peter couldn’t be here in person, but he wanted to call in.” It’s an easy, subtle way to get a recording to happen without making anyone feel uncomfortable. Enlist a dedicated note taker, but ask all attendees to take notes.
• Leverage a “Parking Lot.” If someone brings up an idea or thought that isn’t perfectly relevant to where you are in the agenda, jot it down in a “Parking Lot” that you can revisit at the end of the meeting – or afterward.
• Don’t leave the room without recapping what went on, with details and next steps. “This was our desired outcome and here are the five things we discussed. Numbers one through four have been hashed out, but we need to spend more time on number five so let’s set up a call ASAP to flesh that out more.” Make sure to spell out who owns what, and the agreed upon timeline so you set the expectation for accountability.

After the Visit

You had your meeting.  Now what? This is where you make or break the trust and credibility you worked so hard to create. I suggest sending a quick email to all involved parties, again reiterating what was discussed and the next steps. But take it a step further and get a handwritten thank-you note in the mail that same day. The content should be different – make it personal and send it out fast, and you’ll blow your customer’s socks off. Really.

After you’ve sent the customer a summary, create a customer visit report for your internal teams. A customer visit report should include:

• Action items
• Positive highlights
• Risks and opportunities
• Any other key observations and notes

Customer visit reports can also be given to clients, or sent in lieu of the email suggested above. After you’ve written up the most important information, it’s time to start taking action.

Take the lead by holding up your end of the bargain. Take care of any items for which you’re responsible, and set up any follow-up meetings that were discussed immediately. The power of a customer visit can quickly be deflated by distraction – and a lack of action – when it’s over.

How We Can Help Your Client Visit Planning

So, which customers or prospects deserve your time and attention onsite? Make a list, and get to scheduling. It’s the step you’ve been missing toward better alignment and better results too. Need support with any of these tactics? Shift Paradigm is a full-service partner for any organization that wants to stay agile in the current digital landscape. Our customer engagement services provide the complete package to keep your customers invested in your products and organization. Interested? Contact Shift Paradigm today!

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Visit your customers and ask them questions.

How to get them talking about your product’s value proposition 2020-02-11 #product

unsplash-logo Amy Hirschi

As a product manager, you need to talk to your customers to understand their problems. Despite the time they take, customer visits give you valuable insights. To start with, customer visits can help you discover your product’s value proposition.

The more customer visits you do, the more techniques you will learn to use, and get better insights. Learning starts with listening, but that can lead to awkward silences if your customer expects you to run the meeting. A few standard questions can help to get them talking: try the following, for discovering your product’s value proposition.

1. What business problem do you intend to solve?

You need to get your customer talking about their problems, which will teach you more than their software features wish list. Several things can make this difficult, so you may need to approach this question indirectly.

First, your customer prefer starting with something concrete than an abstract question. You can ask about what their current work involves, before pursuing a broader context, so you can ‘better understand their business’. Most people love talking about what they do, which helps.

Second, your customer might already have a list of features they want in your product. If they bring a spreadsheet to the meeting, then you will probably fail to switch the agenda to open questions about their problems. You will have more success by first listening to and acknowledging their ideas, and using them as the basis for a conversation about which problems those ideas address.

2. What did you use before using our product?

Asking customers about their current or previous solution helps you understand their business problem from another angle. You can test whether you understand the problem by checking that you understand the alternative.

Talking about the previous solution lets you follow-up with: why did you switch? Understanding what they didn’t like about another product can point to why they prefer yours.

3. Why did you select our product?

This question verges on directly asking them to articulate your value proposition. Expect a lot of variety among answers to this question, including the occasional revealing insight.

Look for opportunities to dig into your customer’s reasons for selecting your product. You’ll learn more about their goals than about your product, if they tell you what they care about, but also the relationship between these goals and your product, i.e. the value proposition itself.

4. Does our product satisfy your expectations?

The final questions test the difference between what you promised your customer, and the reality of their experience. A dissatisfied customer may indicate a value proposition that doesn’t work. Happy customers, on the other hand, merely confirm what you learned from the previous questions.

5. What would make you more successful?

Looking to the future invites less useful speculation, but can also highlight gaps in your value proposition, or in product execution. Asking what would make solving a problem with your product more successful may only start a feature discussion, but can identify a customer who only likes your product because they hated the previous solution more.

In the end, these questions give you several ways to approach the core questions a value proposition answers: who will buy your product, and what value will they get from doing so?

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Home > Insights > Blog > Handling Sensitive Situations in Customer Service

Handling sensitive situations in customer service

Did you know that one in three people will cut ties with a brand after just one negative interaction? Every interaction a company shares with its customers is a chance to build a relationship. Customer loyalty will be key to business survival in a post-pandemic world, so customer service teams need to have the tools and expertise to handle tough conversations, like debt collection, correctly.

This article will look at how businesses can better identify sensitive situations and how customer service teams can be trained to handle them effectively and appropriately. We’ll also examine how companies can rethink how they approach sensitive situations and why more emphasis could be placed on helping customers to solve their problems.

Identifying sensitive customer service situations

Why businesses might struggle with sensitive situations.

The two factors that have the greatest impact on companies’ ability to handle and identify sensitive situations are a lack of experienced staff, and a lack of appropriate training.

65% of recruiters say skills shortages are a major concern for them, which is a huge issue for businesses whose customer service teams frequently handle sensitive situations. In addition, some businesses don’t have the time to invest in the training needed to provide staff with the skills required to handle these calls correctly. As a result, companies are finding themselves without the necessary talent to deal with sensitive situations.

One potential solution to this issue is for a company to outsource their customer service department . By outsourcing, a company can access experienced staff without needing to expend time and money on training programs or recruitment drives. 

