Airbus Operations Limited, the UK division of the European aerospace manufacturer, has agreed to pay £6.4m to HM Revenue and Customs following breaches of the country’s export control regulations. The company self-reported violations that took place before November 2022 and cooperated fully with HMRC’s investigation.
The settlement addresses multiple failures in record-keeping and regulatory compliance related to the export and transfer of controlled technology. Specifically, HMRC found that Airbus did not maintain accurate records of transfers under three open general export licences, failed to keep required registers for such licences, breached conditions on another licence, and violated terms on a standard individual export licence. Open general export licences are pre-approved authorizations for multiple shipments of goods deemed low-risk, while individual export licences require specific government approval for named end-users.
The £6.4m payment represents the largest out-of-court settlement HMRC has obtained for strategic export violations, exceeding previous enforcement actions by a significant margin. The fine is more than ten times larger than a settlement with Petrofac, an energy company division based in Aberdeen, which paid approximately £569,100 last month for breaching Russia sanctions regulations.
Edwige Hill, deputy director of HMRC’s fraud investigation service, emphasized the importance of compliance with the UK’s export control licensing framework, which aims to prevent military equipment and materials for weapons programs from reaching unauthorized destinations or sanctioned entities. Nigel Kushner, a sanctions lawyer and chief executive of W Legal, characterized the enforcement action as a significant warning for UK exporters, noting that possessing licenses is insufficient without strict adherence to record-keeping and register requirements.
Airbus, a cornerstone of European defence capabilities involved in major military programs including the Eurofighter Typhoon and A400M aircraft, stated that it has implemented remediation measures and considers the matter fully resolved. The company previously paid £3bn in penalties in 2020 following admissions of systematic bribery across multiple countries.
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