British companies exporting to the EU will face a blizzard of red tape if there is no Brexit deal, and should consider hiring customs agents to help them deal with it, the government said on Thursday.

In a series of technical notices on the consequences of a no-deal Brexit, the UK’s Department for Exiting the EU said trade with the bloc would revert to “non-preferential, World Trade Organization terms”.

It added that exporters should think about engaging “the services of a customs broker, freight forwarder or logistics provider to help, or alternatively secure the appropriate software and authorisations”.