The skills shortage is made more urgent because of current events: businesses may find that they receive a significantly higher volume of sensitive calls due to the pandemic, particularly those relating to financial hardship. A third of UK residents reported a loss of income due to COVID-19 — a factor that can easily lead to individuals falling into debt unexpectedly.

Preparing staff for sensitive situations

For most customers, fast response times and quick resolutions to their problems are most important during a customer service interaction. Although these are both still important to vulnerable customers or individuals with complex problems, staff should be prepared to deal with these calls differently from how they would deal with a standard enquiry.

In these situations, management might also want to rethink their approach when it comes to sensitive calls. For instance, rushing a call regarding a delicate matter such as debt can lead to a poor customer experience and reputational damage. We recommend less emphasis on speed and average handling time in these situations, and more of a focus on resolving a customer’s issue. This might mean using different KPIs, or creating a specific department that staff can forward sensitive calls onto.

Sensitive situations caused by current events

National or international events can cause a sharp increase in the numbers of people who become unemployed or financially vulnerable. COVID-19 is the most recent example of this: 1.6 million people in the UK applied for social assistance during the peak of the pandemic in March 2020, which was six times the number for previous months.

Energy prices are on the rise , and the cost of living increases expected in 2022 are likely to lead to debt and further difficulties down the road for already vulnerable customers. It would help businesses to be aware that events (like the pandemic) that can cause considerable problems for a large section of the population. As such, they may want to consider having a framework in place for dealing with these events.

Re-thinking your customer service model to better handle sensitive situations

Sensitive situations need to be handled differently from an average customer interaction. In order to retain customers and provide a positive experience during difficult circumstances, a company may need to prioritise empathy and solving the problems of an individual customer over dealing with calls quickly and efficiently. At Sigma Connected, the ReachOut program exists specifically to put customers’ needs first.

It may be that a business has a problem engaging with customers who are unable to pay debts. In these instances, the business can use Sigma’s ReachOut service to have someone contact the customer and discuss the support available from both the client and charities.

Calls aren’t focused on recovering payments from customers — in fact, ReachOut staff cannot take payments during calls. The emphasis is on creating a safe environment to discuss financial difficulty. The service helps build trust, establish better debt management, and create a better final outcome: 2 in 3 ReachOut calls result in customers reengaging with client organisations to work out a positive way of resolving debt.

Prioritising the customer’s needs

Handling sensitive situations is about focusing on the customer’s needs. However, doing this is not as simple as adjusting training or modifying call handling procedures. Staff must be trained specially to deal with sensitive situations. Companies may need to go so far as to establish special departments to handle sensitive calls and vulnerable customers. Although this may be costly, it can reap significant benefits: a better customer experience, improved customer loyalty, and a pathway to resolve the customer’s debt situation.

Handle sensitive situations better with Sigma Connected

At Sigma Connected, we know how important it is to both customers and businesses that any sensitive situations are handled with the utmost care.

So, ensuring an empathetic and effective customer service is one of our primary aims. Our teams support a wide range of businesses — whatever sector they are from  — and have considerable experience in all aspects of customer interaction .

If you’re interested in any of our services or have any questions about what we can do for you, contact us today

Related content

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Help your customers: 5 ways to deal with debt

The ICS UK Customer Satisfaction Index – underlining the importance of the human connection – by Ben Jones

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Where Thought Leaders go for Growth

The importance of customer visits: Tools & tips

Table of contents, what are the benefits, who does it concern and why, what is a customer visit programme, before the visit, during the visit, after the visit, final tips: how to simplify the customer visit.

Nowadays, with people being so connected, companies often or completely forget the importance of customer visits. A Digital tool can show you statistics, but can it actually read the true interests or intentions of a client?

The answer to that is most likely not. Usually, the more customers you gain or have to deal with, the more it is essential to keep a close relationship with them.

Wouldn’t you like to be considered more than a data or a click on an ad? I’m pretty sure you would.

Why are customer visits important?

Customers are constantly being solicited by your sales team. In fact, they will likely appreciate talking with a vendor who is not trying to sell goods, but instead someone who is invested in hearing about their problems and preferences. So, by meeting with them:

• It helps customers feel appreciated
• Company workers will feel more motivated as they will get honest and personal feedback of their product or service
• It will create a certain bond: Meeting clients or customers in their environment shows you how they integrate your software in their workday. You’d be able to study their behaviour, to assess their potential and show them your support
• It detects needs or problems that would not have been obvious on the telephone or by e-mail.

You must note that you are not the only one soliciting that customer, it is a competitive market, so getting as much personal information as possible will keep you ahead of the game. And finally, seeing their smile and satisfaction in person can be the best reward ever.

You might want to bring your whole team such as the marketing and analytics members to the meeting, but remember the goal here is not to sell but to listen and be understanding. Therefore, it should only concern the most profitable customers. And here is how to do it:

• Refer to your CRM tool and highlight, via the sales dashboard or cross tables, those who have ordered the most often or with the best average basket;
• Profile your customers. For instance, by using a progression metric, which assumes that the most interesting customers are those who have the best potential (good contact, several exchanges to date) but who have not yet made many purchases.

In a logic of cost reduction, a strategy to take into account is also the optimisation of sales rounds : you organise your customer visits by geographical area and link them in order to lose as little time as possible between each appointment.

This method can only boost your notoriety amongst customers and build customer loyalty. Because once it is done properly, it increases your efficiency to read and better understand the customer. And as it is generally said, time is money as well as of the essence.

A customer visit provides an opportunity for each party to interact in order to reach a settlement . Discussions may include pricing and terms, advertising, and 'team' approaches to visits. Strategising is very essential and should not be omitted. It really gives you a true insight into a customer’s perspective.

