Sourcing aluminium camlocks from China

UK duty on aluminium camlock hose couplings

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 2 October 2026, heading 7609 covers aluminium tube or pipe fittings, including couplings. Ordinary aluminium camlock hose couplings are candidates for 7609 00 00 90, the other-fittings line. The table shows product variants sharing that code, rather than separate tariff lines.

The supplied extract records 4% duty for goods from China across the heading, with no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspensions or attached import controls. The other listed lines describe specialised automotive components. Confirm the commodity code against the actual product and use before shipment. See the wider aluminium pipe fittings guide for the rest of the heading.

Ask HMRC or your customs broker to confirm whether these aluminium fittings fall within UK CBAM scope from 1 January 2027. Ask suppliers for emissions data and check the registration position using the UK CBAM guide.

Mating profile, cam arms and gasket specification

Specify male adaptor or female coupler, hose tail or threaded connection, bore, mating profile and tolerances. Supply drawings and samples of the couplings already used by your customers. Agree alloy and temper, cam-arm and pin materials, gasket material, thread form, hose dimensions and the proposed hose-retention method.

State the fluid, working pressure, temperature range and test method. Pressure equipment rules can apply to fittings as part of piping, depending on fluid, pressure and size. The regulations cover the design, manufacture and conformity assessment of pressure equipment and assemblies with maximum allowable pressure greater than 0.5 bar. Agree the applicable pressure evidence with the system designer.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order of 1,200 aluminium camlock female couplers with hose tails under 7609 00 00 90, invoiced at £8,000 free on board, with £1,200 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £9,200. Duty at 4% is £368. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £9,568, so it is £1,913.60. Import taxes total £2,281.60; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £368 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Fit and locking: mate samples with approved counterpart couplings; check that cam arms close fully, pins remain secure and the joint has no excessive movement.

Gaskets and leakage: check gasket material, seating and compression; test assembled samples at the agreed pressure and temperature conditions.

Bodies and connections: check alloy certificates, casting defects, sealing faces and burrs; gauge threads and trial-fit hose tails with the agreed hose and retention hardware.

Arrival and traceability: check for transport damage, mixed sizes and missing gaskets; match batch identification to material certificates and test reports. Use the inspection guide to brief the checks.

What goes wrong

A matching nominal size can conceal a different mating profile. Cam arms may close while the gasket remains unevenly compressed, causing leakage. Loose pins, worn cam faces, porous castings and rough sealing surfaces can also cause failures. Approve a complete mating pair and retain it for comparison with production.

A gasket suited to one fluid may swell or harden in another. Thread mismatches and a hose tail paired with unsuitable retention hardware can spoil an otherwise sound coupling. Record the intended service and test the assembled connection, then repeat fit and condition checks when the shipment arrives.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For repeat volumes, see container programmes.