Sourcing fibre cement boards from China

0% duty, and no asbestos

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, corrugated sheets, other sheets, panels, tiles and similar articles, and other articles of cellulose fibre-cement or similar mixtures of fibres and cement carried 0% duty on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure. The tariff also has a line for articles containing asbestos, but a 0% duty does not make them legal to sell.

Entry 6 of UK REACH Annex XVII prohibits placing asbestos fibres, and articles and mixtures containing them intentionally added, on the market, so the order and the test report must show the boards are asbestos-free. Calcium silicate boards, magnesium oxide boards and gypsum plasterboard classify elsewhere, so confirm the commodity code.

Standards and fire performance

Fibre cement flat sheets are made to BS EN 12467, corrugated sheets to BS EN 494 and slates to BS EN 492. These are harmonised standards, so boards and slates need a declaration of performance and UKCA or CE marking, including the strength class, dimensional tolerances and reaction-to-fire class. Many uncoated boards reach class A1 or A2, but coated or decorative facades need their own classification.

For external walls of relevant buildings, the fire classification of every component matters under the Building Regulations, so ask for the test report behind the class rather than a sales sheet. The construction products guide covers declarations of performance more generally.

Worked duty example

Take a hypothetical order of a 20-foot container of fibre cement boards, entered under 6811 82 00 00: £9,000 free on board plus £2,500 of freight and insurance gives a customs value of £11,500. Fibre cement boards carry no duty, so import VAT of 20% on £11,500, £2,300, is the only tax. A VAT-registered importer normally reclaims it, so the border adds no lasting cost. Freight is more than a fifth of the customs value here, so container fill decides the landed cost. Step by step: UK import duty and VAT.

What goes wrong

Fibre cement fails on content, strength and movement. Boards from mills that also handle asbestos products can be contaminated, density and bending strength fall below the declared class, and boards warp, crack at fixings or shrink after installation because they were not cured or conditioned. Edges and corners break in transit, surface coatings blister or fade, and efflorescence stains dark slates.

Test samples from each production lot for asbestos at a UKAS-accredited laboratory before shipment, ask for the declaration of performance and the tests behind it, check thickness, dimensions, density and squareness on samples, check moisture content and flatness, inspect edges and coating, and pack boards flat on strong pallets with edge protection.

Cambridge China Bridge sources fibre cement boards, slates and corrugated sheets, with asbestos testing and performance declarations agreed before shipment. See how we source construction materials.