Sourcing biscuits, cakes and bakery from China
Bakers' wares from China mostly pay 8% UK duty (17 of 24 lines), including biscuits, wafers, rusks and cakes; crispbread pays 4% plus £10 per 100 kg, gingerbread and similar 8% plus £15 to 10% plus £26 by sucrose content, and rice paper 4% plus £50. No anti-dumping applies. Biscuits not covered in chocolate and cakes are zero-rated for VAT.
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Duty by product
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 25 September 2026, the rates below applied to heading 1905 goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure. Several lines carry a veterinary control measure and a high-risk food restriction, because some products contain animal ingredients.
Chocolate-coated products may still be heading 1905 if they are bakers' wares; confirm the commodity code with the recipe.
| Goods | Commodity code | Duty | Anti-dumping duty on China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crispbread | 1905 10 00 00 | 4% + £10 per 100 kg | None |
| Gingerbread and similar, under 30% sucrose | 1905 20 10 00 | 8% + £15 per 100 kg | None |
| Gingerbread and similar, 50% or more sucrose | 1905 20 90 00 | 10% + £26 per 100 kg | None |
| Sandwich biscuits | 1905 31 91 00 | 8% | None |
| Waffles and wafers, other | 1905 32 19 00 | 8% | None |
| Rusks | 1905 40 10 00 | 8% | None |
| Rice paper | 1905 90 20 10 | 4% + £50 per 100 kg | None |
| Other bakers' wares with 5% or more sugar, such as cakes | 1905 90 70 00 | 8% | None |
Composite products and food law
Biscuits and cakes made with dairy, egg or other animal ingredients can be composite products, which follow animal product import rules unless an exemption applies, so check GOV.UK guidance for the exact recipe before shipping. The importer must register as a food business, and labels need ingredients with allergens emphasised, net weight, best-before date and a UK address in English. For filled pasta products, see our pasta, noodles and dumplings guide. For mooncakes, see our mooncake sourcing guide.
Shelf life and packaging
Agree shelf life, moisture barrier packaging and breakage protection, and test samples in a UK laboratory for allergens and contaminants. Packaging that touches food needs food contact evidence.
Worked duty example
Illustrative example, not a quote: 12 tonnes of sandwich biscuits under 1905 31 91 00, invoiced at £20,000 free on board, with £2,500 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £22,500 and duty at 8% is £1,800. Under VAT Notice 701/14, biscuits that are not covered or partly covered in chocolate, including sandwich biscuits whose chocolate layer does not reach the outside, are zero-rated, so in that case no import VAT is added. Chocolate-covered biscuits are standard-rated and would add 20% of £24,300, £4,860, which a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step. This assumes the goods are standard-rated for VAT. Most food for human consumption is zero-rated, and animal feed can be too, in which case no import VAT is due, so check the rate for your product in HMRC's VAT Notice 701/14.
Inspection checklist
Food safety tests: allergens tested on samples from each production run against the recipe and the line's allergen matrix, acrylamide checked against the benchmark levels for biscuits and similar products in retained Regulation 2017/2158, and moisture or water activity measured to support the shelf life claimed.
Labels and weights: every label checked against retained Regulation 1169/2011 for the name, ingredients, emphasised allergens, net quantity, date and UK address, and pack weights checked under the average system of the Weights and Measures (Packaged Goods) Regulations 2006.
Packing and shelf life: accelerated shelf-life samples stored warm to check softening, rancidity and filling separation, seals and moisture barriers checked on sampled packs, and breakage counted per carton after a drop test, with cartons sampled to ISO 2859-1.
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What goes wrong
Biscuits fail on moisture, breakage and labels. Biscuits packed without a proper moisture barrier go soft or stale long before the date, cream fillings separate or turn rancid in a hot container, and thin packs arrive as crumbs. The most serious failures are on the label: an undeclared allergen such as milk, egg, soya or nuts, or an English ingredient list that does not match the recipe the factory actually used.
Ask for the full recipe with percentages and an allergen matrix for the line, test samples in a UK laboratory for declared and cross-contact allergens, run a shelf-life test at warm temperatures, and at inspection check breakage per pack, seal integrity, date coding and label text against the approved artwork.
Inspection
At inspection, check breakage, colour, pack weights, seals and date coding.
Cambridge China Bridge sources biscuits, wafers, cakes and snacks, with recipes, composite product status and labels settled before the order. See how our sourcing service works. For cereal snacks, see our guide to breakfast cereals and puffed snacks. For the reverse trade direction, see our guide to exporting UK cakes to China.
Related guides: Breakfast cereals and puffed snacks from China.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UK import duty on biscuits from China?
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 25 September 2026, sweet biscuits, wafers, rusks and cakes carried 8% duty from China.
Which bakery lines carry a per-kilo duty?
Crispbread (4% + £10 per 100 kg), low-sugar gingerbread types (8% + £15) and rice paper (4% + £50).
Are biscuits with milk composite products?
They can be; check GOV.UK composite product guidance for the recipe before shipping.
What must a biscuit label show?
Ingredients with allergens emphasised, net weight, best-before date and a UK address, in English.