Knowledge base
Knowledge base
Practical guides on transport to the UK, customs clearance, exhibition logistics and warehousing.
Repacking services in the UK: how our food grade warehouse works
Depalletising, pallet exchange, relabelling and putting a consignment right after transport. How our food grade…
How to choose a forwarder for transport to the UK
A checklist for choosing a UK forwarder: customs and GMR, a network instead of an exchange, out-of-hours contact…
Transport to the islands of Britain and Ireland: a guide to the destinations
Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, the Hebrides, Orkney, Shetland, Ireland and Northern Ireland. We explain the three…
Why we do not buy loads on freight exchanges, the OTSL model
Many brokers buy transport on exchanges and lose control over who carries the goods. We work differently and explain…
"Regime 42", "barcode" and smart border clearance: what it really means
In haulier slang it is often one and the same France to UK crossing. We explain the barcode, the ELO envelope and…
Transport to Norway, customs and VOEC
Norway is in the EEA but outside the EU customs union, so a delivery needs clearance. What VOEC is, when it matters and…
Customs advisory, how to avoid costly mistakes
Most problems at the border come from mistakes made earlier, at the desk. How customs advice up front protects against…
How freight forwarding works from A to Z, step by step
Forwarding is more than sending a truck. We show the whole process, from enquiry to delivery, and who is responsible at…
Transport to Switzerland, customs and documents
Switzerland is outside the EU customs union, so every delivery needs clearance. What to prepare, which documents are…
Exhibition logistics at ExCeL London, how we deliver stands
Delivery of stand builds and goods to ExCeL London (E16 1XL): time slots, post-Brexit customs, a UK warehouse buffer.
Has your forwarder let you down? Urgent transport when time matters
The carrier did not show up, the goods are stuck and the deadline is closing in? We step in where others failed, with…
Cargo inspection step by step and the report for the insurer
When something happens to a load, an orderly assessment and documentation matter, not haste. What the inspection…
GVMS in practice, how the driver crosses the GB border
GVMS and the GMR number decide whether the driver boards the ferry and crosses the border. How it works step by step…
UK customs and EU import: EAD, ENS, GMR, GVMS, CDS
What actually happens during clearance to the UK and import into the EU: documents, systems and controls, step by step.
Time-critical delivery, when every minute counts
A 7 pm call, a few kilograms, almost 1000 km and a morning deadline. How we run deliveries when a line stoppage is at…
London fairs and Brexit, goods transport after 2021
After Brexit, taking goods to UK fairs is not just transport but customs and an ATA carnet too. What changed and how to…
Trade-fair stand logistics from A to Z
From collecting the stand parts, through customs and slots, to build and return. What full fair logistics covers and…
The OTSL fleet, what we drive and what we carry
Our own tractor units plus vetted subcontractors we vouch for. From a single pallet to oversized cargo and machinery.
Botched customs, and a crew that waits. How we prevent it
One missing document can stop a project and a crew of a dozen people. We show how thinking about the whole process…
Poor exhibition logistics costs more than the transport
Late goods, goods stuck at customs, a build crew standing and waiting. We show where the money disappears and how to…
Transport to fairs in the UK, how to arrange it
How to arrange goods transport to UK fairs: slots, ATA carnet, post-Brexit customs and the return after the event.
UK customs clearance after Brexit, step by step
How to clear customs step by step when exporting to the UK after Brexit: documents, ENS, GMR and the order of actions.