Customer visits can be divided into four classes:

• It can be a Customer visit with the senior management team. Owners, presidents, general managers, and so on.
• A customer visit with the sales managers
• A customer visit with a team of two or more people.
• And finally, a customer visit with an individual. This could be a member of the management team or a sales person.

How to prepare for it?

Preparation is key as it helps with your confidence and organization.

• First step is to make an appointment with the person or people in charge.

Ask them when they will be available and set a time and date.

Make sure that each party is aware of what the meeting will be about beforehand.

Speak to them about confidentiality, that everything you report back to your team will be done with their consent.

• On your end, if you haven’t already, keep studying your customer.

See what has changed in the use of the product from now until the day of the meeting. Study their company, visit their website to know more about their products, services, and their work-life.

It will help you personalise the interview with a guaranteed effect!

Make sure each attendee on your team knows their role.

Review and reread your files as well as the history of exchanges and purchases, if applicable, to have all the keys in hand.

Do not forget to have a backup plan. It shows your professionalism in case something goes wrong.

Once every concerned individual is informed about the meeting, this is where you get into the core of things.

Start off with light conversations, then get to the purpose of the meeting.

Make them feel comfortable. You do not want to seem too eager to begin business.

Keep in mind that this is a mutual agreement, so the customer or client won’t run away. Nevertheless, here are a few topics you can do and speak about:

• Be at the same time the student and the mentor. Pay attention to them as well as try to find the best solution to their problem.
• Get to know what their daily work life looks like. Ask open-ended questions. Allow the customer to take the lead and talk.
• If possible, focus on who uses your products or services more. And if so, how often and what are the main reasons?
• Once you have determined the necessity they have for said products and services, ask them what they would like to be changed. Are there any bugs?
• Above all, take notes, whether the information seems useful to you in the short, medium or long term, or not, perhaps this data will be useful later or will speak to one of your colleagues.
• Finally, don’t leave the room without summarizing what was said, as well as speaking of the next step you will take to ensure their needs are met.

Many benefits come from this.

It is time to debrief . Review what happened. What did you learn? Were some of your questions answered? Were your goals met? What was the most helpful?

Then, continue with the customer and your team . Send the customer a thank-you note, so they can know you appreciate the time spent together and the feedback they have given you.

It doesn’t need to stop there, as keeping a close relationship and giving your customer the best experience is not a day process but a constant and ongoing contact with them. Which is why your next steps should involve:

• making a new appointment,
• drawing up a diagnosis or a commercial proposal ,
• preparing for the negotiation based on the customer's specific requests,
• identifying trends in the marketplace . If a number of your customer visits unearth the same concern, this may be an area that you need to focus on.
• communicating important elements to the relevant teams (e.g., the after-sales team).

Customer relations, like all professions, are going digital.

This is all the more appropriate as salespeople are professionals who often work on the move.

It is therefore essential to equip them with a mobile sales management application.

There are interesting tools for note-taking and customer visit reports, as it allows you to create any business document, tailored to your image.

Your documents are unified and 100% dematerialised, for consistency and centralisation that benefits the whole company, especially the sales representatives in the field, who no longer lose any of their work.

Depending on the different email scenarios configured, the managers receive a summary and the customer a recap by email. And if the visit is successful, you can even have the customer sign an order form right away!

The tool can also communicate with your CRM, a second essential tool which thanks to technology can directly be mobile, that is to say on your phones and tablets.

Using a flexible and customisable software, your sales representatives have all the necessary tools at their disposal on their smartphone or tablet: customer files updated in real time, connection to your ERP, generation of sales documents (quotations, order forms, invoices), and access to order history, stocks and your catalogue.

And you, have you tested any digital tools for your customer relations?

What did you think of them?

If you are still present, here is one last piece of advice: Always anticipate but do not forget that customer satisfaction is crucial to a company’s success. Nothing beats an in-person meeting as hidden gems can be said.

Take the time to know who you are catering to. Customers buy when they feel loyalty and consideration. Do not disregard great relationships that can lead to great opportunities.

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• Defence and armed forces

Compliance visits explained

• Department for Business & Trade
• Department for International Trade
• Export Control Joint Unit

Updated 6 December 2018

© Crown copyright 2018

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected] .

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/compliance-visits-explained/compliance-visits-explained

1. Introduction

This document aims to help business understand the export control joint unit’s ( ECJU ’s) inspection process. It is for guidance only and is not a statement of law. Before exporting you should refer to the legal provisions in force at the time.

It only applies to exporters holding the following licences:

• open general export licences (OGELs)
• open individual export licences (OILs)
• standard individual export licences (SIELs)
• standard individual trade control licences (SITCLs)
• standard individual export licences (SIELs) for electronic transfers only

This guidance provides information on:

• the background to export control compliance inspections
• when you will receive an inspection
• how to prepare for an inspection
• what a Compliance Inspector looks at during an inspection
• penalties you might face if you are not compliant with export control legislation

We aim for a transparent process to allow you, as licence holders, to prepare fully so both sides can get maximum benefit from the inspection and any subsequent interactions.

When using the licences referred to in this document, it is your responsibility to familiarise yourself with the legislation.

More information on export, trade and end use controls can be found:

• via the OGEL and goods checker tools, which can be found at our online export licensing system
• Notices to exporters will inform you of any changes in legislation or our licences - you can sign up for free email alerts
• Our helpdesk is available from 8:30am to 4pm, email: [email protected] telephone 020 7215 4594

If you are new to export controls, we strongly recommend you take a course to improve your knowledge. ECJU runs courses throughout the year, in London and regionally. See our export control training bulletin . Other external organisations may also provide training.

