Sourcing hospital cubicle curtains from China

Duty depends on the curtain fabric

Heading 6303 covers textile curtains, including hospital cubicle curtains. Synthetic nonwoven curtains and woven polyester curtains use different commodity lines. This guide concerns finished privacy curtains; see the wider curtains and blinds guide for other products.

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 17 October 2026, synthetic nonwoven curtains carried 6% duty on goods from China; woven synthetic, knitted synthetic and ordinary woven cotton curtains carried 12%. The supplied tariff record lists no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspensions or attached import controls.

Give your customs broker the fibre composition, fabric construction and finished curtain description before confirming the commodity code. A disposable description alone does not identify whether the fabric is nonwoven.

Specify privacy, track fittings and cleaning

Choose reusable washable fabric or disposable nonwoven material. Supply a cubicle schedule showing finished width, drop, overlap, mesh-top depth where used, and the existing track and carrier fittings. Approve a hanging sample on the actual track, with privacy checked under the ward's lighting.

For reusable curtains, agree the laundry process and check shrinkage, seams and fittings after that process. Ask the hospital to approve the fire performance specification and obtain reports for the exact fabric and finish, including after washing where specified. Label the fibre composition and confirm any durability and legibility requirements with the relevant authority.

For antibacterial options, identify the treatment and request evidence for the claimed effect and its durability. Check HSE's active-substance listing: if the relevant substance and product-type combination is marked 'No', the treated article cannot be placed on the Great Britain market.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 800 woven polyester cubicle curtains, illustrative order under 6303 92 90 90, invoiced at £9,000 free on board, with £800 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £9,800. Duty at 12% is £1,176. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £10,976, so it is £2,195.20. Import taxes total £3,371.20; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £1,176 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Fit: measure finished width, drop and overlap against the cubicle schedule; check carrier spacing and that the curtain travels around bends without snagging.

Privacy: hang the curtain under representative lighting; check opacity, closed gaps and the position of any mesh top against the approved sample.

Cleaning: inspect seams, hems, shrinkage and fitting corrosion after the agreed laundry process for reusable curtains; check disposable curtains for tears and secure attachments.

Evidence and labels: match fibre labels, fabric and finish to the approved specification and fire reports; retain batch identification. Arrange quality inspection before dispatch.

What goes wrong

A curtain can match the ordered fabric but fail on the ward: incompatible hooks snag, insufficient overlap leaves a viewing gap, or washing shortens the drop. Mesh positioned too low can undermine privacy. Approve the complete hanging sample rather than a fabric swatch alone.

Fire reports can describe a different finish from the delivered fabric. Antibacterial claims can also arrive without treatment details or supporting tests. Tie approval to the production fabric, finish and batch, and agree how substitutions will be reviewed before manufacture.

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.