Sourcing doped GaN wafers from China

Zero duty on doped wafers

Heading 3818 covers chemical elements doped for electronics in discs, wafers or similar forms, and doped chemical compounds for electronics. This guide concerns doped gallium nitride wafers, within the other-compounds line. The table contains the only relevant line in the supplied tariff facts.

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, code 3818 00 90 00 carried 0% duty for goods from China. The supplied record lists no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspension or attached import control for this line. Import VAT is separate from customs duty.

Give your customs broker the composition, dopant details and processing state before confirming the commodity code. For the wider heading context, see the doped gallium arsenide wafer guide.

Specify the substrate, dopant and polished face

State whether you need a bulk gallium nitride substrate or an epitaxial structure on another substrate. Specify dopant identity, concentration or electrical acceptance range, crystal orientation, surface polarity, diameter, thickness, thickness variation, bow and warp. Identify the polished face and agree surface roughness, defect acceptance and edge finish.

Ask for wafer identification, lot measurement maps and the methods used to measure electrical properties and crystal defects. Agree how results link to individual wafers. UK REACH generally applies to substances on their own, in mixtures or in articles; assess the supplied wafer form and composition before deciding which obligations apply.

Before ordering, confirm that the supplier can export the goods from China. GOV.UK advises checking that the business sending goods can export them from its country. Use factory verification to establish who grows, dopes, polishes and packs the wafers.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative development batch of doped gallium nitride wafers under 3818 00 90 00, invoiced at £90,000 free on board, with £2,500 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £92,500. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £92,500, so it is £18,500. With no duty, the only import tax is the VAT, which a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Identity: match wafer and carrier identifiers to the order, dopant declaration and lot reports; confirm substrate material and polished face.

Geometry: compare diameter, thickness, thickness variation, bow, warp and orientation with the agreed specification and measurement method.

Electrical and crystal quality: compare resistivity or carrier data and defect maps with the acceptance criteria; investigate missing maps or unexplained differences between wafers.

Surface and packing: inspect for chips, cracks, scratches, particles and staining; check carrier restraint, seals and shipping damage before release. Agree sampling through the quality inspection guide.

What goes wrong

A quotation can describe gallium nitride without distinguishing a bulk substrate from a coated wafer. Dopant content can also be supplied without the electrical data your process needs. Resolve these points through an agreed specification and sample assessment before approving the production batch.

Polished wafers can arrive with edge damage or contamination, while a lot-average certificate can hide variation between wafers. Keep carrier photographs and wafer identifiers, compare arrival measurements with supplier maps, and hold disputed material separately until the supplier explains the mismatch.

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.