Import tax from China to the UK: calculator and guide

Most UK online sellers who import buy from China, and most are surprised by the first landed cost. The supplier invoice is only the start: customs duty, import VAT and freight all go on top, and the way you ship changes all three.

Use the calculator above to compare sea, air and express for your own order. This guide explains what each figure means, where the numbers come from and how to bring the total down.

How import tax from China is calculated

There are two taxes on most goods arriving from China: customs duty and import VAT. They’re worked out in order, because VAT is charged on the duty as well.

1. Customs value. This is the price you paid the supplier plus the cost of getting the goods to the UK border: freight, insurance, loading and handling, terminal charges and carrier surcharges. GOV.UK sets out what’s included in delivery costs to include in the customs value. Costs after the goods arrive, such as UK delivery, are left out if they’re shown separately.

2. Customs duty. The customs value multiplied by the duty rate for your goods’ commodity code.

3. Import VAT. Charged on the customs value plus the duty, plus costs such as transport and handling up to the goods’ first destination in the UK, according to GOV.UK’s guidance on the VAT value of imports. The standard rate is 20%.

Invoices in US dollars or yuan are converted at HMRC’s monthly customs exchange rate, not your bank’s rate. For October 2026 that’s $1.3456 per £1 (HMRC exchange rates).

Duty rates on common goods from China

The UK has no trade agreement with China, so goods made there pay the standard third-country rate in the UK Global Tariff. Rates vary widely by product:

Source: UK Trade Tariff, checked 12 October 2026. Always check your exact 10-digit code.

Watch for extra duties. Some Chinese-made goods carry anti-dumping or countervailing duties on top of the normal rate. For pedal-assist e-bikes, the UK Trade Tariff lists anti-dumping duty of up to 62.1% and countervailing duty of up to 17.2%, depending on the manufacturer. Look for these measures on the tariff page for your code before you place an order.

Air freight vs sea freight from China

How you ship sets your transit time and your freight bill, and the freight bill feeds straight into duty and VAT.

Source: Freightos route estimates, Shanghai to Felixstowe, checked 12 October 2026.

Two things move these numbers in 2026:

• The Red Sea. Since early 2024 most Asia to Europe sailings have gone round the Cape of Good Hope, which adds roughly 10 to 14 days compared with the Suez Canal. Carriers were gradually returning to the Red Sea in October 2026, which could shorten sea transit times.
• Rates. On 6 October 2026, Freightos reported China to North Europe ocean rates at $3,260 per 40ft container and China to Europe air cargo at $3.83 per kg. Those are base spot rates; the prices you’re quoted add origin charges, surcharges and handling, which is why the calculator uses Freightos’s fuller route estimates.

Air freight is charged on chargeable weight

Airlines charge on the greater of actual weight and volumetric weight, normally 167 kg per cubic metre for air freight and around 200 kg per cubic metre for express. Bulky, light products such as cushions or plastic homeware are expensive to fly; dense, small products such as phone accessories fly far more cheaply.

When a full container beats a shared one

LCL is priced per cubic metre, so it gets expensive as the order grows. With the calculator’s estimates, a full 40ft container works out cheaper than LCL from about 20 CBM. Below that, you’re usually paying for space you don’t use.

Worked example: one order, four ways to ship

A VAT-registered seller orders 500 units for US$5,000 (about £3,716 at HMRC’s October rate). The shipment weighs 300 kg, measures 2 CBM and has a 6% duty rate. UK delivery after arrival costs £150.

Illustrative figures from the calculator’s default estimates. Your quotes will differ.

What this shows:

• LCL is cheapest for an order this size, at £9.51 a unit.
• Air costs about £2.20 more per unit but lands roughly seven weeks sooner. If the stock would sell out while a ship is at sea, that can be worth paying.
• A full container is the wrong choice at 2 CBM. You’d pay for 60 CBM of space.
• Freight raises duty too. Express adds £231 of duty compared with LCL on the same goods, purely because the freight is in the customs value.

If you’re not VAT-registered, import VAT becomes a real cost. The same LCL shipment would land at about £11.42 per unit.

Orders worth £135 or less

No customs duty is charged on non-excise goods in a consignment worth £135 or less (GOV.UK). VAT still applies, but it isn’t collected at the border. Online marketplaces and overseas sellers charge it at the point of sale, and VAT-registered businesses buying stock usually account for it on their own VAT return.

That relief is due to end. The government has announced it will remove the £135 customs duty relief for low-value imports, and our timeline of upcoming tax changes tracks the date. If you rely on small parcels from China or drop-ship to customers, budget for duty on them.

How to reduce import tax from China, legally

1. Get the commodity code right. The code sets the duty rate, and similar products can sit under codes with very different rates. You’re responsible for the code your forwarder uses, even though they submit the declaration. Our guide to calculating UK import duty explains how to check it.
2. Use postponed VAT accounting. If you’re VAT-registered, postponed VAT accounting lets you declare and reclaim import VAT on the same return, so it never leaves your bank account.
3. Ship by sea when you can plan ahead. For most products, sea freight keeps both the freight and the duty on it down. Save air for stock that would otherwise run out.
4. Consolidate orders. A few larger shipments usually cost less per unit than many small ones, and they reach the point where a full container makes sense sooner.
5. Check Incoterms. Buying FOB (free on board) lets you choose the freight and see what it costs. Under DDP (delivered duty paid), the supplier handles duty, but you can’t always see what you’ve paid for.
6. Keep the C79 or PVA statements. Without them you can’t prove the import VAT you reclaim.

Getting your landed costs into the accounts

Duty and freight belong in the cost of each unit, not in a general overheads line. If they’re not, your margin per product looks better than it is, and you might price a product that loses money on every sale.

Our import and landed cost accounting service allocates duty, freight and import VAT to each shipment and each SKU, so the margin in your accounts is the margin you actually make. To check a single shipment in more detail, use our UK import duty calculator, or book a discovery call to talk it through.