By David Stan, Brands Manager at China Clothing Manufacturer. Published October 2026.
Importing clothing from China to the UK means four things: a GB EORI number, the right commodity code, customs duty (12% on the common cotton garment codes we checked) and 20% import VAT on top. Postponed VAT accounting lets VAT-registered businesses deal with that VAT on their return instead of paying it at the border.
This is the UK version of our import guide, written for clothing brands. Every rate and rule below comes from GOV.UK, HMRC or the UK Trade Tariff, and was checked on 22 October 2026. Rates change, so check the live tariff for your own code before you order.
Note: China Clothing Manufacturer is a group of documented clothing factories in China, producing for brands from 100 units. Rates and rules in this guide come from GOV.UK, HMRC and the UK Trade Tariff; it is general guidance, not tax advice. We confirm exact MOQ and price with the factory when you send a brief.
Key takeaways
- You need an EORI number starting with GB to import into Great Britain. Most are issued immediately.
- Clothing sits in tariff chapters 61 (knitted) and 62 (woven). The cotton T-shirt, sweatshirt, jeans and dress codes we checked all carry 12% duty from China.
- Import VAT is 20% of the customs value plus duty. VAT-registered importers can use postponed VAT accounting.
- Consignments of £135 or less have VAT charged at the point of sale, and currently no customs duty. HMRC plans to remove that duty relief by October 2028 at the latest.
- Textiles sold in Great Britain must show fibre content on the label.
- Published sea transit from Shanghai to Felixstowe is 34 days in a full container; air is typically 4–7 days.
Do You Need an EORI Number?
Yes. GOV.UK says you need an Economic Operators Registration and Identification number that starts with GB to import goods into England, Wales or Scotland (GOV.UK). Without one, your customs agent can't make a declaration in your name, and the goods sit at the port.
You apply online with your Unique Taxpayer Reference, business start date, SIC code and VAT or National Insurance details. HMRC says you'll usually get the number immediately, unless it needs to make checks, in which case it can take up to five working days (GOV.UK). Apply before your first shipment leaves China, not when it lands.
Northern Ireland follows different rules, so this guide covers Great Britain only.
Which Commodity Codes Cover Clothing?
Clothing is in two chapters of the UK Trade Tariff. Chapter 61 covers knitted or crocheted garments, such as T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies and jersey dresses. Chapter 62 covers garments that aren't knitted, meaning woven fabrics like denim, poplin and twill. The same "shirt" can sit in either chapter depending on how its fabric was made.
Within each chapter, the code turns on garment type, fibre content and sometimes gender. A men's cotton jersey T-shirt and a women's polyester woven blouse land in different headings with different codes. The 10-digit code is what your customs agent declares, and it sets your duty rate.
| Garment | Commodity code | Chapter | Third-country duty |
|---|---|---|---|
| T-shirts, of cotton | 6109 10 00 10 | 61 (knitted) | 12% |
| Jerseys, sweatshirts and similar, of cotton, men's or boys' | 6110 20 91 00 | 61 (knitted) | 12% |
| Women's dresses, knitted, of cotton | 6104 42 00 00 | 61 (knitted) | 12% |
| Men's trousers, of cotton denim (jeans) | 6203 42 31 00 | 62 (woven) | 12% |
Source: UK Trade Tariff, third-country duty for each code, checked 22 October 2026. Examples only; classify your own product.
Don't pick a code from a table like this one and declare it. Give your customs agent a full description, such as "men's knitted T-shirt, 100% cotton single jersey, short sleeve", and let them confirm the code. If you're still developing the product, our T-shirt and hoodie production pages explain the fabric choices that decide which heading applies.
Citation Capsule: In the UK Trade Tariff, knitted or crocheted clothing falls under chapter 61 and clothing that isn't knitted falls under chapter 62. On 22 October 2026, cotton T-shirts (6109100010), men's cotton sweatshirts (6110209100), women's knitted cotton dresses (6104420000) and men's cotton denim jeans (6203423100) all carried a 12% third-country duty rate.
How Much Duty Do You Pay on Clothing From China?
On the four common cotton garment codes above, 12% of the customs value. That's the UK Global Tariff third-country rate, and it has applied to those codes since 1 January 2021, according to the UK Trade Tariff. China has no preferential rate under a UK trade agreement or the Developing Countries Trading Scheme, so the full third-country rate applies.
GOV.UK's guidance on the Developing Countries Trading Scheme lists the eligible countries by tier, and China isn't among them (GOV.UK). We also found no additional or trade-remedy duty on these codes for goods from China when we checked.
What the 12% is charged on
Duty is charged on the customs value, not on the factory price alone. GOV.UK says you include transport and insurance costs up to the place where the goods enter the UK border (GOV.UK). In practice that's close to a CIF value: goods, plus freight and insurance to the UK port or airport.
