Sourcing lubricants and motor oils from China

Duty

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 25 September 2026, motor oils, compressor lube oils and turbine lube oils, hydraulic oils, and gear and reductor oils of petroleum origin carried 2% duty on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure. Some catalytically dewaxed or hydroisomerised base oils imported on their own, under listed lines of 2710 19 81 and 2710 19 99, have 0% suspensions, most to the end of 2028; the suspensions do not apply to mixtures, so a blended lubricant still pays 2%.

Synthetic lubricants with no petroleum oil, and greases, can classify elsewhere, so confirm the commodity code against the formulation. For modified vegetable oils, see our modified oils and used cooking oil guide. For heat-transfer applications, see our mineral heat-transfer oils sourcing guide. For quenching applications, see our mineral quenching oil sourcing guide.

Safety data sheets and labels

Article 31 of UK REACH requires the supplier of a substance or mixture that meets the criteria for classification as hazardous to provide a safety data sheet. Many lubricants and additives do, so ask for a GB safety data sheet for each product, in English, before the first order, and label the packs according to the classification; the UK REACH guide explains the importer's role.

Hazard pictograms, signal words and the supplier's UK details go on the pack, so settle the label artwork with the classification in hand rather than adapting a label from another market.

Specifications and claims

Lubricants are sold on viscosity grades and industry or engine maker specifications. A claim that an oil meets a specification or an approval has to be backed by test results, and an engine maker approval is a licence held by the blender, so ask for the evidence behind every claim on the label and test a sample from each batch.

Base oil and additive package decide the product; ask the factory to name both, and to notify any change. For rubber-compounding feedstocks, see our mineral rubber process oils guide.

Worked duty example

An invented example rather than a quote: 20 tonnes of 5W-30 engine oil in 4 litre packs, commodity code 2710 19 81 90, bought for £36,000 free on board, with £4,000 of freight and insurance, so £40,000 is the value customs works from. Duty at the 2% rate for motor oils is £800. VAT at 20% applies to £40,800, so £8,160. A VAT-registered buyer usually recovers the VAT, so the border adds £800 to the landed cost. See calculating UK import duty and VAT for the method.

Inspection checklist

Viscosity against the grade: SAE J300 sets the limits for engine oil viscosity grades. Test a retained sample from each batch for kinematic viscosity at 40 and 100 °C by ASTM D445 and viscosity index by ASTM D2270, and reject a batch whose results fall outside the grade on the label or the factory's certificate of analysis.

Other batch properties: test flash point by ASTM D92, total base number by ASTM D2896 and water by Karl Fischer titration (ASTM D6304), and compare each result with the certificate of analysis for that batch and the approved sample. Keep the retained sample sealed and labelled with the batch number.

Packs and labels: the Weights and Measures (Packaged Goods) Regulations 2006 apply to packs sold by volume, so weigh a sample of packs and check the average against the nominal quantity. Check that the hazard label matches section 2 of the GB safety data sheet, and invert and squeeze sampled packs to check closures for leaks.

What goes wrong

Lubricants fail on grade, claims and contamination. Viscosity sits outside the SAE J300 grade on the label, base oils are lower quality than described, and packs claim API or ACEA performance categories or engine maker approvals the oil does not hold. Water or particle contamination, wrong additive levels and packs that leak or bulge in hot containers are the common physical faults.

Test a sample from each batch in a UK laboratory for kinematic viscosity, viscosity index, flash point, total base number and water, check any API licence claim against the API licensee directory and ask for evidence behind ACEA and engine maker claims, check labels and the GB safety data sheet, and inspect closures and packs for leaks before loading.

Packaging and shipping

Oils ship in packs, drums, IBCs or flexitanks, and the choice changes the freight and the handling at the UK end. Specify pack sizes, closures and pallet patterns, and check for leaks at the container loading. Packaging supplied into the UK also counts towards packaging EPR.

Cambridge China Bridge sources own-label motor oils, hydraulic oils and gear oils, with the safety data sheets, labels and batch testing settled before production. See how our sourcing service works.