How to export carpets from the UK to China

Start with the carpet’s material and construction

Carpets and rugs need product-level classification before you agree an import route with a Chinese buyer. Supply material and construction details for that discussion.

HMRC recorded £557k of UK goods exports to mainland China under 24 HS6 subheadings in 2025 (2024: £326k, +70.7%). Exports to Hong Kong under the same codes were £426k. January to July 2026: £205k against £177k in the same months of 2025 (+16.3%). These are UK exports under HS 5701-5705 (24 subheadings).

The largest listed UK export line was 57050030, covering other floor coverings of man-made textile materials, at £180k. That is a UK export-line total, not evidence of demand for your particular design. Choose an initial range whose fibre composition and construction you can describe clearly, and have the buyer’s customs broker confirm its Chinese classification and import requirements.

Price against the Chinese tariff line

The verified MFN rates are shown below. Duty and import VAT add to landed cost and shape the price your buyer can offer. The standard import VAT rate is 13%, subject to statutory exceptions; its base is customs value plus duty plus consumption tax. The importer’s customs adviser confirms the applicable VAT treatment and whether consumption tax applies to the carpet.

Check the textile standard against your range

GB 18401-2010, China’s National General Safety Technical Code for Textile Products, is listed as a current mandatory standard. Have the importer’s customs broker confirm its scope for the proposed carpet before treating an existing test report as sufficient. Give the buyer the fibre composition, construction details and available reports so the discussion concerns the actual product.

Prepare the UK export declaration

For exports from England, Scotland or Wales, you need a GB EORI and the correct commodity code. The online export declaration needs the value, weight, packaging, destination, transport and invoice and packing-list references. Keep these consistent with the carpet specification supplied to the buyer. The carrier needs the invoice and any applicable export licences or certificates.

Use cross-border retail only for listed lines

The cross-border retail import list covers only part of this range: 57032100, 57032900, 57050020 and 57050090. Listed goods using bonded 1210 or direct 9610 channels receive personal-use supervision, without first-import licence, registration or filing requirements, subject to epidemic-area suspensions and emergency risk handling. This route serves consumer purchases, not stock for resale.

The overseas business bears product quality and safety responsibility and must appoint a mainland-registered company for customs registration, truthful declarations and shared civil liability. Consumers must accept the prescribed risk notice before ordering, including possible standards differences and absent Chinese labels, with Chinese electronic labels available online. The limits are RMB 5,000 per transaction and RMB 26,000 annually per person.

Find and check a Chinese buyer before committing stock

Ask a prospective buyer which carpet lines it wants, which import route it will use and who will handle classification and customs requirements. Our own staff in China find and check Chinese importers and distributors for UK brands. If an importer has already approached you, our staff in China check that company before stock is sent or anything is signed.

We prepare registration and label work with licensed partners in China. The importer of record and, where required for the chosen route, the cross-border e-commerce agent remain licensed partners in China; your own filings remain yours. Discuss your range through our export-to-China service.