UK terminal charges and demurrage after arrival can be left out if they're charged separately. So a FOB price from your factory isn't the number duty is calculated on. Add the international freight and insurance first.
Try it free: pressure-test your landed cost with the China production cost calculator. 60 seconds, no email required.
How Does Import VAT Work?
Import VAT is charged at the same rate as on a UK sale of the same goods, which for most clothing is the 20% standard rate (GOV.UK VAT rates; VAT Notice 700). It's charged on the customs value plus the duty, plus incidental costs such as transport and insurance up to the first destination in the UK (GOV.UK).
One exception matters for kidswear: young children's clothing can be zero-rated if it's designed for young children and suitable only for them, under the conditions in VAT Notice 714. The UK Trade Tariff lists both a 20% and a zero-rate VAT line on the clothing codes above.
Postponed VAT accounting
If your business is VAT-registered in the UK, you can use postponed VAT accounting (PVA). Instead of paying import VAT at the border and reclaiming it later, you declare and recover it on the same VAT return. GOV.UK says you don't need approval to use it (GOV.UK).
Each import then appears on a monthly postponed import VAT statement, usually available by the 10th working day of the following month. HMRC says you must download and keep a copy of each statement, and statements can only be viewed online for six months (GOV.UK). Tell your customs agent you're using PVA before the goods arrive, or they may pay the VAT and bill you for it.
Citation Capsule: Import VAT in the UK is charged at the same rate as a domestic sale, 20% for most clothing, on the customs value plus duty and incidental costs to the first UK destination. UK VAT-registered businesses can use postponed VAT accounting to declare and recover import VAT on the same VAT return, without prior approval.
What Is the £135 Rule?
It's a VAT rule for low-value consignments sold direct to UK customers. For consignments worth £135 or less, VAT isn't collected at import. Instead, the overseas seller charges UK VAT at the point of sale (GOV.UK). If the sale goes through an online marketplace, the marketplace must charge and account for the VAT (GOV.UK).
The £135 limit applies to the value of the whole consignment, not each item. Gifts and excise goods are excluded. Separately, there's no customs duty on non-excise goods worth £135 or less, and VAT isn't charged on gifts worth £39 or less (GOV.UK).
The duty relief is going
HMRC published a policy paper on 13 July 2026 confirming that the government announced at Budget 2025 the removal of the £135 low-value import relief, making these imports subject to customs duty. It's due to happen by October 2028 at the latest, on a date set by regulations (HMRC).
For a brand importing stock in bulk, the £135 rule rarely applies anyway, because a production shipment is worth far more. It matters if you plan to ship orders from China straight to UK customers. That model's cost advantage shrinks once customs duty applies to those parcels.
Who Makes the Customs Declaration?
You can do it yourself, but most brands hire a customs agent, also called a broker. GOV.UK says you can hire someone to deal with customs and transport for you, or do it yourself (GOV.UK). Declarations are made through HMRC's Customs Declaration Service, which needs software and a GB or XI EORI (GOV.UK).
How you appoint the agent decides who's liable. Under direct representation, the agent acts in your name and you are normally solely liable for the customs debt. Under indirect representation, the agent acts in their own name on your behalf, and you're jointly and severally liable (GOV.UK).
Either way, GOV.UK says you're still responsible for due diligence on your declarations (GOV.UK). That means giving the agent an accurate description, fibre content, value and origin. You also need to keep commercial invoices, customs paperwork and your import VAT certificate (C79) as records.
What Labelling Rules Apply to Clothing in the UK?
Fibre content is the one that's mandatory for every textile product. GOV.UK says the label must show the fibre content, including any fur or other animal parts, and that manufacturers and retailers are responsible for complying (GOV.UK). The rules come from the Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012 (legislation.gov.uk).
Get the composition onto the sewn-in label at the factory. Relabelling in a UK warehouse is slow and expensive, and goods without correct fibre labels can't be sold. Use the standard fibre names and percentages, and check them against the fabric supplier's test report rather than the sales sheet.
Product safety
All consumer products sold in the UK must be safe in normal or reasonably foreseeable use under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GOV.UK). For clothing, the usual problems are children's items. OPSS has recalled children's shorts because a free drawstring at the waist created an entrapment risk, finding them non-compliant with those regulations (OPSS).
Children's nightwear has its own rules. GOV.UK's industry guidance lists the Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985 (GOV.UK), and Business Companion explains the flammability testing and "KEEP AWAY FROM FIRE" labelling required (Business Companion).
UKCA or CE?
