Sourcing linen and flax yarn from China
Flax and linen yarn from China, single or plied, for weaving, knitting, embroidery and craft, pays 0% UK duty on every line of heading 5306, with no anti-dumping duty. The tariff splits yarn by decitex and retail put-up. Weavers and knitters check count, whether it is wet or dry spun, evenness and slubs, boil-off or bleaching, and cone packing.
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0% duty
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 17 November 2026, heading 5306 covers flax yarn, single or multiple, split by decitex and by whether it is put up for retail sale. The lines shown carried 0% on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure.
Linen fabric is covered in our linen fabric guide; yarns blended with other fibres may fall under other headings, so confirm the commodity code from the fibre content.
| Goods | Commodity code | Duty | Anti-dumping duty on China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single flax yarn for multiple or cabled yarn for footwear or whipping cables | 5306 10 10 10 | 0% | None |
| Single flax yarn, 833.3 decitex or more, other | 5306 10 10 90 | 0% | None |
| Single flax yarn, 277.8 to 833.3 decitex, other | 5306 10 30 90 | 0% | None |
| Single flax yarn, less than 277.8 decitex | 5306 10 50 00 | 0% | None |
| Single flax yarn put up for retail sale | 5306 10 90 00 | 0% | None |
| Multiple or cabled flax yarn, not for retail sale | 5306 20 10 00 | 0% | None |
| Multiple or cabled flax yarn put up for retail sale | 5306 20 90 00 | 0% | None |
Specifying linen yarn
Specify line flax or tow yarn, wet or dry spun, metric count, single or plied and twist, evenness and the slub level you accept, finish (grey, boiled, half-bleached, bleached or dyed), moisture regain and cone weight. Products made from it and sold to consumers need fibre labels; linen blends must state their fibre composition and must not be described as pure linen.
Worked duty example
Illustrative example, not a quote: 2 tonnes of Nm 36 wet-spun linen yarn on cones under 5306 10 50 00, invoiced at £24,000 free on board, with £800 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £24,800. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £24,800, so it is £4,960. With no duty, the only import tax is the VAT, which a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.
Inspection checklist
Testing: check count, twist and strength on sample cones.
Appearance: check evenness, slubs and colour between cones under the agreed light.
Packing: check cone weights, lot labels and protection from damp. See our quality inspection guide.
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What goes wrong
Linen yarn orders fail on count, colour and slubs. Count varies between cones, natural colour differs between lots, too many slubs appear in fine fabrics, and blended yarn is sold as pure linen.
Cambridge China Bridge sources linen yarns for UK weavers, knitters and craft brands from small lots; see small orders.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UK import duty on linen yarn from China?
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 17 November 2026, flax yarn under heading 5306 carried 0% from China.
What is the difference between wet and dry spun linen?
Wet spinning gives finer, smoother yarn; dry spinning gives thicker, hairier yarn.
Can blended yarn be sold as linen?
Linen can be named on a blend's fibre label, but blends must state their fibre composition and must not be described as pure linen.
How does the tariff split flax yarn?
By decitex for single yarn and by whether the yarn is put up for retail sale.