Can I buy a still from China for a UK hobby?
You can source a still from China, but check its intended use before ordering. Producing spirits for home drinking is excluded from HMRC's domestic-use exemption. Describe water or essential-oil distillation separately and ask HMRC about the exact process. Factory documents can be gathered by Cambridge China Bridge.
Describe the process before choosing the still
Write down what goes into the vessel, how it is heated and what you intend to collect. Distilling a fermented liquid for drinking spirits, distilling water and using steam to extract botanical oils are different proposed processes. A supplier's description of 'hobby equipment' does not answer the HMRC question.
State whether alcohol is present, added, produced or recovered at any stage. Explain whether the output is for private use, sharing or sale, and identify the proposed UK location. Use our product specification guide to turn that description into a factory brief.
Home drinking does not give a spirits exemption
HMRC's domestic-use exemption from alcoholic products producer approval excludes spirits. Planning to drink the spirits yourself therefore does not establish an exemption. HMRC says approval must be obtained before producing alcoholic products on approved premises.
Before buying equipment for spirit production, ask HMRC whether your proposed activity and premises can be approved and what the application would involve. Do not assume that calling the activity a hobby, using a small vessel or avoiding sales settles that question.
Explain water and essential-oil use separately
For water distillation, describe the feedwater and intended output. For essential oils, explain the botanical material, whether you use water or steam, and whether any alcohol or solvent is involved. Do not describe alcohol extraction or recovery simply as 'making essential oils'.
Ask HMRC to confirm the position for the actual process, including whether any approval or other excise requirement applies to keeping or using the proposed equipment. Avoid relying on a seller's claim that every water or oil still is exempt. Recheck before changing to an alcohol-related process.
Send HMRC a useful pre-order enquiry
HMRC provides an alcohol duties and producer approval enquiries contact. Find the official page named in the sources below and use its current contact details. Send the model description, photographs, vessel capacity, heating method, process description, intended output and proposed location.
Ask: 'For this equipment and intended use, do I need alcoholic products producer approval or any other HMRC permission? If so, what must be resolved before operation?' Request a written response and keep it with the quotation. Treat an enquiry response as advice to review, rather than assuming it is an approval.
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Check the ordered equipment as well
An HMRC enquiry addresses a different question from equipment safety and import checks. Our own-use import guide explains why keeping equipment for yourself does not create a blanket exemption. Use the certification guide for model-specific document checks.
Ask the factory for drawings, contact-material details, seal specifications, cleaning instructions, electrical information and its explanation of pressure control. Have a competent adviser review the proposed installation and operating conditions. Cambridge China Bridge's own staff in China can obtain documents and check the ordered configuration against your brief.
Frequently asked questions
Can I distil spirits at home if I do not sell them?
Not selling does not establish an exemption. HMRC's domestic-use exemption excludes spirits. Ask HMRC about approval for the exact proposed activity and premises before ordering.
Do I need HMRC approval for a water still?
Describe the water-only process and exact equipment to HMRC and ask whether any approval or excise requirement applies. Do not use a supplier's exemption claim as your conclusion.
Is an essential-oil still treated like a spirits still?
Explain the actual process: botanical material, water or steam, and any alcohol or solvent. Ask HMRC about that process, especially if alcohol is extracted or recovered.
What should I ask the Chinese still supplier for?
Request the exact model, drawings, capacity, heating method, contact materials, seals, cleaning instructions and available safety documents. Match these to the process described to HMRC.