Ordinary fashion clothing doesn't carry a UKCA or CE mark. Those marks apply to products under specific regulations, and for clothing the usual one is personal protective equipment, such as high-visibility workwear or protective gloves. GOV.UK confirms the PPE Regulation is in scope and that Great Britain continues to recognise the CE marking alongside or instead of UKCA (GOV.UK).
Citation Capsule: Textile products sold in Great Britain must carry a label showing fibre content, under the Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012. Clothing must also be safe under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005, and children's nightwear must meet the Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985. UKCA or CE marking applies to clothing only when it's regulated, such as PPE.
Which Incoterm Should You Use?
Ask for FOB quotes from every factory so you can compare like for like, then choose how you want the goods delivered. GOV.UK summarises the Incoterms rules on its customs valuation pages (GOV.UK):
| Term | What the seller does | What you do | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| FOB | Delivers on board the vessel you nominate at the named Chinese port | Sea freight, insurance, UK clearance, duty, VAT, delivery | Best for comparing factories |
| DAP | Bears the risks of getting the goods to the named UK place | Customs clearance, duty and VAT | You're still the importer; you need an EORI and agent |
| DDP | Bears all costs and risks to the destination, including duties | Unloading and receiving | Ask who is the importer and who reclaims the VAT |
Structural guidance based on GOV.UK's Incoterms summary. Confirm the term and named place in writing on every order.
DDP looks simple, but it hides the duty and VAT inside a single price you can't check. It also raises a VAT question: HMRC's VAT Notice 700 says traders not registered for UK VAT can't use postponed VAT accounting. If a Chinese seller or its forwarder is the importer, the import VAT may not be recoverable by you, and it ends up in your cost.
How Long Does Shipping From China to the UK Take?
By sea, roughly five to seven weeks port to port on published examples. Shipa Freight, Agility's digital forwarder, lists full-container transit of 34 days from Shanghai to Felixstowe, 33 days from Shanghai to Southampton and 41 days from Ningbo to Felixstowe. By air, it gives typical transit of four to seven days (Shipa Freight).
Those are port-to-port or airport-to-airport times. Add trucking to the Chinese port, export clearance, UK customs clearance and delivery to your warehouse. The forwarder notes that transit time depends on the ports of loading and discharge; its full-container examples from Guangzhou or Qingdao run 40 to 46 days.
| Lane | Mode | Published transit |
|---|---|---|
| Shanghai → Felixstowe | Sea, FCL | 34 days |
| Shanghai → Southampton | Sea, FCL | 33 days |
| Ningbo → Felixstowe | Sea, FCL / LCL | 41 / 33 days |
| Shekou (Shenzhen) → London Gateway | Sea, FCL | 38 days |
| Shenzhen → London Heathrow | Air | 4 days |
| Shanghai → Manchester | Air | 5 days |
Source: Shipa Freight (Agility), example transit times, checked 22 October 2026. Courier services suit samples and pre-production pieces.
What Does a Landed Cost Example Look Like?
Here's how the cited rates stack on a hypothetical consignment of cotton T-shirts with a customs value of £10,000, meaning goods plus freight and insurance to the UK border. The goods value is illustrative, not a price quote. The rates are the ones checked above.
| Line | Basis | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Customs value | Goods + freight + insurance to UK border | £10,000 |
| Customs duty | 12% × £10,000 (code 6109100010) | £1,200 |
| VAT value | £10,000 + £1,200 duty | £11,200 |
| Import VAT | 20% × £11,200 | £2,240 |
| Total tax at import | Duty + VAT | £3,440 |
Illustration using UK Trade Tariff and GOV.UK rates checked 22 October 2026. Incidental costs to the first UK destination would be added to the VAT value. Agent fees, port charges and UK delivery are extra.
The duty, £1,200, is a real cost. The import VAT, £2,240, is usually recoverable for a VAT-registered brand, and with postponed VAT accounting it never leaves your bank account at the border. That's why PVA matters for cash flow even though it doesn't change the tax.
What Are the Most Common Mistakes?
Most problems start before the goods leave China. They come from vague paperwork, a wrong assumption about who the importer is, or labels sewn in without the right information. Each is cheaper to fix at the factory than at Felixstowe.
- No EORI when the goods land. Apply before the shipment leaves.
- Guessing the commodity code. Knitted and woven versions of the same garment sit in different chapters.
- Calculating duty on the FOB price. The customs value includes freight and insurance to the UK border.
- Paying import VAT at the border when PVA was available. Tell your agent in advance.
- Accepting DDP without asking who the importer is, and losing the VAT recovery.
- Missing fibre labels, or composition copied from a sales sheet.
- Planning on port-to-port sea time and forgetting trucking, clearance and delivery.
Before your first UK shipment
- Get a GB EORI number.
- Have a customs agent confirm the 10-digit code from a full product description.
- Check the live third-country duty for that code on the UK Trade Tariff.