Kielce warehouse: transshipment, cross-dock and consolidation on the EU-UK route
A ramp, a crane, forklifts up to 5 tonnes and 24/7 access next to the Kielce fairground. How our transshipment base…
Pallets, packaging and load securing in international transport
The sender answers for packaging, the carrier for securing. We show how to pack pallets for an international route and…
Booking-in for deliveries in the UK: how it works and how not to lose a slot
British warehouses accept goods only in agreed time windows. We explain how booking-in works, which details are needed…
Transport to trade fairs in Germany: deadlines, slots and stand logistics
Germany is the largest trade fair market in Europe. We show how unloading slots and hall regulations work, why a…
Returning goods from the UK to Poland: how customs clearance works
A complaint, unsold stock or a return from a fair: goods coming back from the UK are an EU import. We explain returned…
Incoterms in transport to the UK: who arranges and pays for customs
EXW, FCA, DAP or DDP: the Incoterms rule in the contract decides who arranges and pays for export, carriage and GB…
Transport to the Isle of Wight, Anglesey and Scilly: domestic UK islands
The Isle of Wight, Anglesey and the Isles of Scilly are part of Great Britain, so no clearance against the UK. We…
The customs tariff code (CN/HS): how to find it and why it matters so much
The tariff code decides the duty rate, VAT, requirements and restrictions on import and export. We explain the…
Customs warehousing and temporary admission: procedures that defer or suspend duty
Customs warehousing lets you store goods without paying duty and VAT until they are released, while temporary admission…
CDS: the British customs declaration system that replaced CHIEF
The United Kingdom has moved customs declarations from the old CHIEF system to CDS (the Customs Declaration Service)…
Trade fair transport in Poland: Kielce, Poznań, Warsaw
We handle exhibition logistics in Poland: Targi Kielce, Poznań International Fair, Ptak Warsaw Expo. Booking-in for…
Trade fair transport to Austria: Vienna, Graz, Salzburg
We move stand builds and exhibits to Messe Wien, Messe Graz and Messe Salzburg. Booking-in for build-up and breakdown…
Trade fair transport to Belgium: Brussels, Ghent, Antwerp
We move stand builds and exhibits to Brussels Expo, Flanders Expo Ghent and Antwerp Expo. Booking-in for build-up and…
Safety & Security (ENS) declarations when importing into Great Britain
Since 2025, imports from the EU into Great Britain require an Entry Summary Declaration (ENS) in the British safety and…
EORI number: what it is, who needs it and how to get one
The EORI number identifies a company in EU customs systems. We explain who needs one after Brexit and how to obtain it…
Trade fair transport to Switzerland: Basel, Geneva, Zurich
Switzerland is outside the European Union, so fair exhibits usually enter under temporary admission or an ATA carnet…
Trade fair transport to the Netherlands: Amsterdam and Utrecht
We move stand builds and exhibits to RAI Amsterdam, Jaarbeurs Utrecht and Ahoy Rotterdam. Booking-in for build-up and…
Trade fair transport to Spain: Madrid and Barcelona
We move stand builds and exhibits to IFEMA Madrid and Fira de Barcelona. Booking-in for build-up and breakdown, the…
Trade fair transport to Italy: Milan, Bologna, Verona
We move stand builds and exhibits to Fiera Milano, BolognaFiere and Veronafiere. Booking-in for build-up and breakdown…
Trade fair transport to France: Paris and national events
We move stand builds and exhibits to fairs in France: Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, Paris Nord Villepinte, Lyon…
BTOM: SPS controls on importing food and plants into Great Britain
The BTOM model has phased in sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls on imports into GB: risk categories, health…
Transport to Northern Ireland: the rules of the Windsor Framework
Northern Ireland belongs to the United Kingdom but for goods it works under the special rules of the Windsor Framework…
Transport to Ireland (the Republic of Ireland): an EU market with no clearance
The Republic of Ireland is in the European Union, so transport from Poland runs with no customs border. We explain the…
Transport to the Scottish islands: the Hebrides, Orkney (Kirkwall) and Shetland (Lerwick)
The Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland are part of Great Britain, so once inside the UK the transport is domestic. We…
Transport to Jersey and Guernsey (Channel Islands): clearance outside UK VAT
Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark are outside the European Union and outside the UK VAT area. We explain why…
Transport to the Isle of Man: customs and the crossing
The Isle of Man is in a customs and VAT union with the UK but outside the EU. We explain how transport from Poland…
How long does transport from Poland to the UK take and what extends it
Delivery time to the UK is the sum of stages: transit, customs, crossing and the consignee slot. We show what really…
ENS stop words (ICS2): the list of banned goods descriptions and how to describe a shipment
A description such as goods, samples or parts blocks an ENS declaration in the ICS2 system. We publish the European…
How much does transport to the UK cost? What drives the price
There is no single rate for transport to the UK. We show what makes up the price: load, crossing, customs, deadline and…
CARGO insurance versus carrier liability (OCP), what protects your goods
OCP and CARGO are not the same, and the difference can hurt at a claim. What really protects your goods and why CARGO…
Choosing a customs agency matters. How one weekend stopped a whole truck
A truck sat at the UK border for a whole weekend because the customs agency works only Monday to Friday, while fixing…
Airport-to-airport transport, when every detail counts
Transport between airports for airline operations: aircraft engines, coordination on the apron, UK and Ireland airports.
