Sourcing combs and hair accessories from China

A flat 2%

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 25 September 2026, combs, hair slides and the like of hard rubber or plastics, of other materials, and hairpins, curling pins, curling grips and hair curlers other than electrical ones carried 2% duty on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure.

Electric hair curlers and straighteners are in heading 8516, and textile scrunchies and headbands may be classified as textile articles; confirm the commodity code.

Children's safety

Hair accessories are consumer products under general product safety law. Those marketed for young children should avoid detachable small parts such as beads and bows, and sharp edges or points. If an accessory is designed for play, it may count as a toy; the toy safety guide explains the test.

Materials and finish

Specify plastic type, spring steel and plating for clips, and any glue for decorations. Ask for UK REACH screening for restricted substances in plastics and coatings, and test colour transfer on light hair. For sectioning clips, see our sectioning hair clips sourcing guide. For bobby pins, see our bobby pin sourcing guide.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 50,000 plastic hair clips under 9615 11 00 00, invoiced at £7,500 free on board, with £900 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £8,400. Duty at 2% is £168. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £8,568, so it is £1,713.60. Import taxes total £1,881.60; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £168 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Mechanical tests: claw clips opened and closed many times to the number agreed in the specification and drop-tested cold, spring clips checked for tension after repeated opening, glued stones and bows pull-tested at an agreed force, and comb teeth checked by hand and eye for flash that scratches or snags.

Chemicals: plasticised parts tested against the phthalate limit in UK REACH Annex XVII entry 51, rubber and plastic parts in prolonged skin contact screened for PAHs under entry 50, metal clips that sit against the skin tested for nickel release by BS EN 1811, and plating checked for rust after a humidity or salt spray test.

Children's items and packs: accessories marketed to young children checked for detachable small parts and sharp points using the tests of BS EN 71-1 where they could be treated as toys, retail cards checked for the UK address, warnings and barcode, and cartons sampled to ISO 2859-1 for counts per card.

What goes wrong

Hair accessories fail at the spring, the glue and the edges. Claw clips snap at the hinge when the plastic is brittle or recycled, spring clips lose tension or rust when the steel or plating is poor, and rhinestones and bows glued on with weak adhesive drop off in the first week. Combs moulded with flash left on the teeth scratch the scalp and snag hair.

At inspection, open and close claw clips repeatedly and drop-test them, check spring tension and plating for rust, pull-test glued decorations, run a finger along comb teeth for flash, and check that children's accessories have no detachable small parts and that cards carry the UK address and warnings.

Packing and inspection

Retail cards and blister packs need a UK address and any warnings needed to explain risks that are not immediately obvious. At inspection, check spring strength, edges, stones and glue, and count per card.

Cambridge China Bridge sources combs, hair clips and hair accessories, with safety, finishes and retail packing settled before the order. See how our sourcing service works.