Sourcing Hair Sticks from China

Hair-stick duty and material controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, heading 9615 covers combs, hair slides, hairpins and related non-electrical accessories. Its supplied lines all carry 2% duty for goods from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing duties or suspensions recorded. The table shows material variants against the same candidate hairpin line, rather than separate tariff subdivisions.

The tariff attaches cat and dog fur controls throughout the heading: imports and exports of that fur and products containing it are banned. It also attaches CITES import and export controls to 9615 19 00 00. Official guidance requires a permit for species listed in Annex A, B or C. For natural-material sticks or decorations, have your customs broker confirm the species-specific documents required for the shipment from China.

Confirm the commodity code using the finished stick's construction, material and hair-holding function. Do not choose a code from material alone. See the related U-shaped hair bun pins guide for another product family within this heading.

Specify the shaft, tip and decoration

Agree shaft length, thickness, taper, tip shape and acceptable straightness against an approved sample. Name the wood species, bamboo construction, metal or plastic, plus the coating and adhesive. Specify whether the stick is sold individually or as a matched set, and how decorative heads are attached.

Consumer hair accessories fall under general product safety law. For hair sticks, assess scalp contact, breakage and detachable decorations. Ask for UK REACH screening of plastics and coatings, as described in the site's published hair-accessories guide. Agree protective packing that keeps tips from puncturing the pack and decorated heads from rubbing together.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 900 wooden hair sticks; quantity, FOB value and freight are illustrative under 9615 90 00 00, invoiced at £2,500 free on board, with £168 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £2,668. Duty at 2% is £53.36. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £2,721.36, so it is £544.27. Import taxes total £597.63; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £53.36 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Tips and surfaces: check for splinters, moulding flash, burrs and rough coating; pass samples through a hair tress to identify snagging.

Shaft strength: compare dimensions and straightness with the approved sample, and apply the agreed bending check to reveal brittle shafts or weak joints.

Decoration retention: check glued, threaded or fitted heads for movement and apply the agreed pull and twist checks.

Finish and packing: check colour transfer, coating adhesion, matched sets, tip protection and retail warnings. Include these checks in your inspection brief.

What goes wrong

A decorative sample can hide a rough tip or a shaft that breaks when pushed through a bun. Wooden sticks can develop splinters, plastic sticks can retain sharp moulding seams, and metal sticks can have burrs beneath the finish. Check production samples rather than accepting appearance alone.

Heavy heads can loosen at the joint, while coatings can rub onto hair or chip where sticks touch in transit. Keep an approved sample showing the agreed joint and finish, and compare the arriving goods before releasing stock for sale.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For own-brand ranges, see sourcing for brands.