2. Background

There is a statutory (legal) requirement, backed by the provisions of Article 31 of the Export Control Order 2008 (SI 2008/3231) that people authorised (by the Secretary of State) inspect export records to ensure that licences are being correctly used.

The ECJU ’s online export licensing system provides information to HMRC ’s online system (customs handling of import and export freight, known as CHIEF) for licence usage. HMRC can check that some licences are being used correctly, where the value and quantity of the number of exports is specified. But HMRC cannot check licences where value and quantity are not specified, or where information is transferred electronically. In these cases, ECJU acts on behalf of the Secretary of State to undertake these checks.

ECJU checks the following licences:

• open general export licences
• open individual export licences

Some standard individual licences (SILs) such as:

• standard individual trade control licences
• standard individual export licences (for the electronic transfer of technology or software)

3. Authority to carry out inspections

The Export Control Joint Unit ( ECJU ) holds this responsibility (as authorised by the Secretary of State) and not HMRC . The responsibility lies with ECJU because it is responsible for issuing licences for strategic goods. This function assures the UK Government that you are using the licences correctly.

Compliance inspectors will examine your export and transfer records. So, you will need to keep the required documentation for each export, for each licence that you have used (as part of the licence conditions). During the inspection, your compliance inspector will look at your export documentation to ensure you have met the terms and conditions of the licence under which you have exported/transferred the items. If we find any mistakes, we will advise you on the necessary action to correct these.

As part of this activity we will also:

• check that you have not exported/transferred controlled goods without the appropriate documentation or licence
• advise, and make you aware, of other applicable UK export controls (such as trade controls)
• provide guidance on the relevant legislation

4. Your legal obligations

By registering or applying for a licence from the ECJU , you have met some of your legal obligations. You should ensure you have carefully read the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold. Remember that your registration letter is not a licence, and you need to read the licence that is published on the GOV.UK website.

If you have registered for your licence through the ECJU ’s online licensing system , this will have helped you to identify the control list entry of your goods, and the appropriate licence. But you will still need to read the licence you hold, and not rely solely on the summary of the licence provided during your registration. The licences clearly set out the documentation you need to obtain, and for how long you should retain these.

4.1 First time licence holders

First-time licence holders will be contacted by their allocated inspector, either by phone or email, within the first month of the inspector being allocated. We call this ‘first contact’. The compliance inspector will arrange a time and date to call you to discuss your licence(s) and to ensure you are aware of what is required for you to meet the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold. You should set aside a minimum of two hours for this activity - more if you make a lot of exports.

Following ‘first contact’, the inspection of your export records will follow at a later date. This will be based on the inspector’s assessment of the risk.

The risk is based around issues such as:

• licence usage
• number of licences
• compliance record and effectiveness of procedures
• volume of exports
• goods and destinations on the licences
• any special conditions which may be in place

5. Scheduling an inspection

Your Inspector will not visit you until you have started to use your licence(s), unless there are exceptional reasons, and then only if authorised by ECJU ’s head of compliance.

5.1 Arranging an inspection

The time and date of your inspection are, in most cases, agreed six to eight weeks beforehand. In some exceptional cases we may use Article 31 of the Export Control Order 2008 (as amended), to undertake an ‘ad hoc’ inspection of your site, if we happen to be inspecting others in your area.

We usually aim for a specific date or range of dates, depending on our diaries. It is extremely important that you consider all those who need to be involved in the inspection (see Personnel ) before agreeing a date.

We will either email or ring the person we have listed on our online licensing system as your business’s point of contact. You must ensure that all relevant contact details on the system are up to date - we need to be able to contact the right person.

When discussing the date with your Inspector, you should agree which site (see Location of the inspection ), is the best location for the inspection and/or how many sites are being covered at the meeting. This will allow your Inspector to ensure that sufficient time has been set aside.

Inspection Confirmation

Once a time and date for the inspection has been agreed, you will be emailed an Outlook calendar appointment. This will include:

• confirmation of the inspection
• a Pre-Visit Questionnaire ( PVQ )

Please read both of these documents carefully. The PVQ will need to be completed and returned by the date indicated, as required by your licence.

5.2 Can I change the date of the inspection?

Inspectors carry out a very high number of inspections each year - this is why inspections are agreed so far in advance. It is unlikely that your inspector could accommodate a change of inspection date at short notice (ten working days or less). If this happens, ECJU might have to consider taking action against your business - see Annex B .

6. Location of the inspection

Your Inspector will examine the records at the sites where the extant licences have been registered, or those that have recently expired (and had not been previously inspected). You will not be charged for these inspections. Inspections should take place at the site address given on the licence, this is usually the address where the records relating to the exports, transfers and/or trade activities are held. Inspections may only take place at an address that is related to the exporter, in some way, on our online export licensing system.

Exceptions may be where your business:

• has several sites, which export independently to one another on separate licences, and you prefer the inspections for all sites to take place at a single location
• is based overseas (for those holding trade licences) or where you make very few exports, a ‘Remote Inspection’ may be required

In the second case we will ask for specific information to be sent to us. This is not standard practice and has to be agreed in advance with your Inspector.

7. What to expect

7.1 during the inspection.

Your Inspector will:

• technology transfers
• choose a number of ‘transactions’ (exports, transfers, trade control activities etc) and ask to see the supporting paperwork for these

For each selected transaction we will usually:

• review the export documentation
• review the other documents which the licence conditions require, such as Consignee Undertaking, Ministry of Defence ( MOD ) approvals
• check the goods and their destination, to ensure they match the permissions on the licence and supporting documentation

The Compliance Inspector may need additional information, depending on:

• types of exports and destinations
• external information your Inspector may have
• responses given to questions, if these give cause for concern

7.2 Outcome

Your Inspector will tell you if there are any actions you need to take to improve your compliance levels, on either the licence(s) you hold or wider aspects of export controls that you need to consider as part of your business’s activities. This will be discussed at the end of your inspection and in the compliance report, a summary of which is sent to you via our online licensing system.

