Accessibility statement for the Trader Support Service

This accessibility statement applies to the Trader Support Service.

This website is run by the Trader Support Service. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts using browser or device settings
  • zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using a keyboard or speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

  • some form elements
  • identifying and recovering from errors
  • some broken links and unclear navigation
  • some aspects of interacting with the chatbot
  • content in tables and lengthy content in guidance pages

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact, call 0800 870 8173, Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5pm. Let us know what page of the website you were on, what went wrong and what you were trying to do.

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The Trader Support Service is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

This website is not compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard. The non-compliances are listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Perceivable

Non-text content does not always provide equivalent information to assistive technologies. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).

Tables on the guidance pages are not correctly structured, making relationships between rows and columns difficult for screen reader users to interpret. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).

Insufficient colour contrast within the chatbot interface and guidance tables requires excessive horizontal and vertical scrolling, making information difficult and exhausting to read, particularly when viewed at browser zoom. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (contrast (minimum)).

Operable

The chatbot displays a countdown to end the session, creating unnecessary time pressure and interrupting the interaction. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.2.1 (timing adjustable).

Navigating the portal is difficult due to broken guidance links, inconsistent page titles, unclear link purposes, excessive scrolling through guidance and tables, limited ways to locate content, and focus not always moving predictably after actions. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.2 (page titled), and 2.4.4 (link purpose (in context)), 2.5.3 (label in name), 2.4.5 (multiple ways).

Understandable

Unclear labels, insufficient instructions, missing examples, inadequate error messages and limited guidance when completing declarations. Not always clear what information is required, how to correct errors, or whether submissions have completed successfully. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.1.1 (language of page).

Robust

Some form controls and interface components are not reliably communicated to assistive technologies. Inaccessible chatbot controls, missing or unclear status updates following submissions, and interface elements whose names, roles or states are not consistently exposed, reduces compatibility with screen readers and other assistive technologies. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role, value).

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

By September 2026 we plan to:

  • add descriptive alternative text to logos,icons and informative images.
  • apply row and column headers (<th>) with appropriate scope attributes so assistive technologies can interpret relationships
  • ensure buttons, form fields and icons expose meaningful names, roles and values.
  • ensure the HTML lang attribute matches the language of each page
  • provide clear instructions expected formats and examples before users complete complex fields
  • clearly announce successful submissions and identify incomplete or invalid fields
  • fix broken links inaccessible controls, inconsistent page behaviour and submission failures
  • increase the contrast of chatbot text, links and status indicators
  • ensure tables can be viewed without horizontal scrolling at 400% zoom where applicable
  • add working "Skip to content" links and clickable page contents that navigate directly to sections
  • move keyboard focus to the beginning of newly loaded content after selecting Continue
  • provide a consistent visible focus indicator for all interactive elements
  • replace generic titles and ambiguous links with meaningful descriptions
  • allow users to reach declarations through menus, search and filtering
  • ensure hyperlinks clearly describe their destination without relying on surrounding text
  • explain why validation failed and how users can correct the information
  • ensure accessible names match visible labels to support speech recognition software
  • break long guidance into shorter sections, simplify language and provide progressive disclosure where appropriate
  • include glossaries, contextual help and worked examples for complex customs terminology
  • collapse Advanced Filters by default and clearly separate them from Quick Filters
  • add search-as-you-type for countries, customs offices and procedure codes

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 3 July 2026.

This website was last tested between 18 and 23 June 2026 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard.

The test was carried out by Passion4Social CIC. The declaration journey, some guidance pages and the chatbot where tested with both manual and automated tests.