Sourcing barbed wire from China

0%, and no steel measure

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 28 September 2026, heading 7313 is a single line, 7313 00 00 00: barbed wire of iron or steel, twisted hoop or single flat wire, barbed or not, and loosely twisted double wire, of a kind used for fencing. It carried 0% on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure, and the same line read as at 2 October 2026 still carried 0% with no steel quota or safeguard measure.

Plain fencing wire, woven stock netting and mesh are classified elsewhere; see our wire mesh and fencing guide, and confirm the commodity code.

Specifying barbed wire

Specify the line wire and barb wire diameters, the steel grade and tensile strength (standard or high-tensile), the zinc coating weight in grams per square metre on both wires, the barb spacing and number of points, the twist, the reel length and weight, and the reel or spool type and labelling.

The zinc coating decides how long a fence lasts, so state it as a minimum weight and have it measured, rather than accepting a description such as heavy galvanised.

Worked duty example

An invented example rather than a quote: 1,000 reels of 200-metre galvanised barbed wire under 7313 00 00 00, at £9,000 free on board with £1,400 of freight and insurance, so the customs value is £10,400. There is no duty and, unlike many steel products, no steel safeguard measure on this line, today or from 1 October 2026; import VAT at 20% is £2,080, which a VAT-registered merchant normally reclaims. Freight is about £1.40 a reel because reels are heavy for their value; a reel short of its stated length or zinc coating costs the buyer more than the freight. See calculating UK import duty and VAT for the method.

Inspection checklist

Coating and wire: measure zinc coating weight on samples of line and barb wire, check wire diameters with a micrometer, and test tensile strength.

Barbs and reels: check barb spacing and grip, count reel lengths on a sample by measuring or weighing against the stated weight per metre, and check reels are wound tight and labelled.

Packing: check reels are palletised and wrapped so they do not rust or tangle in transit. See our quality inspection guide.

What goes wrong

Barbed wire fails on coating, length and barbs. Thin galvanising rusts within a few seasons, reels are shorter than stated, barbs slip along the line wire, and wire drawn from low-grade steel snaps when strained.

Cambridge China Bridge sources barbed wire and fencing wire for UK agricultural and fencing merchants, with coating weight and reel length measured before shipment. See container programmes.