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General Aviation Report Submissions |
It is a requirement that all General Aviation flights inbound into the UK are notified by means of submitting a General Aviation Report (GAR) in advance of your arrival into the UK.
From 1 October 2021, most EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can only travel to the UK using a valid passport, unless they have:
- applied to the EU Settlement Scheme, or have an application pending.
- or otherwise have protected rights under the Citizens’ Rights Agreements.
Until this date, European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss citizens can currently travel to the UK with a valid passport or a national identity (ID) card.
The change from 1 October means an ID card will no longer be accepted for travel to the UK, unless the exemptions apply.
Anyone travelling to the UK on an invalid travel document is liable to be refused entry at the border.
New Customs Reporting Requirements for General Aviation (GA) from 1 January 2022 (GB & NI)
Download a copy of the new Reporting arrangements for GA from/to GB
Download a copy of the new Reporting arrangements for GA to/from NI
The official information relating to the UK GAR requirements can be found here.
The UK Government Free ‘Submit a GAR’ online platform is now available.
GARs can be completed by visiting www.GOV.UK/submit-gar
- It is free to use and designed for the whole GA community, including FBOs.
- No more faxing or emailing required.
- Upon submission — GAR's will be received by Border Force and Police.
The platform has additional benefits including:
- When a GAR has been submitted, users will receive a transmission reference number.
- Users will be able to upload corresponding documents, to help make travelling through the UK border even easier.
- All GARs can be managed from a single platform and your previous details will be saved, making submitting a GAR even quicker.
- Users can create draft GARs for future travel.
Using this new digital service ‘Submit a GAR’ will comply with the incoming legislation.
Sending a GAR by email:
Send the General Aviation Report form (opens in a new window) , to the national coordination unit (NCU) - ncu@hmrc.gov.uk - to send to Border Force or the police.
You should title your email: ‘GAR, airfield registration, name of airfield, postcode of airfield (if known)’. Please check the attached guidance in the Related Content section before completing and submitting the GAR form.
AOPA has published this guide to Flying Abroad which makes useful reading.
A submitted GAR does NOT provide PPR to an aerodrome where that is separately required NOR does it replace a Flight Plan.
Paid or Subscription - Commercial Service Providers
OnlineGAR.com offers a GAR submission service which you can subscribe to going to www.onlinegar.com.
Alternatively, some other Flight Planning Services include GAR submissions:
SkyDemon use the OnlineGAR.com service which is included free with a SkyDemon subscription.
RocketRoute submit via their own email form and you do not get confirmation of receipt.
Some Fixed Base Operators and Handling Agents will submit GAR's as part of their service.
Emergency General Aviation Report (GAR) Telephone Line
Emergency General Aviation Report (GAR) Telephone Line (0845 723 1110) OR (SWITCHBOARD: 0300 123 2012) : If you need to submit or amend a GAR for Border Force purposes in an emergency situation, you may call the GAR Emergency Telephone Line on +44 (0) 845 723 1110 OR Switchboard: +44 (0) 300 123 2012 from abroad.
The emergency telephone line may only be used for a flight that is:
- not required to report to the police under the Terrorism Act 2000; and
- outside the GAR reporting timescales.
An emergency may be described as:
- medical emergency of a pilot/passenger; or
- air ambulance with critical passenger; or other emergencies requiring a change to information contained within an already submitted GAR; or
- last minute changes to a submitted GAR, only when changes to online version are not possible.
This telephone line is strictly only for the purposes listed above. For all other GA enquiries please visit : https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/general-aviation
To meet the reporting requirements set out in Paragraph 12 of Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000, you must notify the Police Force responsible for the departure/arrival port by email using the contact details shown in Annex F, alternatively these requirements can also be met by using the sGAR digital application or other approved third-party applications. If further information is required,then please contact the relevant county/area on the phone numbers provided in Annex D.
General Declarations (GENDEC's) to other Countries
Other countries require GENDEC's to be submitted either in advance or on arrival to the relevant Authority, normally Customs or Police. Sometimes these are only required at certain airports of arrival. We suggest that, if there are no sources of country specific GENDEC's, you take a printed copy of your UK GAR form. We are aware of the following online sources for GENDEC's (please let us know if you are aware of any others):
Alderney & Guernsey (Note OnlineGAR.com provide a pre-filled form with a GAR submission)
Ireland (Note OnlineGAR.com provide a pre-filled form with a GAR submission)
Jersey (Note OnlineGAR.com provide a pre-filled form with a GAR submission)
Netherlands (Note OnlineGAR.com transmit your GAR details to Dutch Customs)