Can I really ask my future wife to sign a pre-nup?

I am getting married for the second time and want to protect my business and a substantial inheritance from my parents that I want my children to have. How far will a pre-nup protect my position without setting our marriage off on the wrong footing? I am British and my wife-to-be is American. We plan to spend half our year in each country.

Jennifer Dickson, family law partner at Withers, says it is sensible to plan ahead. Done in the right way, a prenuptial agreement can go a long way to protect your business and inheritance from a potential divorce later down the line.

Although pre-nups and postnups are not yet legally binding in England and Wales, they can be highly influential if certain conditions are met. The golden rule is that the court will give effect to a nuptial agreement that is entered into freely by each party with a full appreciation of its implications unless in the circumstances prevailing, it would not be fair to hold the parties to that agreement.

A well-drafted pre-nup can help ringfence premarital wealth and assets received during the marriage. Fairness is key, and care will need to be taken to ensure that enforcing it would not leave your fiancée in a predicament of need.

Talking about having a pre-nup can be challenging, but there are steps you can take to prepare for a positive discussion. I suggest speaking to your fiancée sooner rather than later — getting her gradually used to the idea over time can help, and it can take anything from a few weeks to several months to finalise an agreement, which ideally should be signed 28 days or more before the wedding.

Your first concern may be to avoid upsetting your partner. In my experience, being clear and straightforward is the kindest approach. Many people accept it as fair that wealth acquired before a marriage, inherited from family or earmarked as an inheritance for children from a first marriage should be ringfenced.

Next, you will each need independent legal advice. Look for a lawyer with strong experience in international nuptial agreements. The laws on pre-nups vary between different US states, so you will need to understand the position in the state in which you intend to base yourselves.

Your lawyers will help you create the right style of agreement for you both. As part of the process, you will each need to be clear and open about your respective financial positions — your fiancée will need to understand what it is she is giving up by signing the agreement. Any agreement will be tailored to take account of your individual circumstances and plans.

It would also be wise to update your will as any existing will is automatically invalidated by marriage.

Pre-nups are not for everyone, but if drafted well and the terms are fair, a pre-nup could help you to achieve the level of certainty you are seeking, for you, your children, your business and your fiancée.

What will new imports system mean for my business?

I run a clothing business which has grown steadily since I started it in August 2016. I rely on purchasing stock from overseas and understand that importers will not be able to use the customs handling of import and export freight (Chief) system from October 1, and will instead need to register for the new customs declarations service (CDS). I would be grateful if someone could explain what this involves and the consequences of this change.

Glyn Woodhouse, VAT partner at accountancy and business advisory firm BDO, says the Chief system has been running for almost 30 years and was designed to process paper customs declarations. HM Revenue & Customs recognised the need for a digital declaration system which will improve their audit capabilities. That system is the customs declaration service. All imports must be declared using CDS from October 1 and exports from April 1 2023.

Importers should try to register in plenty of time, but BDO’s research shows that nearly half of all importers still have work to do, which could delay their imports if their accounts are not active by October 1. Unfortunately, you cannot delegate registration for CDS to your customs broker or freight forwarder.

In order to register for CDS you will first need a government gateway ID and password, applied for using your economic operator registration and identification (EORI) number and unique taxpayer reference (UTR) or National Insurance number if a sole trader. Once you have a government gateway account you can then register for CDS. HMRC has provided some really useful “how to” videos to assist.

Once your CDS account is activated you can decide how to pay any import duties owed. There is a new cash facility, which you can make payment against by bank transfer or card. This is useful for importers with less frequent imports and smaller amounts of duties owed. Alternatively, you can still operate a duty deferment account (a credit facility offered by HMRC which enables the payment of duties owed after a month end, thus enhancing cash flow).

If you do hold your own duty deferment account you will need a new CDS direct debt instruction. If you wish to give your customs broker or freight forwarder access, then you will need to authorise them to use it within the CDS system. You should, however, leave your Chief direct debit active until no further taxes are deferred. Don’t cancel this or your October payments will not be processed, which will create compliance issues.

Registering for CDS is just the start of your journey and there are important differences that your tax and logistics teams need to be aware of. Chief requires 68 data inputs but the CDS will need 91 items of information. You will need to provide these to your customs broker and draw up a new clearance instruction. These changes are likely to need consideration, particularly around customs valuation, related party purchases and price adjustments.

The opinions in this column are intended for general information purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional advice. The Financial Times Ltd and the authors are not responsible for any direct or indirect result arising from any reliance placed on replies, including any loss, and exclude liability to the full extent.