In the past year, SCP scheme, which intends to deliver ‘critical improvements’ to the UK’s new customs system, has seen projected spending rise by about 135% following extra IT costs
The cost of delivering HM Revenue and Customs’ Single Customs Platform project has more than doubled in the past year to a new tally of £570m.
The timeline of delivering the programme has also been pushed back by two years to March 2027, according to detail contained in a newly published accounting officer assessment of the project.
The assessment, undersigned by HMRC chief executive Jim Harra, says that the Single Customs Platform (SCP) scheme is working towards “delivering critical… improvements” to the Customs Declaration Service (CDS): the UK’s new post-Brexit customs IT system, replacing the 31-year-old CHIEF platform.
Work on the SCP project began in April 2022 with initial projected delivery costs of £243m and a scheduled completion date of March 2025.
As of March 2024 – two-thirds of the way through the slated timeframe – the cost estimate was amended to £309m on account of “a major increase in the amount of IT changes needed for CDS to ensure full functionality”, according to HMRC data.
Following the latest assessment, conducted just days before the intended conclusion of work, the expected delivery cost now stands at £570m. An additional two years has also been allotted to complete work, with a new completion date of March 2027.
The latest cost rise means that project spending has increased by almost 135% overall since work began.
“Costs have risen within the first three years due to a significant increase in the number of IT changes needed to improve customer journeys and to provide additional support for traders making the one-off migration from CHIEF,” the assessment says. “SCP supported the migration by delivering a ‘dual-running’ system which integrated CDS and CHIEF for individual declarations, meaning that traders could make declarations on either system during that time. This allowed traders to plan the pace of their migration to match their preparedness and minimise disruption to UK trade. The remaining investment in CDS, of around £185m, will ensure it is more resilient, cost-effective and meets customer needs.”
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In response to enquiries from PublicTechnology, an HMRC spokesperson said: “The cost of implementing and developing the Customs Declaration Service reflects the extensive changes required to support the UK’s customs regime. This includes managing increased volumes of declarations and continuing to integrate it with modern systems. We continue to invest in CDS to support UK businesses with their international trade.”
The accounting officer review – a regular requirement for programmes on the Government Major Project Portfolio – outlines three core deliverables for the SCP scheme.
The first of these, to complete the migration of all traders from CHIEF to CDS, was delivered last year. The second major objective is the decommissioning of the outgoing customs system – which is also complete – and its subsequent full shutdown.
“Closure activity is underway and will be completed by March 2025,” the assessment adds.
The final major aim of the project, which will constitute the focus of all work from this point on, is “delivering critical CDS improvements [including] CDS functional and non-functional delivery requirements, data, and reporting”.
“In March 2024, CDS was opened for import and export declarations,” the assessment says. “This milestone was reached following a 10-year work programme. CDS is now the UK’s single customs declaration platform. HMRC continues to invest in CDS to ensure it is more resilient, cost-effective, and meets customer needs. HMRC will also realise significant savings by decommissioning CHIEF and will ensure its IT estate continues to run efficiently.”
The document adds: “The programme is now focusing on ensuring that CDS can cater for every type of customs journey, and that customers are able to make a smooth transition from CHIEF to CDS. This has required further functional and non-functional changes to CDS.”
The £66m of additional expense initially added to delivery projects in 2024 for SCP was a small part of a wider increase of about £1bn recorded in 2024 on projected costs associated with HMRC tech programmes in the GMPP.
