The Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) entered into force on 19 June 2023 and replaced the UK’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP).

The DCTS is a simpler and more generous preferential trading scheme which has been designed to boost trade with developing countries in order to support their development. It benefits UK businesses and consumers by reducing the import cost of thousands of products from around the world.

The DCTS applies to 65 countries that are:

• least developed countries (LDCs) as defined by the United Nations
• low income and lower middle-income countries as defined by the World Bank

A list of eligible countries can be found in our preference tiers guidance.

The full DCTS legislation was published on 22 May 2023 including:

• the Trade Preference Scheme (Developing Countries Trading Scheme) Regulations 2023
• the Customs (Origin of Chargeable Goods: Developing Countries Trading Scheme) Regulations 2023

These guides explain how businesses in the UK and in developing countries can take advantage of the DCTS to bring goods into the UK.