If significant errors have been identified, a ‘Warning Letter’ may be issued and HM Revenue and Customs ( HMRC ) informed. MOD will also be informed if the error includes failure to obtain their documentation.

More information on Warning Letters and non-compliance can be found in Annex B .

8. Personnel

8.1 from your business.

We recommend that the following personnel from your business should attend, or be available to attend if required, at your compliance inspection:

• those involved in administering the licences
• project managers or technical personnel
• the senior responsible owner ( SRO ), such as the director or CEO (for at least the summary)

We ask that an SRO be present, at least for the summary of the meeting, to ensure that they are aware of the seriousness of such meetings. The SRO is legally responsible for compliance within a business, and therefore liable if a resulting prosecution takes place.

It is therefore in their best interest to attend at some point during an inspection. From experience, we have also found that having an SRO present (for at least part of the meeting), secures more help and support for those who administer the business’s internal export control processes. This in turn helps to reduce the likelihood of unlicensed shipments or breaches of licence conditions.

If you are still unsure as to who should attend the meeting, ask your Inspector when discussing arrangements for your inspection, they will be happy to advise.

8.2 Accompanied inspections

Sometimes your Inspector might bring someone with them to an inspection. These may be, but not limited to:

• an MOD adviser who needs to check how your business handles MOD processes and requirements
• advisers from another government department (usually where they have had direct engagement with you and they believe their attendance could clear up ongoing questions)
• another Compliance Inspector for general awareness and ensuring a consistent standard of inspections
• the Head of Compliance, in cases where there has been some kind of problem, or for consistency validation
• another member of the ECJU to improve their knowledge and experience of export controls

You should not assume that anything is wrong, or that you are seen as being in any way at risk, if person(s) other than your Inspector attend the meeting.

Your Inspector will tell you beforehand if they are going to be accompanied, and in most cases ask your consent.

9. The inspection process

9.1 before the inspection meeting.

You must ensure that your Inspector has received the following:

• fully completed and returned pre-meeting paperwork, by the date asked for by your Inspector, including the PVQ - this is also a requirement of your licence (if you have problems completing the document, ask your Inspector or one of the Compliance Support Staff for help before the deadline date)
• map and any necessary directions of how to get to the site (usually only required for first visit)

Your own preparation

Make sure that you have identified and gathered all the supporting documentation for your all your transactions (exports, transfers, trades). These must be easily retrievable on the day to save time. For more information see Annex C.

Documentation includes, but is not limited to:

• export documentation
• end-user/consignee undertakings
• paperwork from the Ministry of Defence ( MOD )
• anything else needed to show you are complying with the conditions of the licence you have quoted on export documentation.

Ensure that all attendees from your business are:

• aware of the date and time of the inspection
• they have reserved time to attend the inspection
• understand why it is taking place
• understand their role(s) in the meeting

Remember to make your reception desk and/or security team aware of the visit (See ‘Security considerations’ below).

You should also:

• reserve a room big enough for papers to be spread out and for the number of people to be in attendance
• reserve a parking place for your Inspector

Security considerations

We are aware that some businesses have specific security requirements for their individual sites. Let your Inspector know about these when you’re agreeing the inspection date.

Please note that Inspectors are not permitted to provide any personal details (including date or country of birth, passport or driving licence) either on the day or in advance for identification purposes.

Compliance Inspectors will show you their departmental ID confirming that they work for the Department for Business and Trade, either in advance (scanned image) or on arrival at your premises. This government identification card is the only means of identification permitted. If this does not meet the security requirements of your business, you will need to arrange an alternative location for the meeting to take place.

It is important to remember, that while export/transfer/trade documentation may be commercially sensitive, the information that your Inspector reviews does not contain ‘controlled’ information or material sensitive to other governments

9.2 Running order of the inspection

Your Compliance Inspector will examine export, transfers and/or trade activities over the previous 12 months (as a minimum) or from the date as indicated on your PVQ .

Overview of your business

Only usually at first time inspection or if the business has changed significantly. We do not expect, and do not wish for, a full presentation on every aspect of your business. We are happy to have a brief overview of your activities if it is helpful, but please keep these relevant to the export/transfer/trade of controlled goods.

Your business processes

This will include such questions as:

• who has overall responsibility for compliance with export controls (usually a director or similar)
• how decisions are made on whether a licence is necessary or not and by whom
• when in the process is this decision made that a licence is/is not required - and by whom?
• whether a compliance statement is in place, see Annex 1 of the compliance code of practice
• if a written compliance procedure and/or compliance programme is in place - for example, awareness training for new staff
• evidence of good procedures and back-up for the people working day-to-day on this, for example what happens when the key person goes on leave

Have your paperwork ready

Your Compliance Inspector will usually begin inspecting your exports/transfers/trades at the start of the meeting. So it’s very important that all paperwork is ready for inspection.

List of transactions

Your Inspector will ask you for a list of all your transactions (exports, transfers, trade activities) that have taken place in the period stated in your PVQ . From this list, your Inspector will choose a variety of transactions for which they will need to see the supporting documentation.

