Sourcing fresh figs from China

Fresh-fig duty and import checks

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 29 September 2026, heading 0804 covers dates, figs, pineapples, avocados, guavas, mangoes and mangosteens, fresh or dried. Fresh figs use 0804 20 10 00 and carry 4% duty from China. The supplied line shows no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension. It attaches an organic import control. The table shows buying formats under the same commodity code.

For Great Britain, importers must check whether plant-health certification is required. Medium-risk B fruit requires a phytosanitary certificate; confirm the category for your figs with APHA before dispatch. Organic consignments need an inspection certificate, issued by the exporter's control body. Organic imports must come through countries, territories and control bodies listed on the recognised organic registers; check the proposed certification route before ordering.

Confirm the product's condition and packing with your broker using the commodity-code guide. Fresh and dried figs have separate lines within this heading; see the dried-fig guide for the related product.

Specify ripeness, handling and protective packing

Specify variety, skin colour, fruit size, firmness at dispatch and the ripeness wanted on arrival. Agree acceptance criteria for split skins, bruising, leaking fruit, mould and internal souring. Request photographs and cut-fruit samples from the proposed harvest lot rather than relying on a display sample.

Agree cooling before packing, transport temperature, temperature recording and handling at transfers. Use supports that protect the skin without compressing the fruit, and check that ventilation remains open when cartons are stacked. For loose retail sales in England and Wales, general marketing-standard produce must display its country of origin.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 100 kg of fresh figs for a wholesale trial; order quantity, FOB value and freight are illustrative under 0804 20 10 00, invoiced at £2,300 free on board, with £1,540 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £3,840. Duty at 4% is £153.60. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £3,993.60, so it is £798.72. Import taxes total £952.32; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £153.60 of duty. 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

Fruit: compare size, colour and firmness with the agreed specification; cut sampled figs to check the flesh for souring, insects and internal deterioration.

Packing: check crushed fruit beneath upper layers, leaking juice, damaged supports, blocked ventilation and wet cartons.

Cold chain: review dispatch and transport temperature records, check fruit temperature on arrival and investigate gaps in the handling record.

Documents: match the harvest lot to packing records, origin information and agreed laboratory reports; for organic orders, check the consignment inspection certificate.

What goes wrong

Fruit that looks acceptable at packing can arrive soft, split or fermented after warm handling. Overripe figs bruise under stacking pressure, while fruit picked too firm may disappoint the buyer on flavour. Condensation and leaking juice can hide deterioration beneath the visible top layer.

Inspect across cartons and layers, photograph defects before repacking and compare the arrival condition with dispatch records. Agree who assesses rejected fruit and what evidence supports a claim. Check organic paperwork before dispatch so that an organic claim does not rest on a supplier's sales description alone.

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.