Senior Taxation Advisor - Customs

Tata Steel UK; Port Talbot; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Car or allowance

Pension scheme

Private health insurance

Annual bonus

35 days holidays

Job summary

Tata Steel UK is recruiting a Senior Customs Tax Advisor to lead the in-house customs compliance and trade regulation activities, with a focus on CBAM and duty optimisation.

Based at Port Talbot, the role partners with the senior leadership and HMRC, guiding IT projects, risk mitigation, and process improvements while developing a team of customs professionals.

Qualifications

• Exceptional communication skills with senior personnel, Board level experience advantageous.
• Experience in business forecasting related to taxation and complex financial analysis.
• Strong planning, organisation and project management skills.
• Leadership and delegation experience across teams and functions.
• Experience with customs systems such as CDS or SAP GTS and UK/EU trade regulations.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee all customs compliance and trade regulatory activities across the organisation.
• Provide advisory support for IT and transformation projects on customs matters.
• Ensure accurate tariff classification, valuation and origin determinations.
• Drive process improvements and automation in customs procedures and systems.
• Engage with HMRC, brokers, and internal stakeholders; mentor customs professionals.

Skills

Communication skills

Tax forecasting

Project management

Leadership

Customs systems

Education

Qualified tax accountant

Tools

CDS

SAP GTS

Job description

Job Title: Senior Taxation Advisor - Customs

Department: Finance

Location: Port Talbot

Salary: Competitive - Plus benefits to include car (or allowance), leading pension scheme, Private Health Insurance (Family Cover) plus annual bonus

Closing Date: Monday 31st August 2026

We believe that our strength is not just in our steel but the diversity of our workforce. Our people make the difference.

Both Tata Steel UK and its Finance function are undergoing an exciting period of change with a multi-billion investment in a new Electric Arc Furnace at Port Talbot to enable Tata Steel UK’s transition to being a low-CO2 steel producer.

Tata Steel is recruiting a Senior Tax Advisor for Customs to join a dynamic in-house tax team. This is a unique and exciting newly created position, supporting a multinational business and Tax team with customs and related taxes such as CBAM.

The role

The Senior Customs Advisor is responsible for leading and overseeing all customs compliance and trade regulatory activities across the organisation.

This role ensures adherence to international trade laws, optimises duty costs, mitigates risk, and provides strategic guidance on customs-related matters. The role requires significant advisory contribution for IT projects, acting as the subject matter expert and key advisor to the senior leadership team. The goal of this position is to contribute to the success of a high-profile customs transformation, working on multiple projects to achieve this.

The role entails collaboration with an experienced delivery team, to establish and optimise customs procedures whilst ensuring customs compliance. Review practises and provide guidance to the organisation for customs compliance, for origin, commodity codes, valuation and other customs specific regulations such as CBAM and quota management.

As a Senior Taxation Advisor you will also:

• Manage and support customs projects in alignment with regulations and best practises. Regulatory management of US,EU, and other global DDP imports and projects.
• Oversee day-to-day customs operations, responsible for compliance and adherence to HMRC authorisations for duty relief including imports, exports, and special procedures (e.g. authorised end use, simplified declarations, export licensing)
• Ensure accurate tariff classification, customs valuation, and origin determination.
• Drive continuous improvement in customs processes, systems, and automation
• Optimisation of business processes by identifying customs opportunities (e.g., Free Trade Agreements, bonded warehouses, quota management).
• Conduct internal investigations and customs audits to ensure adherence to regulations.
• Identify potential risks and manage environmental regulations such as CBAM, Plastic Tax for both the UK and the EU.
• Submitting CBAM returns in both UK and EU. Maintain up-to-date regulatory knowledge and implement necessary changes. Responsible for annual reporting of duties.
• Build strong relationships with HMRC, customs brokers, freight forwarders, and internal stakeholders acting as the escalation point for complex customs queries and disputes
• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of customs professionals
• Set objectives, manage performance, and support career development
• Foster a culture of compliance, accountability, and continuous improvement

What you’ll need

To be successful in this role you should be a qualified tax accountant with considerable relevant experience, possessing a strong track record in financial project management.

We are looking for someone who can demonstrate:

• Exceptional communication skills with senior personnel both internally and externally, including at Board level. You should have a proven ability to work across diverse cultures, with well-developed negotiating, influencing, networking, and presentation skills.
• Significant experience in business forecasting related to taxation, capable of complex top-level financial analysis and identifying fundamental issues in complex situations.
• A broad understanding of the wider implications of problems and issues, able to think beyond your specialist area and assess the impact of emerging developments.
• Well-developed planning, organisation, and project management skills, adept at managing deadlines, priorities, and resources.
• Good leadership and delegation skills, with a proven ability to lead within your area and across the business.
• Experience with customs systems (e.g. CDS, SAP GTS, or equivalent)
• Strong knowledge of UK customs regulations, international trade agreements, and customs procedures with extensive experience of customs software programs.

Ready to make a difference?

Please note: You may use AI tools to help prepare your application. However, all information must be accurate and based on your own experience. We value genuine, honest responses that reflect who you are.

What we can offer you

Tata Steel UK offers their employees significant benefits packages. For this role, you will benefit from:

• A market competitive salary
• 35 days holidays per annum
• Annual Pay Review
• Bonus Scheme – subject to business performance
• Private Healthcare Scheme (Family cover)
• One of the UK’s leading defined contribution pension schemes (10% employer contribution / 6% employee contribution)

The newly created role will report to Senior Customs Manager at the Tata Steel Port Talbot site. Although it is expected that the candidate will be able to work hybrid from home for part of the time, a minimum of 2 days a week in the office is required.

We also have an extensive list of lifestyle benefits including free onsite parking at all of our sites, an employee assistance programme as well as Employee discount scheme for companies including Vodafone, Jaguar Land Rover and also various local services.

Why us?

Tata Steel is one of the world’s top 10 steel producers. The combined group has an annual aggregate crude steel capacity of more than 33 million tonnes with approximately 80,000 employees across four continents. We’re part of the Tata Group, one of the largest, most diverse conglomerates in the world with businesses in the UK including Tata Steel, Jaguar Land Rover and Tetley Tea.

Sustainability is at the very heart of what we do and we are dedicated to managing our operations responsibly and to continuously improving our performance. Innovating for tomorrow, making a positive impact today.

To learn more about who we are and what we can offer our future employees, please click on the link to watch the following video: Tata Steel – A place you can thrive – YouTube