Inspecting export documents

Take particular care that the documents you hold meet the specific terms required by those licences under which you have exported/transferred/trades items. For more guidance see Annex D . Any documentation presented must be complete to the Compliance Inspector’s satisfaction. The documents must meet the record keeping requirements and all the terms and conditions of the licence used. Annex E provides more detail on this, and other aspects, of the requirements of a compliance inspection. For guidance on some specific licence requirements, see Annex F .

By the end of the inspection you should have a good understanding of how highly we have rated your ability to administer and comply with open licences and other relevant licences.

Your Inspector will run through the findings and any follow-up actions needed on either side. We strongly recommend that the Senior Responsible Owner (Director or Senior Manager) attends in case there are specific areas of concern that the Inspector needs to discuss.

If you have been found to be non-compliant with the terms and conditions of one or more of your licence(s) or other requirements in the export control legislation, the Compliance Inspector will discuss with you the actions you need to take before the next inspection, and when that might be. See Annex B for more information.

9.3 Follow up

Your Inspector will use the ECJU ’s online licensing export system to issue a correspondence letter to you after the inspection. You will automatically receive an email from the system about this. This letter will confirm the outcome of the inspection and will set out action points and any recommendations discussed at your inspection.

Any actions given to you/your business must be acknowledged and responded to via the online licensing system . If you do not respond to the actions given by the deadline, you will be sent a reminder, and your Inspector will also be informed that you have not responded. Continued failure to respond may lead to a non-compliant outcome.

Successful inspection

If your Inspector has found you to be compliant with all the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold, and no actions or recommendations have been made, a compliance certificate may be awarded. See Annex G for more about this.

Consequence of an unsuccessful inspection

If you have failed to meet the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold, we see this as being non-compliant. You will then receive notification via the online licensing system and HM Revenue and Customs will be informed. Your Inspector will send your Senior Responsible Owner a warning letter (by post or e-mail) with the endorsement of ECJU ’s Head of Compliance.

This letter will detail:

• the compliance failures identified
• remedial action required
• clarification as to what your business is intending to do to ensure no further instances of non-compliance occur in the future
• recommendation to make a Voluntary Declaration to HMRC
• consequences if there is a repetition of the errors arising at the re-visit (Annex B gives further details)
• date for a revisit to make a repeat inspection

9.4 Further Information

For more information about export control matters please contact:

General queries about strategic export licensing

Export Control Joint Unit Department for Business and Trade Old Admiralty Building Admiralty Place London SW1A 2DY

Email [email protected]

Telephone 020 7215 4594

10. Annex A – Role of your Inspector

Compliance Inspectors are not Technical Officers, so they cannot give an opinion on the control list classification (CLC) entry (this can be found in the Consolidated list of strategic military and dual-use items that require export authorisation for your controlled items. They may, however, be able to identify items that might be controlled and sometimes suggest categories or control entries. It is however, your responsibility to check that you have selected the correct classification of items intended for export/transfer.

Inspectors cannot provide definitive advice on which licence would permit certain controlled activity (including exports, transfers or trafficking and brokering). Your Inspector may, however, discuss in generic terms what types of activities are controlled to help you determine whether your activities would be licensable. We may also suggest licence(s) that permit such exports - but you are responsible for ensuring you meet the terms and conditions of the licence.

10.1 Building relationships

In most cases, Compliance Inspectors are the only Export Control Joint Unit ( ECJU ) representatives that you see. Their role is to ensure you meet the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold, and they can help you improve your knowledge and awareness of your legal responsibilities. Inspections also provide an opportunity for you to ask questions about areas of policy, current and possible future situations that may affect you or your business and your specific circumstances. You can also ask your Inspector if you need clarification on the terms of a licence or further guidance. This should be done by email. But keep in mind that Inspectors are out of the office most of the time, so please allow 48 hours before chasing any queries. We ask for questions to be sent in an email so that both you and ECJU have a record of discussions and decisions made. This will also ensure a robust audit trail.

10.2 Awareness raising

Inspectors will also ask you about any other activities your business is involved in. This is to ensure that you are fully aware of all elements of your activities that may be licensable. These activities may include, but not restricted, to the following:

• transfer of technology or software by any means, for example electronically
• arranging and/or transferring goods between two or more overseas countries - or between different overseas sites of your own organisation
• sending goods to exhibitions or demonstrations overseas
• repairing items or sending items for repair overseas

Inspectors will explain that exports can been deemed to have taken place regardless of:

• who may receive them (for example, transferring goods to your partner/subsidiary organisations based outside the UK)
• whether items have been temporarily exported (you may be sending goods to exhibitions or for repair and you state Free of Charge (FOC) on the export documentation) or mode of transport (physical exports and electronic transfers may be licensable)

They will also advise you of what you should be ‘alert to’, for example what you should consider prior to accepting contracts with new customers This will include:

• how to be vigilant and responsible
• making enquiries about new customers (or even existing ones), and where you go to obtain information
• ensuring that you are confident that your controlled items arrive at the intended destination and that your customer is using them in the way you expect
• what to do if you are suspicious about new enquiries
• what to do if you are not sure about end-use controls

10.3 Keeping up-to-date

Inspectors will ask you how your business will keep up-to-date with changes in legislation and how you plan to keep your knowledge current. If you are not already aware, Inspectors will discuss the help and advice ECJU can offer, such as our website, checker tools and notices to exporters .

10.4 Questions and concerns

You may well have questions or concerns about your legal obligations under UK export or trade controls. Compliance Inspectors can be a useful source of information, but sometimes they may need to take your question away and discuss it with colleagues in the government’s export control community. We always attempt to get back to you within 48 hours of the question being raised - more difficult queries might take longer.

