Sourcing plastic film and sheet from China

Mostly 6%

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 25 September 2026, the general lines of heading 3920 for plates, sheets, film, foil and strip that are not cellular, not reinforced and not combined with other materials carried 6% duty on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure. The main exception is polycarbonate: sheet 0.5 mm to 55 mm thick with a tensile strength over 55 MPa and up to 90 MPa, which covers most solid polycarbonate sheet, has a 0% suspension under 3920 61 00 90 to 30 June 2027. Dozens of other listed technical films, such as named PMMA, PET and polyurethane grades, also carry 0% suspensions, some only under authorised use. Rechecked line by line on 27 September 2026, 87 of the 95 lines carried 6%. Four have a 0% standard rate: synthetic paper pulp in moist sheets (3920 10 81 00), a listed acrylic and methacrylic ester copolymer film (3920 59 10 00), polyimide foil and strip (3920 99 21 00), and poly(vinyl fluoride) sheet with a listed poly(vinyl alcohol) film (3920 99 52 00). Vulcanised fibre (3920 79 10 00) pays 4%, and three end-use lines, polyethylene film for photoresist (3920 10 23 00), listed PET films (3920 62 12 00) and fluorinated ion-exchange membranes for chlor-alkali cells (3920 99 53 00), are 0% only under authorised use.

Foam sheet, reinforced or laminated sheet, and self-adhesive film are classified elsewhere, and some specialised films have their own codes; confirm the commodity code against the polymer and construction. For the reverse trade route, see exporting plastic films to China. For rod stock, see our polycarbonate rod sourcing guide.

Plastic Packaging Tax

Plastic Packaging Tax charges finished plastic packaging components, at £228.82 per tonne from 1 April 2026 unless they contain at least 30% recycled plastic, once you import or make 10 tonnes or more in 12 months. GOV.UK guidance treats film that still needs a substantial modification before packing or filling as not yet a finished component; cutting or sealing alone does not qualify, while stretch wrap or cling film made for packing goods can be a finished component.

So say in your records what the film is for. The Plastic Packaging Tax guide and packaging EPR explain what follows.

Food contact and REACH

Film or sheet that will touch food needs a declaration of compliance and migration testing under the plastics food contact rules; see food contact materials. Plasticisers in PVC and flame retardants in sheet are the usual UK REACH questions.

For glazing and signage sheet, ask for the fire classification and UV stabilisation data behind the claim.

Worked duty example

Take a hypothetical order of 20 tonnes of polyethylene film on rolls, entered under 3920 10 28 99: £30,000 free on board plus £2,000 of freight and insurance gives a customs value of £32,000. The 6% duty on polyethylene film comes to £1,920, and import VAT is 20% of £33,920, which is £6,784. If you are VAT-registered you normally reclaim the £6,784, leaving £1,920 as the real cost at the border. A few narrowly described films and sheets, such as certain printed polyethylene, oriented polypropylene and polycarbonate grades, have their own 0% suspensions, so check the footnotes if your product is close to one. Step by step: UK import duty and VAT.

Inspection checklist

Mechanical properties: test tensile strength and elongation of film by ISO 527-3 in both machine and cross directions, and dart impact by ISO 7765-1 for polyethylene film, against the values in the specification. For polycarbonate sheet entered under the suspension, keep the tensile strength data that shows it falls within 55 to 90 MPa.

Optics and sheet: measure haze and luminous transmittance of clear film and sheet by ASTM D1003, check sheet thickness at the corners and centre, that protective masking covers both faces, and that the UV-protected side of glazing sheet is marked.

Food contact and rolls: for food-contact film, check the declaration of compliance under retained Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 and overall migration results by the BS EN 1186 series for the actual film, and check each roll label shows grade, thickness, width, length and batch.

What goes wrong

Film and sheet fail on gauge, surface and converting. Thickness varies across the width so rolls run badly and bags split, gels and fisheyes show as defects, and film without enough corona treatment will not take print or lamination. Slip and anti-block additives are wrong for the customer's machines, rolls are wound too tight and block, cores crush in transit, and recycled content claimed for Plastic Packaging Tax cannot be evidenced.

Measure thickness across the full width at several points on sample rolls, check treatment level with dyne pens, test coefficient of friction and seal strength where relevant, weigh rolls against the invoice, inspect for gels and scratches on unwound lengths, and ask for recycled content evidence that meets the Plastic Packaging Tax rules before relying on it.

Specification and inspection

Specify polymer, thickness and tolerance, width, core size, treatment, colour and roll weight. At inspection, measure thickness across the width, check for gels and scratches, and weigh rolls against the invoice.

Cambridge China Bridge sources plastic film and sheet, with thickness, food contact and packaging tax questions settled before the order. See how our sourcing service works.

Related guides: Sourcing plastic scrap from China.

For the duty on custom plastic parts and when they are classed elsewhere, see Custom plastic parts and articles from China.