Arrangement of the British border after Brexit will cost $6 billion.

The British government estimates that the cost of implementing border measures after Brexit will be at least 4.7 billion pounds ($6 billion) after repeated delays in introducing new rules.

This was announced on Monday by the parliamentary expenditure supervision body, reports "Evropeyska Pravda" with reference to Reuters.

Britain voted to leave the European Union in 2016, but the task of untangling supply chains and bringing down customs borders has been so massive that new rules were only put in place this year.

The first phase of the so-called new British Border Target Operating Model, which requires additional certification, came into effect on January 31.

The second phase began on April 30, introducing physical checks at ports. The third stage, which requires security declarations, is scheduled for October 31.

The National Audit Office (NAO) has said £4.7bn is the amount the government predicts it will spend on the 13 most important programs to manage the movement of goods across the border after Brexit and improve efficiency over the life of the programmes.

The government has delayed the introduction of full controls five times since the end of the transition period after leaving the EU on 31 December 2020.

This has caused uncertainty for businesses, added costs for government and ports and increased biosecurity risk for the UK, the NAO said.

"Repeated delays in implementing import controls and difficulties in forecasting needs led to government spending on infrastructure and personnel that ultimately proved unnecessary," the report said.

"Late policy announcements and uncertainty about the implementation of controls have also reduced the ability of businesses and ports to prepare for the changes."

The NAO said that although border processes had been "relatively smooth" since leaving the EU, businesses trading goods between Britain and the EU faced additional costs and administrative burdens.

The watchdog also criticized the government's UK Border Strategy 2025, which was published in 2020, saying it "lacks a clear timetable and an integrated cross-government implementation plan, with individual departments leading different aspects of implementation".

The government also needs a "more realistic approach" to digital transformation, the NAO said.