10.5 New licences

Although Inspectors do not issue licences, we may at times provide input into the decision as to whether a business has sufficient knowledge, experience and expertise to properly use an Open Individual Licence. In the case of a new OGL being developed, Compliance engage in the later stage of the process to ensure the terms and conditions of the licence are clear and achievable. At times they may challenge some of the conditions if they are deemed to be too onerous. This is done before publication.

10.6 Expert witnesses

Compliance Inspectors do not investigate or prosecute licence holders for breaches in export control legislation, but Inspectors are required to inform HMRC if we discover breaches of export controls. When breaches have been serious, and the Crown Prosecution Service deems it appropriate to take a case to the High Court, we are often required to present evidence in the case. This is why Inspectors are required to be clear and concise at inspections and when providing any advice.

11. Annex B - Enforcement

ECJU Inspectors are sometimes required to take measures against an exporter when requirements are not met. In these cases, ECJU and HMRC might take steps to ensure future compliance with the terms and conditions of the licence(s) you hold. Procedures available are without prejudice to the Secretary of State’s general powers to suspend or revoke licences by following other procedures.

11.1 Possible measures

Measures may be taken against you when infringements of the legislation or licence requirements have arisen. This may be due to:

• significant errors identified during inspection, where your documentation for the export/trade of controlled items (goods, technology or/and software) did not meet the licence’s conditions
• repeated infringements, despite having been informed previously by ECJU of the error
• failure to take the corrective action(s) identified through the online export licensing system and/or stated in a warning letter issued after a compliance inspection
• cancelling an inspection 10 working days or less before the agreed date
• your Inspector being unable to contact you, after having made several attempts to do so

In this case, your Inspector will write to you, sending the Warning Letter via ‘Recorded Signed For’. If your Inspector still receives no response, the Head of Compliance will write to you to inform you that your licence is suspended. If no contact remains, you will be informed that licence has been revoked. All correspondence will be emailed to the address listed on ECJU ’s electronic licensing system.

11.2 What is a ‘significant error’?

This might include examples of exports of controlled items to destinations or countries not permitted under the terms of the licence, or not having the correct Ministry of Defence ( MOD ) authorisation in place before exporting controlled goods.

In these instances, your Inspector will issue a Warning Letter to the Senior Responsible Owner ( SRO ) within your business. This will be the legally responsible person who must ensure compliance with UK export controls - the managing director, for example.

11.3 Enforcement procedures

If measures are taken against your business, you will be issued with a ‘warning letter’. This will be titled ‘open general export licence: warning letter’. It will outline the failures and remedial actions required and ask that the letter be acknowledged by a specified date.

The person responding to the warning letter will be asked to outline the procedures that your business intends to put in place to ensure future compliance, along with their personal assurance to their Inspector. You should also state any remedial actions you have undertaken in response to the errors identified at audit. This should be done in writing and via the online export licensing system. Your Inspector will also recommend that you make a voluntary disclosure to HMRC .

A further compliance inspection, known as a revisit, will then usually take place within six to eight months to ensure that your business is now compliant with the terms and conditions of the licence(s) held.

Failure to reply to a warning letter with the information required may result in further actions being taken, such as the suspension of your licence(s).

If you have received one warning letter and then on second inspection are still found to be non-compliant against the same licence, the licence where the non-compliance has remained will be suspended for a period of three months. This will mean that you will not be able to export goods, under that specific licence, for that period.

If after that period, a subsequent inspection reveals that the business is still non-compliant, then that licence will be revoked.

If your open licence is revoked you will still be permitted to apply for a standard individual export licence (SIEL) that, if granted, will allow you to export controlled goods, technology or software. These licences are valid for two years.

12. Annex C – Records

For the inspection, you must have a list of your exports to hand. This should ideally be a spread sheet or an export log (folders are acceptable) of all shipments made under the licences being inspected.

Your list should include:

• which licence was used to export/transfer the goods, technology or software in question
• or confirmation that no licence was required (NLR) against the export

During a compliance inspection your Inspector will look at a representative sample of the records of exports against each licence exported. You will not be told in advance which exports are to be inspected. So it is imperative that all supporting documentation is easily to hand.

13. Annex D – Documents inspected

Our licences are site-specific. You should ensure that any exports from any site are covered by a licence. In some cases, one licence may cover several sites, but you must be very careful if you have such a licence, as any export documentation accompanying the items must state the site where the export licence is held, not the site that the goods are being exported from (if different). If this is the case, your Inspector will need to understand the relationship between the different sites.

You must ensure that your licence has:

• the site address
• this address must be the same address as given on your export documentation
• it should also be the same as the address where your export records are kept

You should take particular care that the documents held by yourself meet the specific terms required by those licences, for example undertakings. For more guidance visit: Open individual export licence (OIEL) undertaking template .

These should be:

• on the end-user’s or consignee’s headed paper
• matching the licence, with appropriate wording
• valid on the date on which the export was made

The documents must meet the record-keeping requirements and all the terms and conditions of the licence used.

To ensure you can meet the requirements of the licence(s) you hold, you should always:

• read the licence conditions very carefully
• check that any supporting documentation meets the criteria prior to export/transfer/trade

It is easier to obtain correct documentation before you agree a sale, rather than trying to obtain the documentation once goods have left the UK.

All documentation must satisfy your compliance inspector. If it doesn’t, your Inspector will be happy to explain any issues.

14. Annex E – Topics covered at inspection

14.1 business information.

