How to export vacuum flasks from the UK to China

Agree the flask classification and sales route

Vacuum flasks and drinkware within HS 961700 cover vacuum vessels and their parts, excluding glass inners. The UK export line is 96170000; China uses 96170011, 96170019 and 96170090. Establish which line fits your goods and whether the buyer intends wholesale distribution or cross-border retail. GACC Decree 280 concerns overseas food manufacturers, so its food-manufacturer registration does not apply to these flasks. Have the importer’s customs broker confirm the requirements for the chosen product and route.

HMRC recorded £431k of UK goods exports to mainland China under HS 961700 in 2025 (2024: £233k, +84.9%). Exports to Hong Kong under the same codes were £39k. January to July 2026: £295k against £360k in the same months of 2025 (-18.1%).

Allow for Chinese duty and import VAT

Each of these Chinese tariff lines carries an 8% MFN rate. Duty adds to the importer’s landed cost and affects the price it can offer your brand.

The standard import VAT rate is 13%, subject to the statutory exceptions. VAT is calculated on the customs value plus customs duty plus any applicable consumption tax. The importer’s customs broker or adviser confirms whether consumption tax applies to these flasks. Include the border taxes when discussing the buyer’s landed cost and your export price.

Use cross-border retail for personal-use purchases

The cross-border retail import list includes 96170011 for glass-lined flasks, 96170019 for other flasks and 96170090 for other vacuum vessels and parts. Through bonded 1210 or direct 9610 channels, listed goods are supervised as personal-use articles. First-import licence, registration and filing requirements are not applied, except for goods from suspended epidemic areas or goods subject to emergency handling for major quality and safety risks.

The overseas cross-border business bears the main responsibility for product quality and safety. It must appoint a mainland-registered company to register with customs, declare truthfully and share civil liability. Build that arrangement into your retail route before accepting orders.

Before ordering, consumers must accept a risk notice covering origin-country standards, possible differences from Chinese standards, possible absence of Chinese labels and access to a Chinese electronic label online. Purchases are for personal use and cannot be resold. The limits are RMB 5,000 per transaction and RMB 26,000 annually per person; this route therefore cannot supply a distributor’s resale stock.

Prepare the UK shipment paperwork

For exports from England, Scotland or Wales, obtain a GB EORI and classify the flasks using the correct commodity code. The online export declaration needs the code, value, weight, packaging, destination, transport details, and invoice and packing list references. Give the carrier the invoice and any applicable export licences or certificates. Agree who will make the declaration before the shipment is booked.

Find and check the Chinese buyer

Check that the proposed buyer’s route matches its plans for the flasks: a distributor needs resale stock, while cross-border retail purchases are for personal use. 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.

Use our export-to-China service to arrange that work. Where needed, we prepare registration and label work with licensed partners in China. The importer of record and any required cross-border e-commerce agent remain licensed partners’ roles in China; your brand’s own filings remain yours.