Sourcing knitted scarves and accessories from China
Knitted or crocheted clothing accessories from China, including scarves, snoods, headbands and ear warmers, pay 12% UK duty, or 8% where they are elasticated or rubberised, with no anti-dumping duty. Fibre labelling applies, and children's items must avoid cords and small parts that can detach. Cambridge China Bridge sources knitted accessories.
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12%, or 8% if elasticated
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, knitted or crocheted shawls, scarves, mufflers, mantillas and veils, other made-up knitted clothing accessories and knitted parts of garments or accessories of heading 6117 carried 12% duty on goods from China, and knitted accessories that are elasticated or rubberised 8%, with no anti-dumping measure. For wrist accessories, see our guide to sourcing knitted wrist sweatbands.
Woven scarves are in heading 6214, covered in the scarves guide, knitted gloves in 6116 and knitted hats in 6505; confirm the commodity code.
| Goods | Commodity code | Duty | Anti-dumping duty on China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knitted shawls, scarves and snoods | 6117 10 00 00 | 12% | None |
| Other accessories, elasticated or rubberised | 6117 80 10 00 | 8% | None |
| Other knitted accessories, such as headbands | 6117 80 80 00 | 12% | None |
| Knitted parts of garments or accessories | 6117 90 00 00 | 12% | None |
Labels and children's safety
The Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012 require the fibre composition to be shown with permitted fibre names, so acrylic knitted to feel like wool must say acrylic, and wool or cashmere claims need a fibre test on bulk. Children's scarves and snoods sold to consumers are covered by general product safety law; avoid long cords, pompoms and trims that can detach, and use BS EN 14682 as the reference for cords and drawstrings on children's clothing.
What most often fails: Clothing, textiles and fashion
UK OPSS + EU / EEA Safety Gate (alerts counted separately in each system) · China-origin alerts over the 24 calendar month coverage window(2024-12 – 2026-11) · 152
Combined counts are alerts from both systems, not unique products across markets. Each source uses its own publication window; the same product may appear in both. · OPSS: 2024-12 – 2026-11 · Safety Gate: 2024-12 – 2026-11
- Chemical: 95
- Entrapment: 25
- Strangulation: 20
Most-cited regulations
- REACH Regulation: 79
- General Product Safety Regulation: 36
- EN 14682: 26
Checks to ask the factory for
- Ask for laboratory testing for restricted substances relevant to the materials and intended market.
- Match the report model, material colours and component list to the order.
- Ask how raw-material declarations and supplier changes are traced by batch.
Questions for due diligence, not a certification checklist or a guarantee of compliance. Select the applicable standards and tests with a competent laboratory.
The current calendar month is partial. These are published alerts, safety reports and recalls, not a measure of all products sold or a recall rate. Hong Kong is reported separately.
All recall dataContains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (OPSS, GOV.UK product safety alerts)
Source: European Commission, Safety Gate, English XML (en), extracted 2026-11-09. XML distribution: CC0. Cambridge China Bridge analysis.
Worked duty example
Take a hypothetical order of 5,000 knitted acrylic scarves, entered under 6117 10 00 00: £11,000 free on board plus £900 of freight and insurance gives a customs value of £11,900. The 12% duty on knitted scarves comes to £1,428, and import VAT is 20% of £13,328, which is £2,665.60. If you are VAT-registered you normally reclaim the £2,665.60, leaving £1,428 as the real cost at the border. Step by step: UK import duty and VAT.
Inspection checklist
Fibre and weight: fibre content tested by quantitative analysis to the ISO 1833 series on bulk yarn or finished scarves, compared with the label, with microscopy by a specialist lab where cashmere or other fine animal hair is claimed, and weight per piece and finished length and width measured on each colour.
Wear and washing: pilling to ISO 12945-2, colour fastness to rubbing to ISO 105-X12 for dark shades, and dimensional change after the care-label wash to ISO 6330 and ISO 5077, each against a grade or limit agreed before bulk.
Trims and children's items: pull tests on pompoms, tassels and labels at a load agreed in the order, checks that cords and loops on children's items meet BS EN 14682, and a final random inspection sampled to ISO 2859-1 covering labels, care symbols and hangtags.
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What goes wrong
Knitted accessories fail on pilling, sizing and fibre claims. Cheap acrylic pills after a few wears, loosely knitted scarves grow in length and lose shape after washing, and pompoms and tassels pull off. Blends sold as wool-rich or cashmere often contain less of the expensive fibre than the label says, and dark colours rub onto light coats.
Test pilling, colour fastness to rubbing and dimensional stability after washing on bulk samples, have fibre content tested against the label, pull-test pompoms and trims, measure length and width on each colour, and check that labels, care symbols and hangtags match the order at inspection.
Cambridge China Bridge sources knitted scarves, snoods, headbands and accessories, with yarn, fibre testing and labels agreed before the order. See how we source knitwear and accessories. For a wider knitwear range, see our knitted sweater vest sourcing guide. For knitted one-piece garments, see our knitted jumpsuits and bodysuits guide. For knitted pullovers, see our knitted jumper sourcing guide. For the reverse trade route, see our guide to exporting UK scarves to China. For sports styles, see our knitted sports headband sourcing guide.
Related guides: Sourcing combs and hair accessories from China, Sourcing babies' woven garments from China and Ties, bow ties and cravats from China.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UK import duty on knitted scarves from China?
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, knitted scarves and shawls of heading 6117 carried 12% duty from China, and elasticated knitted accessories 8%.
Where do woven scarves go?
Woven scarves are in heading 6214, not 6117.
Do cashmere scarves need a fibre test?
Yes. Blends are often mislabelled, so test the bulk against the label.
Which standard covers cords on children's clothing?
BS EN 14682 is the reference for cords and drawstrings on children's clothing.