UK Ecosystem of Trust (EoT)

A. General Information

1. Title

2. Status of the project

Pilot

3. Implementation period of the project/service:

From

Oct-2022

Mar-2023

4. Website

5. Geographical coverage

Global: Europe, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America, Africa

Participating countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Luxembourg, Denmark, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Australia, China, Thailand, Kenya

Hub Point: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

6. Participating agencies/entities of the project/service:

a. Development stage

Lead agencies/entities

- UK Cabinet Office (Border and Protocol Delivery Group)
- HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
- Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
- Home Office / Border Force
- Food Standards Agency (FSA)
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)

Other participating agencies/entities

Six Industry Consortia led by:
1. Azarc
2. Chainvine
3. IBM & Maersk (with Hutchison Ports Port of Felixstowe, Maritime Cargo Processing, Pure Electric, Quantexa, Westbridge Foods, WM Morrison Supermarkets)
4. Fujitsu
5. Palantir (Connected Borders)
6. Institute of Export & International Trade (IOE&IT) with IOTA Foundation, Supply Chain Tracking (SCT) Technology, Maritime Cargo Processing, Retail & Asset Solutions

b. Operational stage

Lead agencies/entities (op)

- UK Cabinet Office
- HMRC
- Defra
- Border Force

Other participating agencies/entities (op)

- Six industry consortia
- Port operators (Felixstowe, Dover, Harwich, London Gateway, Liverpool, Immingham, Southampton)
- KenTrade (Kenya Single Window)
- TradeMark East Africa

7. Main stakeholders/beneficiaries of the project

Traders (big enterprises)

Traders (SMEs)

Transport

Customs brokers

Customs

Other Government Agencies (OGAs)

Technology firms, logistics companies, port operators, importers/exporters

8. Business process category of the project

Commercial Transactions

Forwarding and cargo handling

Transport

Regulatory/official control

Supply chain data sharing, risk management, biosecurity controls

B. Lessons Learned

9. Summary description of the project/service

Brief Summary

The UK Ecosystem of Trust (EoT) pilot tested whether innovative technology, real-time supply chain data, and trusted trader relationships could provide government with new ways to assure goods crossing borders, enabling frictionless trade while maintaining security and biosecurity.

a. Objective(s)

To test whether a new border model using supply chain data, augmenting technologies (smart seals, GPS tracking), and trusted relationships could reduce trade frictions without compromising UK security or biosecurity. The goal was to create frictionless import/export experience for compliant trusted traders while focusing enforcement on higher-risk traders.

b. Business need for the project (background)

Post-Brexit, UK needed to redesign border operations. Current processes are transactional, creating administrative burdens for traders who submit similar information to multiple government entities. Physical checks add costs and delays. The 2025 UK Border Strategy set out the vision to use data and technology to create the most effective border in the world.

c. Business process covered*

- Pre-arrival supply chain data sharing
- Customs declarations and risking
- Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) controls
- Safety and security targeting
- Goods integrity assurance via smart seals/containers
- Cold chain monitoring
- Trade document digitization

d. Overall architecture and functionalities*

Each consortium deployed a supply chain data platform (system of record) with dashboards providing views for government and industry. Data was shared via dashboards (for visual inspection) and structured file exports (CSV, XML, JSON). Technologies included: smart seals with GPS/tamper detection, smart containers with environmental sensors, electronic labels with QR codes, and distributed ledger technology for data immutability.

e. Relevant document/figure

10. Documents and data exchanged via the project

- Commercial invoices
- Packing lists
- Bills of lading / Airway bills
- Export Health Certificates (EHCs)
- Phytosanitary certificates
- Certificates of origin
- Customs declarations (import/export)
- CMR transport notes
- Transit documents
- Catch certificates
- Movement Reference Numbers (MRNs)
- Journey tracking data
- Smart seal telemetry data
- Temperature/humidity readings
- Approximately 28 new data elements made available to Border Force targeting teams

11. Data models/databases, proprietary solutions, hybrid approaches

Hybrid approach using proprietary consortium platforms (Azarc Rune, Chainvine BlueRing, Palantir Digital Goods Passport, TLIP, Fujitsu Atamai Freight, TradeLens) integrated with UK government systems via dashboards and file transfers. Some used distributed ledger technology (blockchain) for data immutability.

