Sourcing aluminium hydrogen cylinders from China

Hydrogen-cylinder duty and suspension

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, heading 7613 covers aluminium containers for compressed or liquefied gas. The supplied line, 7613 00 00 90, carries 6% duty for goods from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing duty listed. The table shows product variants sharing that code, rather than separate tariff lines.

The hydrogen suspension is 0.00 % only for seamless aluminium containers wholly embedded in an overwrap of epoxy-carbon fibres composite, with storage capacity of 172 l (± 10%) and unfilled weight not exceeding 64 kg. Carbon wrapping alone is insufficient. A separate suspension covers specified portable medical oxygen cylinders, not hydrogen cylinders.

The UK Trade Tariff also attaches an import control of fluorinated greenhouse gases. Official guidance prohibits placing products containing banned fluorinated gases on the Great Britain market. The supplied control note does not establish the declaration needed for hydrogen cylinders, so confirm the requirement with your customs broker. Confirm your commodity code and consult the wider aluminium gas-cylinder guide.

Specify hydrogen service and the cylinder construction

State whether you need an unwrapped aluminium cylinder or an aluminium container with composite overwrap. Specify hydrogen service, capacity, working and test pressure, alloy, dimensions, empty weight, neck thread, valve and external finish. Ask for design approval and test evidence for the actual construction being ordered.

Cylinders used to transport gas need marking before being placed on the Great Britain market; confirm the applicable conformity assessment and in-use periodic inspection and testing requirements with the relevant authority. For new transportable cylinders imported directly from China for that market, the required conformity marking is Rho. Agree the cylinder design, valve connection and filling arrangements with your intended filler before approving production.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 20 empty unwrapped seamless aluminium hydrogen cylinders, illustrative only under 7613 00 00 90, invoiced at £48,000 free on board, with £2,400 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £50,400. Duty at 6% is £3,024. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £53,424, so it is £10,684.80. Import taxes total £13,708.80; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £3,024 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Approval and traceability: match design approval, batch certificates and serial numbers to the ordered hydrogen-cylinder model.

Pressure and sealing: review hydraulic and burst-test records; agree hydrogen-service leak-test evidence for the valve and assembled cylinder.

Construction and connections: check dimensions, empty weight and neck threads against the drawing; inspect aluminium surfaces and any composite overwrap for transit damage.

Marking and packing: check conformity marking and stampings against the approved documents; inspect valve protection, caps and packing on arrival. Arrange quality inspection before shipment.

What goes wrong

A certificate for another cylinder design does not resolve the ordered model's approval. Incorrect neck threads, incomplete stampings and dents can lead to filler rejection. Avoid accepting a general gas-cylinder test report as the purchasing evidence for the specified hydrogen service.

Another failure is budgeting for zero duty simply because the cylinder has carbon overwrap. Compare its construction, capacity and unfilled weight with the complete suspension wording before agreeing the customs declaration. Resolve approval and valve compatibility before shipment, when changes are still practical.

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.