Corridor 6 · recorded data
United Kingdom → Türkiye
Groupage road freight from the United Kingdom to Türkiye takes 8.8 days on average, calculated from 96 shipments recorded in our operating system. The paperwork differs from every EU lane we run: since Brexit the UK is outside the EU–Türkiye customs union, so trade runs under the UK–Türkiye free trade agreement and goods travel with a proof of origin rather than an A.TR certificate.
Recorded shipments
96
1.0% of all recorded corridors
Average transit
8.8days
Mean across recorded shipments
Fastest record
3days
Shortest measured time
Longest record
22days
Exceptional case — not a typical value
Data as at 4 July 2026
What the UK lane measures
Our system holds 96 recorded shipments between the United Kingdom and Türkiye. Average transit is 8.8 days, the fastest record 3 days, the longest 22 days.
That puts it among the slower lanes we run — slower than Germany at 6.0 days, despite Germany being no closer in any meaningful sense. The explanation is not the road.
The paperwork is genuinely different here
Every other European lane on this site runs inside the EU–Türkiye customs union. The United Kingdom does not, and that single fact changes the document set.
Since Brexit, trade between the UK and Türkiye runs under a bilateral free trade agreement, signed on 29 December 2020, applied from 1 January 2021 and in force since 20 April 2021. A free trade agreement is not a customs union, and the difference is not academic:
- Under a customs union, goods in free circulation travel with an A.TR certificate. Where they were manufactured is beside the point.
- Under a free trade agreement, preference depends on origin. The goods have to qualify under the agreement’s rules of origin, and that has to be proven — with an EUR.1 movement certificate or an invoice declaration.
Consignments valued up to EUR 6,000 can travel on an invoice declaration made out by any exporter. Above that, only an approved exporter may issue one; otherwise EUR.1 is required.
Why this costs days, not kilometres
An origin-based regime asks more of the file. Someone has to establish that the goods meet the rules of origin, and the declaration has to match the invoice and the transport document. When that work happens after loading rather than before, the consignment waits.
In groupage the waiting is not confined to one consignment. Your goods share a trailer, and a file that is short one document holds the vehicle. That is the practical reason we check the origin paperwork before the consignment is loaded — and it is why a lane with heavier formalities shows up in the data as slower.
Transport and customs in one organisation
General Gümrük Müş. Ltd. — the customs brokerage in our group — prepares the declarations for the same shipment file that the transport side works from. On a lane where the origin question decides whether preference applies at all, that is worth more than on a customs-union route.
For how the customs union works on the EU lanes, see the customs guide. For every corridor we record, see the corridor overview.
Sources
The customs and trade-agreement statements on this page come from the official sources below. The transit figures are our own measurements.
- 01Republic of Türkiye, Ministry of Trade — Free Trade Agreement with the United Kingdom (signed 29.12.2020, applied from 1.1.2021, in force 20 April 2021)2026
- 02Republic of Türkiye, Ministry of Trade — Origin of goods: A.TR proves free circulation, EUR.1 proves origin; invoice declaration thresholds2026
- 03GOV.UK — UK–Türkiye trade agreement2026
Process
How a shipment moves
Five steps from collection to delivery. Every status change is logged as a record — the transit times on this page are calculated from those records.
- 01
Collection
Your consignment is picked up on the Italian domestic leg or at a European departure point.
- 02
Terminal consolidation
The vehicle is filled at one of our five terminals — this is where waiting time is cut.
- 03
Departure and transit
The vehicle sets off. Every status change is written to the system as a record.
- 04
Customs clearance
Declarations and documentation are handled by our own group company.
- 05
Delivery
Delivered door to door, and the file is closed.
Frequently asked questions
How long does road freight from the UK to Türkiye take?
The average is 8.8 days, calculated from 96 recorded shipments. The fastest took 3 days, the longest 22 days. For planning, work with 7 to 11 days.
Does the A.TR certificate apply to shipments from the UK?
No. A.TR is a document of the EU–Türkiye customs union, and the United Kingdom left it. Trade between the UK and Türkiye runs under the free trade agreement signed on 29 December 2020, applied from 1 January 2021 and in force since 20 April 2021. Preference on that agreement is claimed with a proof of origin — an EUR.1 movement certificate or an invoice declaration — not with A.TR.
What is the difference between A.TR and EUR.1?
They prove different things. A.TR certifies that goods are in free circulation within the EU–Türkiye customs union; it says nothing about where they were made. EUR.1 certifies origin — that the goods actually qualify under the rules of the relevant agreement. On the UK lane, origin is what matters.
Can I use an invoice declaration instead of EUR.1?
For consignments up to EUR 6,000 in value, any exporter may make out an invoice declaration. Above that threshold, only an approved exporter may do so — otherwise an EUR.1 certificate is required. Which route is right for your consignment is something our customs brokerage confirms before loading.
Why is this lane slower than the German one?
Two reasons, and neither is distance alone. A Channel crossing sits in the middle of the route, and the customs formalities are heavier: an origin-based agreement asks more of the paperwork than free circulation under a customs union does. Both add days at the margins rather than on the road.
All lanes
Other corridors
Every recorded lane with shipment count and measured transit times.
| Corridor | Shipments | Average transit | Fastest record | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Italy → Türkiye | 8,511 | 6.3 days | 1 days | 85.2% |
| Germany → Türkiye | 477 | 6.0 days | 2 days | 4.8% |
| Spain → Türkiye | 292 | 9.9 days | 3 days | 2.9% |
| Netherlands → Türkiye | 132 | 7.1 days | 2 days | 1.3% |
| France → Türkiye | 118 | 9.6 days | 3 days | 1.2% |
| United Kingdom → Türkiyethis page | 96 | 8.8 days | 3 days | 1.0% |
| Türkiye → Italy | 95 | 12.2 days | 3 days | 1.0% |
| Poland → Türkiye | 56 | 5.7 days | — | 0.6% |
| Belgium → Türkiye | 54 | 7.6 days | 3 days | 0.5% |
| Greece → Türkiye | 50 | 3.9 days | 2 days | 0.5% |
| Czechia → Türkiye | 43 | 5.5 days | 2 days | 0.4% |
| Austria → Türkiye | 25 | 6.2 days | 4 days | 0.3% |
| Portugal → Türkiye | 21 | 10.5 days | 5 days | 0.2% |
| Switzerland → Türkiye | 20 | 5.1 days | 4 days | 0.2% |
means the fastest recorded value on that lane is not plausible as a transit time (a shipment booked out on the day it was collected). We leave it out rather than publish a figure we cannot stand behind. The average and the slowest value are unaffected.
Data as at 4 July 2026
