Sourcing frozen whole yellow croaker from China

14% duty on the relevant frozen-fish line

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 4 October 2026, heading 0303 covers frozen fish, excluding fillets and other fish meat of heading 0304. The working line for frozen whole yellow croaker is 0303 89 90 92, carrying 14% duty on goods from China. The supplied facts list no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension for this line. The table repeats that line for different sourcing forms, rather than suggesting separate tariff categories.

The line carries veterinary, illegal-fishing and organic-import controls, plus a CITES export-control entry. For Great Britain, check establishment approval, health certification, advance import notification and the designated border control post. Ask port health or your customs broker to confirm the catch-certificate requirements for wild-caught fish and any exemption for fish farmed from fry or larvae. For organic goods, confirm the import requirements with your approved UK organic control body. Ask your customs broker to confirm whether the CITES entry affects the transaction.

Confirm the scientific species and product form with your broker before choosing the commodity code. A supplier's description of yellow croaker alone is insufficient for that check. See the wider frozen whole fish guide for other species. Confirm the applicable import VAT treatment for fish imported as food with HMRC or your customs broker, using the import duty and VAT guide to prepare your questions.

Specify the fish, whole-fish form and usable weight

Record the scientific species, farmed or wild origin, production area, whether the fish is gutted, and whether the head, scales and fins remain. Specify individual fish weight bands, carton net weight excluding glaze, freezing method and packaging. Agree how samples will be deglazed and weighed. Keep an approved sample showing acceptable skin colour, belly condition and fin damage.

Confirm the accepted UK commercial designation before printing sales labels. Commercial designations must be used when marketing fish and at the point of sale. For farmed croaker, ask port health to confirm whether China-specific residue-testing attestations or test results are needed before shipment. Match any testing documents to the shipment rather than accepting an unrelated factory report.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 2 tonnes of frozen whole yellow croaker under 0303 89 90 92, invoiced at £16,000 free on board, with £1,500 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £17,500. Duty at 14% is £2,450. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £19,950, so it is £3,990. Import taxes total £6,440; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £2,450 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

Identity and documents: compare sampled fish with the agreed species and whole-fish form. Match the approved establishment number, lot marks, cartons and health certificate; check catch documents where applicable.

Glaze and grading: deglaze samples from different cartons, weigh the drained fish and compare individual weights with the agreed grade. Check that carton net weight excludes the glaze.

Cold chain and condition: measure core temperature on arrival against the agreed frozen-storage specification and review the transport temperature record. Look for thawing, excessive loose ice, freezer burn, split bellies and damaged fins.

Labels and residues: check the commercial name, production method, catch or farming area and storage information. Review batch residue results, including the agreed veterinary-medicine tests for farmed fish. Use the quality inspection guide to brief the inspector.

What goes wrong

An order described only as yellow croaker can arrive with a different species or mixed size grades. Excess glaze reduces usable fish weight, while broken fins, split bellies and freezer burn reduce the value of whole fish sold for presentation. Agree measurable acceptance criteria and inspect packed stock before loading.

Border problems arise when plant approval, health certificates or lot identification do not match the consignment. For wild-caught fish, confirm any catch-certificate requirements with port health or your customs broker; for farmed fish, confirm applicable veterinary-residue restrictions with port health. Resolve document discrepancies before dispatch, and retain arrival photographs, temperature records and sample-weight results when raising a claim.

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.