A duty representative was someone authorised by HMRC to act as an agent for non-UK based businesses involved in the buying, selling and storage of duty suspended goods in UK excise warehouses.
WOWGR (Statutory Notice 1999 No. 1278: The Warehousekeepers and Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations 1999) was updated in March 2025 and the provision of duty representatives has been removed.
If you are an overseas business who had a duty representative to own casks purchased before March 2025 you should contact them to ensure the casks are properly recorded in your name at the warehouse level.
Do I need a duty representative to own a whisky cask?
As of March 2025 no one needs a duty representative; they do not exist in the updated WOWGR legislation.
Prior to this update only non-UK based businesses needed a duty representative to own casks stored in Scottish warehouses.
- If you were a private individual in the UK then you were not classed as a revenue trader and therefore you did not need a duty representative. Furthermore Statutory Notice No.1278 stated that a duty representative could not represent you as an agent.
- If you are a private individual based outside of the UK then you are still not classed as a revenue trader and therefore it is our understanding that you did not need a duty representative.
- If you own a cask or casks through a UK based business prior to March 2025 you were classed as a revenue trader as per Excise Notice 196 and had to apply to be a registered owner in order to store your casks in a registered excise warehouse (a registered owner was a revenue trader approved to deposit goods they own in an excise warehouse). In this instance a duty representative could not act for you as per Statutory instrument No.1278.
