UK announces less company paperwork and extended import duty suspensions

United Kingdom. On 23 October 2026, HM Treasury announced measures to reduce administrative burdens and extend some import duty suspensions. The government estimates that the package could save businesses almost £800 million per year in total. This is an estimate of economy-wide annual savings, not money already paid out, a grant, or guaranteed savings for each company.

Import duties

The government announced an extension of existing duty suspensions on more than 250 goods that were due to expire on 31 December 2026. Its statement says they will be extended until December 2028, with potential savings for importers of up to £155 million a year. It names chemicals, plastics, hydrogen, automotive, and food and drink among the sectors affected. Not every product in those sectors qualifies: the result depends on the particular commodity code and import conditions.

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At the time of publication, the separate GOV.UK guidance on duty suspensions still describes the extension as a decision under consideration. Importers should therefore not revise their costings on the press release alone: check each product's code, current duty rate and suspension period in the official UK Trade Tariff guidance before clearing an import. The applicable rules can depend on the goods and import route.

Company accounts

HM Treasury says the government is pausing the plan to introduce a requirement from April 2028 for small companies and micro-entities to file profit and loss accounts with Companies House. In June, Companies House had said that this part of the reforms would start in April 2028 and that eligible companies would be able to opt out of public publication of the filed information. At the time of this announcement, the earlier Companies House page still showed the June plan. The pause should therefore not be taken as cancellation of all current annual accounts obligations or other reform measures without further official clarification.

HM Treasury also puts potential savings from lower regulatory administration costs at more than £600 million a year. The figures it cites include up to £290 million a year from streamlined company reporting, £105 million a year from reducing duplicate reporting for asset managers, and £116 million a year for businesses in the home-buying and selling chain. These are estimates for different measures and sectors; they should not be added to the overall £800 million as a separate extra benefit.

What businesses should do

If you import goods, check the commodity codes and actual duty rates for each item before changing quotes or customer prices. If you run a small company, keep filing accounts under the rules and deadlines currently in force and watch for an updated Companies House notice: this announcement does not remove existing duties. The government also promises simpler public-procurement bid requirements, including in construction, but has not set a start date for new procedures. It says detailed information on individual measures will be published on 28 October 2026; that is an information-release date, not an application or filing deadline.

Official sources: HM Treasury, 23 October 2026 announcement; GOV.UK tariff-suspension guidance; Companies House's earlier accounts-reform announcement.