• other sites
• number of employees
• goods/software/technology exported
• trade controls
• temporary exports

Customers, markets and competitors for controlled items

• agents/distributors
• checking of customers

Licensability

• the UK Control List Classification control entry, see the consolidated list of strategic military and dual-use items that require export authorisation
• the person in your organisation who decides which control entry applies to your goods

Responsibility

• cover in absence
• reporting structure for export activity
• compliance statement
• export control training procedures
• desk instructions
• keeping up-to-date

Order process

• when is the decision made about the need for a licence
• who decides which licence is applicable
• how information is stored and maintained on your computer system
• checks on end-user undertaking
• checks on end-use/user
• checks prior to export/transfer/trade

Record keeping

• retention policy
• maintaining end-user undertakings for the period identified in the pre-visit questionnaire ( PVQ )

Most of the topics above are covered in the PVQ , issued with your calendar appointment and confirmation. Remember that these need to be returned to your Inspector by the date given in the letter. Failure to do so may result in a protracted inspection, or in the worst case, be considered a breach of your licence conditions.

15. Annex F – Additional Guidance of specific conditions or licences

15.1 licence conditions.

Sometimes controlled items exported from the UK may be moved to another destination without first being returned to the UK. You will need to ensure that you have carried out due diligence with your customer to be sure you are certain where your controlled items may eventually end up - also that this destination is permitted by the licence under which you are exporting the goods.

An example of the above would be controlled items exported for a ‘platform’, such as a specific type of ship or aircraft. You should check where the platform might end up and ensure your licence covers that destination. Remember that some licences have an ‘after incorporation’ clause, so that even if the goods are being installed into something else, such as a platform, and that item is subsequently exported, you need to ensure your licence provides cover for where the platform may be eventually used.

Moving goods from one destination to another rather than bringing them back to the UK and re-exporting them is acceptable, providing the conditions/restrictions that apply to each licence used are met. For example, that both are permitted destinations on the same open individual licence, or it fulfils all open general export licence conditions to both destinations. If you’re unsure, check with your Licence Inspector before exporting the goods.

For OILs containing a wide-definition government-only clause (government direct, government agencies or companies whose use of the goods is in direct support of a Government contract) it is acceptable for the goods to be consigned to an agent or distributor in the destination country - an intermediary rather than the government end-user. It is also permissible for the goods to pass through multiple consignees who simply handle the goods in the destination country. But you should ensure there is a clear audit trail through the various consignees, from the UK to the government end user - and that your Licence Inspector is happy with the record keeping.

Some licences have specific requirements for the Ministry of Defence ( MOD ). For approving the export or transfer of goods or technology classified ‘official - sensitive’ or above include the following:

• physical exports or postal shipments: security transportation plan
• courier exports: MOD issues an ‘authority to carry documents’ certificate
• electronic transfers above unclassified must be on an approved encryption system - which must, itself, be approved by MOD

Electronic transfers of controlled technology or software

For this type of activity you may maintain generic records (such as summaries of transfers under a specified contract on a spreadsheet) detailing controlled electronic transfers of technology. The records required are set out at Articles 29-30 of the Export Control Order 2008

As well as specific requirements in each licence, if generic records are maintained you need not retain the original communication, although you may wish to do this for your own purposes in case questions arise at the inspection.

If the actual communication (email perhaps) is retained as the sole record of an electronic transfer, then this communication must meet the record-keeping requirements of Articles 29 and 30 of the Export Control Order 2008 and any specific requirements of the licence used.

There is no need to make a specific reference to the licence on the email or fax where controlled technology or software is transferred by electronic means. But you must, when asked, be able to identify the licence used and demonstrate compliance with all the terms and conditions.

Trade control licences

Supporting documentation generally, but not always, needs to relate to the activity in the UK rather than an export from a third country. Undertakings are not always necessary, but, if needed, will be specified in the licence.

Open individual trade control licences have conditions specific to your application (along with standard conditions) that your Inspector will check at the inspection. These will generally include specific details of the trading activity, such as names and addresses of source and destination, description of goods and dates of trading. Additional conditions could involve more detailed proof of the trading activity (such as advertisements or promotional material) but these will be stated clearly within the licence.

Undertakings

Undertakings issued by a head office (or equivalent), but specifically covering exports from a range of other sites, are acceptable so long as it is clear that the signatory has management authority over those sites. The document must also include the names and addresses of all the sites covered. Undertaking must be original and, on the business’s headed paper.

Government Purchase Orders (GPOs) and government contracts

GPOs, which are quantity-specific, may be a valid supporting document for certain licences, until the stated quantity of the goods has been delivered. You should check with your Inspector beforehand to ensure your GPO meets the conditions of the licence. A business acting on behalf of ‘a government’ cannot issue a purchase order on behalf of the government.

Definitions and interpretations

‘Exhibition’, ‘demonstration’, ‘government bodies’.

Exhibition: when equipment and/or technology is displayed by you, and you have no control over the visitors, or who views your equipment or technology at that event. These are usually static events. For such activities, all of your exhibits must be at an unclassified level.

Demonstration: this is when your equipment and/or technology is shown by you, where you know those attending, and you explain your items in greater depth and demonstrate its capabilities to your potential customer. These events are usually closed and there has to be a pre-agreed level of classification to an audience known to you.

Government bodies: The status of some agencies in relation to the definition of government depends on the country concerned. Some, like the FBI in the USA, can be considered as a government body, others such as a local police force may not. Compliance Inspectors will seek clarification on a case-by-case basis.

Be aware that some government bodies also act as agents to support and maintain their own platforms sold to other countries that may not be covered by your licence. You must ensure that you undertake sufficient due diligence, prior to export, so that the items you are exporting, even after incorporation, remain in destinations permitted by the licence.

16. Annex G – fully compliant certificates

You are deemed fully compliant if, on the day of the inspection, you are able to fully demonstrate compliance with all the terms and conditions of the licences used for export and no actions or recommendations are outstanding. You may then be emailed a pdf Certificate of Compliance. These certificates are discretionary.

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