How to export medical dressings from the UK to China
Medical dressings regulated as medical devices need Chinese filing or registration before import, plus Chinese instructions and labels. The four Chinese tariff lines carry 5% MFN duty; import VAT adds to landed cost. Cambridge China Bridge’s own staff in China find and check Chinese importers and distributors for UK brands.
Establish the import route for your dressings
Medical dressings and wound care fall under HS6 300510 and 300590. For products regulated as medical devices, Chinese filing or registration must be completed before import. Confirm the product’s classification before agreeing a shipment. The largest UK export line was 30051000, adhesive dressings and other articles having an adhesive layer, at £12.4m; this is the whole tariff-line value, rather than sales of your particular dressing. For finished medicines, see our guide to exporting UK medicines to China. For the opposite trade direction, see sourcing medical gauze swabs.
HMRC recorded £12.8m of UK goods exports to mainland China under HS 300510, 300590 in 2025 (2024: £8.4m, +52.3%). Exports to Hong Kong under the same codes were £560k. January to July 2026: £8.6m against £7.9m in the same months of 2025 (+9.1%).
Build duty and VAT into the importer’s price
All four Chinese lines below have a 5% MFN rate. Import VAT is generally 13%, subject to the statutory exceptions, and is calculated on customs value plus customs duty plus any applicable consumption tax. These charges increase landed cost and shape the price an importer can offer. The importer’s customs broker confirms the exact line, applicable VAT treatment and whether consumption tax applies to the dressings.
| Chinese tariff line | Rate |
|---|---|
| 30051010 | 5% |
| 30051090 | 5% |
| 30059010 | 5% |
| 30059090 | 5% |
Keep the device application with the manufacturer
Class I devices require filing; class II and III require registration. Plan for months, not weeks: the Chinese authority decides, and no completion date is assured. Confirm the applicant and its responsibilities with the Chinese authority or licensed partners. For an imported class I device, the overseas filer designates a mainland legal-person company to submit the filing materials and the home-country authority’s proof that the device may be sold there.
Imported devices must have Chinese instructions and Chinese labels. The instructions must identify the origin and give the name, address and contact details of the mainland legal entity designated by the overseas registrant or filer. Dressings without the required instructions and labels may not be imported; prepare the Chinese artwork alongside the application.
Prepare the UK export documents
Classify the dressings using the correct UK commodity code. Exports from England, Scotland or Wales need a GB EORI and an online export declaration, with shipment details and invoice and packing-list references; the carrier needs the invoice and any required export licences or certificates. Check the medical-device export requirements for your product. An MHRA Certificate of Free Sale may be needed, but MHRA does not verify compliance with China’s requirements.
Read the cross-border listing exclusion
The cross-border e-commerce retail import list includes 30051010, 30051090, 30059010 and 30059090 for the specified medicinally treated or retail-packed articles. Each carries the remark excluding goods managed as medical devices. A listed tariff line therefore does not make a device-regulated dressing eligible for this route. Have the importer’s customs broker confirm the product’s regulatory treatment before choosing a cross-border sales channel.
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Find and check the Chinese importer
Our own staff in China find and check Chinese importers and distributors for UK brands. If a Chinese importer has already approached your brand, our staff in China check that company before stock is sent or anything is signed.
For these dressings, we help only with preparation, finding and checking a Chinese importer, and coordinating licensed partners. We prepare registration and label work with licensed partners in China. The importer of record and other required regulated roles stay with licensed partners in China; your own filings stay yours. Use our export preparation and importer-checking service.
Frequently asked questions
Do medical dressings need registration before import into China?
Dressings regulated as medical devices need completed filing for class I or registration for class II and III before import. Confirm the classification of your particular product.
What Chinese import duty applies to medical dressings?
Chinese tariff lines 30051010, 30051090, 30059010 and 30059090 each have a 5% MFN rate. Import VAT also affects landed cost; the importer’s broker confirms the applicable treatment.
Can I sell medical dressings through cross-border e-commerce?
The four Chinese tariff lines appear on the retail import list, but its remark excludes goods managed as medical devices. Confirm your dressing’s regulatory treatment before selecting this route.
Does an MHRA Certificate of Free Sale cover Chinese approval?
An MHRA Certificate of Free Sale may be needed for export, but MHRA does not verify compliance with China’s requirements. Device filing or registration and Chinese instructions and labels remain separate requirements.