12. Main challenges faced during the project

- Interoperability: Biggest barrier; integrating industry data into government systems at scale proved challenging
- Data format issues: Much data was unstructured (PDFs) rather than machine-readable
- Data standardization: Values provided in wrong formats (USD vs GBP, mm/dd/yy vs dd/mm/yy, grams vs kilograms)
- Missing data fields: Some government-required data elements not typically in commercial documents
- Data governance: Complex data sharing agreements needed
- Technology circumvention: Smart seals can be bypassed by determined criminals
- Limited time: Government systems not integrated during pilots due to resource constraints

13. Lessons learned from the project

- Industry can provide higher quality, timelier data than currently available through declarations
- Supply chain data can provide 80% of minimum customs risking requirements and 60% of trade statistics requirements
- Decision-making time could potentially decrease by 17%
- Interoperability is the biggest problem to solve
- Government must define clear facilitations/benefits to incentivize industry participation
- Collaboration between government and industry is essential for driving innovation
- "Signals" approach (exception-based notifications) more efficient than continuous data streams
- Electronic Trade Documents Act passage critical for enabling digital trade documents
- International interoperability with trade partners is key

14. Main benefit(s) of the project

Enhanced regulatory compliance*

Transaction Cost savings* -- rate: Customs data collection costs could be reduced by 40%, resulting in up to £225 million annual savings%

Transaction Time savings

Simplified process

14A. Elaborations/detailed description on benefits gained

15. Technical/financial/capacity building/other assistance

- UK Government backed £180 million commitment for establishing Single Trade Window
- Over £1 billion investment across spending review period for border transformation
- Industry consortia participated at their own cost in exchange for opportunity to shape future border

16. Future plan for expansion of the project

- Findings will inform UK Single Trade Window development (delivery from 2023, fully operational by 2027)
- Defra Trusted Trader scheme pilots for SPS goods launched September 2023
- HMRC streamlining Customs Trusted Trader Schemes authorisation processes (2024-2025)
- Border Trade Demonstrator (BTD) initiatives to continue testing
- Development of open-source "toolkit" to lower barriers to EoT participation
- Maersk in dialogue with UK Government and other countries about extending trusted trade lanes

17. Other information or relevant references on the project

- Project aligns with 2025 UK Border Strategy vision
- Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023 places digital trade documents on same legal footing as paper
- Similar initiatives underway in EU (customs overhaul by 2032) and US (next-generation single window)
- IOE&IT paper estimated EoT could reduce border delays by 80% and add 1% (~£25bn) to UK GDP

18. Relevant document regarding the project

C. Relevant Standards

19. Name(s) of any international, national legal instrument underpinning the project

- 2025 UK Border Strategy (December 2020)
- Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023
- Border Target Operating Model
- WCO SAFE Framework of Standards
- Common Transit Convention (CTC)

20. Electronic message standard

20A. Electronic message standard supporting the project

XML:

- Other XML format: Various proprietary formats from consortia platforms

20B. Type of standard for electronic message applied for the project

Industry-specific standard

Proprietary solution

Proprietary solution was applied because:

- Need to adhere to existing ones, due to such reason as complying to requirements from partners and users

21. Technical communication standard

21A. Technical communication standard supporting the project

HTTP, APIs, GPRS (for IoT devices), GPS

21B. Type of technical communication standard applied for the project

International standard

Proprietary solution

22. Security-related standards*

22A. Security-related standard supporting the project

Digital signatures

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT/Blockchain) for data immutability, cryptographic data security techniques, smart seal tamper detection

22B. Type of security-related standard applied for the project

Industry-specific standard

Proprietary solution

23. Other Technical Information

23A. Interface developed for data exchange with an internal system

- Dashboards provided to government officials for visual data inspection
- Structured file exports (CSV, XML, JSON) for batch processing
- No full technical integration with government systems during pilots due to time/resource constraints
- HMRC received data via dashboard viewing and file upload
- Integration planned via UK Single Trade Window

23B. Other technical implementation information

Augmenting Technologies Deployed:
- Smart seals (GPS enabled, tamper detection, remote unlocking)
- Smart containers (temperature, humidity, atmosphere monitoring)
- Electronic seals (radio frequency, scan-based tracking)
- Electronic labels (QR codes linking to product data)
- Intrusion detection sensors (CO2, light, speed monitoring)
- Fleet management/geolocation tracking

Platforms Used:
- Azarc: Rune Utility Trade Network
- Chainvine: BlueRing dashboard with Octosense smart seals
- Palantir: Digital Goods Passport Platform (Connected Borders)
- DBM-ATC: Trade Logistics Information Pipeline (TLIP) with SecureTrak seals
- Fujitsu: Atamai Freight platform with smart seal technology
- IBM-Maersk: TradeLens (blockchain), Remote Container Management, Quantexa for risking

Last Update: 28 November 2025