- Set up postponed VAT accounting if you're VAT-registered, and tell your agent.
- Agree FOB with the factory and book freight yourself, or get DDP terms in writing with the importer named.
- Approve the sewn-in fibre label before bulk production.
These take a few hours before the order. After the goods are held, each one takes days.
Conclusion
Importing clothing from China to the UK is mostly paperwork done early. Get the EORI, get the code right, budget 12% duty on the common cotton codes, and use postponed VAT accounting so the 20% import VAT doesn't tie up your cash.
The rules most likely to change are on low-value parcels, with the £135 duty relief due to go by October 2028. For bulk production orders, the core of the system is stable. Check the live tariff for your code, keep your records, and put the fibre label on at the factory.
We are a group of documented clothing factories in China, producing for brands from 100 units. Tell us the product and the UK as your destination, and we'll place the brief with the factory in our group built for it and flag what your customs agent will need. Flat fees, no factory commissions.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is import duty on clothing from China to the UK?
It depends on the commodity code. On 22 October 2026, the UK Trade Tariff showed 12% third-country duty on cotton T-shirts, men's cotton sweatshirts, women's knitted cotton dresses and men's cotton jeans. China has no preferential rate, so the full rate applies. Check your own code before ordering.
Do I pay VAT on clothing imported from China?
Yes, import VAT at 20% for most clothing, charged on the customs value plus duty and incidental costs to the first UK destination. Young children's clothing can be zero-rated. VAT-registered businesses can use postponed VAT accounting to declare and recover it on the same VAT return.
Do I need an EORI number to import from China?
Yes. You need an EORI number starting with GB to import into England, Wales or Scotland. You apply online through GOV.UK, and HMRC usually issues it immediately, or within five working days if it needs to make checks.
What is the £135 rule for imports?
For consignments worth £135 or less sold direct to UK customers, VAT is charged at the point of sale by the seller or online marketplace instead of at import, and there's currently no customs duty on non-excise goods. HMRC plans to remove that duty relief by October 2028 at the latest.
How long does shipping from China to the UK take?
Shipa Freight publishes example full-container sea times of 34 days from Shanghai to Felixstowe and 41 days from Ningbo to Felixstowe, and typical air transit of four to seven days. Those are port-to-port times, so add origin trucking, clearance and UK delivery.
Editorial note: all company names and trademarks referenced here are the property of their respective owners. Rates and rules come from GOV.UK, HMRC and the UK Trade Tariff and were checked on 22 October 2026. They change, so confirm your own commodity code and rate with a customs agent before you commit. This is general guidance, not legal or tax advice.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Import goods into the UK: GB EORI requirement, using an agent, record keeping.
- GOV.UK: Apply for an EORI number: issued immediately or within 5 working days.
- UK Trade Tariff: codes 6109100010, 6110209100, 6104420000, 6203423100; 12% third-country duty.
- GOV.UK: DCTS preference tiers: China not an eligible country.
- GOV.UK: Delivery costs in the customs value: costs up to the UK border.
- GOV.UK: VAT rates: 20% standard rate.
- HMRC VAT Notice 700: import VAT rate; PVA not available to non-UK VAT-registered traders.
- GOV.UK: Working out the VAT value: customs value plus duty and incidental costs.
- HMRC VAT Notice 714: zero rate for young children's clothing.
- GOV.UK: Postponed VAT accounting: eligibility, no approval needed.
- GOV.UK: Postponed import VAT statements: monthly statements, six-month availability.
- GOV.UK: Overseas goods sold direct to UK customers: £135 point-of-sale VAT.
- GOV.UK: Online marketplaces: marketplace accounts for VAT.
- GOV.UK: Tax and duty on goods sent from abroad: no duty at £135 or less; £39 gift limit.
- HMRC policy paper (13 July 2026): removal of £135 duty relief by October 2028.
- GOV.UK: Customs Declaration Service: making declarations.
- GOV.UK: Customs debt liability: direct and indirect representation.
- GOV.UK: Appoint someone to deal with customs: importer's due diligence.
- GOV.UK: Textile labelling: fibre content on labels.
- legislation.gov.uk: Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012.
- GOV.UK: General Product Safety Regulations 2005.
- OPSS product recall: children's shorts with a free waist drawstring.
- GOV.UK: Product safety A to Z: Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985.
- Business Companion: nightwear flammability and labelling.
- GOV.UK: UKCA or CE marked products: continued CE recognition in Great Britain.
- GOV.UK: Incoterms: FOB, DAP and DDP.
- Shipa Freight (Agility): example China to UK sea and air transit times.
Related Reading
- Clothing Suppliers in China: How to Find and Vet a Factory
- China Sourcing Agent vs Working Direct With the Factory
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