Deliveries to Norway outside the EU, what to know
Norway is often confused with the EU because it is close and in the EEA. Why it is still export outside the customs…
What makes deliveries to Switzerland specific, e-dec, LSVA and charges
Switzerland has its own clearance system and its own road charges. What to know about e-dec, LSVA and costs before you…
Exhibition logistics at the NEC Birmingham, delivery and backup
NEC Birmingham fairs (B40 1NT): time slots, post-Brexit customs, storage at our Milton Keynes warehouse.
24/7 availability in forwarding, why it matters
Transport does not stop after hours and problems do not wait for Monday. Why round-the-clock availability of the…
Export to Switzerland outside the EU, customs procedures
Shipping to Switzerland is export outside the EU customs territory. What procedures apply, what to watch with duty and…
Food safety after a trailer breach (EC 178/2002)
When food is involved, a trailer breach is not only about the state of the goods but about the rules. Why food law and…
Short-term storage with temperature control in the UK
Sometimes goods must wait a few days on the UK market and the temperature must not give. How short-term storage with…
A UK warehouse with re-packing and recovery of damaged loads
A warehouse on the UK market is not just a place to store. How the Milton Keynes facility joins storage, cross-docking…
Re-palletising and straightening pallets after a load shift
A tilted or collapsed pallet does not have to mean the loss of a whole batch. What re-packing and pallet rebuilding…
Milton Keynes warehouse, our recovery base in the UK
OTSL warehouse in Milton Keynes, 24/7, in the heart of the Golden Triangle: re-stacking, inspection, cross-docking…
T1, EUR.1 and certificate of origin, when you need them
Three documents that get confused most often. How transit T1 differs from the EUR.1 proof of origin and a certificate…
Import from the UK to Poland, procedures and costs
Import from the UK is not just transport but a customs declaration, VAT and possible duty. What makes up the cost and…
Post-show logistics, collection and return of goods
The fair ends, and the goods must be collected and brought back smoothly. Why the return is planned before departure…
A different fair slot? Alternative warehouse backup
Your build slot does not always match when the goods are ready. How a warehouse buffer near the venue saves the day…
Automotive transport, delivery to unloading slots
In automotive the unloading window matters more than distance. A few pallets exactly on time, so the line does not wait.
Delivery to Targi Kielce, slots, booking and unloading
At a fair, success comes not from the drive itself but from fitting the venue slots and a smooth unload. How we…
Out-of-gauge and special loads, transport beyond the standard profile
A machine, a structure, an item of unusual size. Why out-of-gauge is a project, not a routine move, and what must be…
Temperature-controlled transport and the cold chain
Temperature-sensitive goods forgive the fewest mistakes. How reefer transport works, why chain continuity matters and…
Ferry booking, how we reserve crossings on the EU-UK lane
The ferry crossing is the bottleneck on the route to the UK. How we reserve space, how we tie it to customs and why a…
ADR transport, moving dangerous goods step by step
ADR classes, documentation requirements and why dangerous goods need separate planning, not just a trailer with a label.
Express vans and time-critical transport in Europe
When every hour counts, scheduled groupage can be too slow. How dedicated van transport and express LTL work, and when…
Groupage and LTL across Europe, from a single pallet
LTL is transport where you pay only for the space you actually use. When it makes sense, how we measure space and how…
FTL or LTL, when to use full loads and when groupage
When a full load (FTL) pays off and when groupage (LTL) does, comparing cost, time and handling risk.
Are goods fit for sale after trailer tampering?
What determines the fitness of goods after trailer tampering and how to document the condition for a safe decision.
Cargo inspection after unauthorised people in the trailer
What to do when unauthorised people were in the trailer (e.g. stowaways) and how cargo inspection works.
ATA carnet for trade fairs, when you need it and how it works
What an ATA carnet is, when you need it for fairs abroad and how OTSL helps obtain it.
Warehouse next to the Kielce fairground, storage and on-site delivery
How OTSL warehouse backup next to the Kielce fairground works: storage before and after, slot buffer and on-site…
Regime 42, EU import clearance with deferred VAT
What regime 42 is, when it is used and the benefit it brings for import combined with an intra-EU supply.
Amazon FBA UK deliveries, labels, booking, requirements
What to prepare so your delivery to an Amazon UK warehouse is accepted without delays: labels, slot booking and customs.
Export to the UK, required documents
The list of documents needed to export goods from Poland to the UK after Brexit and who prepares them.
ELO, ENS, GMR, what they are and when you need them
Three terms you cannot move UK cargo without: ELO, ENS and GMR. We explain what they are and who prepares them.
Need transport or customs clearance?
Tell us what you need, a forwarder replies, not an autoresponder. Operations available 24/7.