Sourcing para-benzoquinone from China

Para-benzoquinone duty and suspension

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, para-benzoquinone, CAS 106-51-4, falls under 2914 69 80 40 within heading 2914 for ketones and quinones. Its Chinese-origin duty is 4%, with an autonomous suspension to 0%. The suspension excludes mixtures, preparations and products made up of different components containing the substance. No anti-dumping or countervailing measure is recorded for this line.

The tariff attaches an export control for waste. Waste-shipment controls apply only where the material is waste. If buying recovered material or arranging a return of rejected stock to China, confirm the applicable requirements with your customs broker. The table repeats the same tariff line for purchasing descriptions; these are not separate commodity codes.

Confirm the identity, composition and commodity code before claiming the suspension. A formulated product needs its own classification check. See the benzophenone sourcing guide for wider heading context.

Specify identity, assay and impurity profile

Write para-benzoquinone and CAS 106-51-4 into the purchase specification. Agree assay, analytical method, water content, residual solvents and impurity reporting. Ask the laboratory to distinguish para-benzoquinone from hydroquinone and substituted quinones. Define acceptable appearance against an approved sample rather than accepting a grade name alone.

Agree pack material, closure, storage conditions and sampling procedure with the supplier. Request a batch-specific certificate of analysis and safety data sheet. Check the UK REACH registration position for your substance and importing business: registration is per substance, per legal entity.

Chemical classification is required regardless of the quantity supplied. Everyone in the supply chain is responsible for correct labelling and packaging before placing chemicals on the market in Great Britain.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 20 kilograms of para-benzoquinone in sealed packs under 2914 69 80 40, invoiced at £3,500 free on board, with £860 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £4,360. Duty at 4% is £174.40. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £4,534.40, so it is £906.88. Import taxes total £1,081.28; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £174.40 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Identity: match the chemical name and CAS number across the order, certificate of analysis, safety data sheet and pack labels.

Batch quality: compare assay, water and impurity results with the agreed specification; arrange independent testing of a representative arrival sample.

Packaging: check seals, closures, staining, escaped material and pack condition before moving stock into routine storage.

Traceability: match batch identifiers and net weights to the packing list, photograph discrepancies and retain a labelled sample using the agreed procedure.

What goes wrong

A certificate stating only purity leaves water, residual solvents and unwanted related compounds unexamined. A generic certificate may also describe a different batch. Agree the analytical method and acceptance criteria before ordering, then compare the delivered batch with those criteria.

Damaged closures, unexplained colour changes or a mismatch between labels and documents need investigation before use. A mixture described simply as para-benzoquinone can also lead to an unsupported suspension claim. Keep affected packs separate while the supplier and laboratory resolve the discrepancy.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For repeat volumes, see container programmes.