Sourcing potassium sodium tartrate from China

Duty on potassium sodium tartrate

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 1 October 2026, potassium sodium tartrate falls within 2918 13 00 00, salts and esters of tartaric acid. This is within heading 2918, which covers carboxylic acids with additional oxygen function and their derivatives. The table describes purchasing grades within the same commodity line.

The supplied tariff record gives 6% duty for goods from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension listed. It attaches an export control for waste. Ask your customs broker to confirm its relevance to your shipment, particularly if the material is recovered or discarded. For waste shipped under notification controls involving England, consent from the dispatch, destination and transit authorities is needed before shipment.

Confirm the commodity code using the substance identity, composition and intended use. Do not assume a suspension for tartaric acid covers its salts. For related salts within this heading, see potassium bitartrate. Budget separately for import VAT using the duty and VAT guide.

Specify the tartrate identity and grade

Write potassium sodium tartrate in the purchase specification, with the chemical identity and hydration state. Distinguish it from potassium bitartrate, sodium tartrate and tartaric acid. Agree food, technical or laboratory grade, assay basis, water content, particle size and impurity acceptance criteria. Ask for a batch certificate of analysis with the methods used.

GB chemical importers are responsible for hazard classification. Confirm with HSE whether UK REACH registration is required for your annual import quantity and intended use, and whether any exemption applies, including for food uses, before ordering. For food-use material, the applicable additive specification must be met; request evidence against that specification rather than accepting a generic food-grade statement.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: One tonne of technical-grade potassium sodium tartrate; illustrative order and values under 2918 13 00 00, invoiced at £2,500 free on board, with £980 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £3,480. Duty at 6% is £208.80. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £3,688.80, so it is £737.76. Import taxes total £946.56; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £208.80 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Identity: match the product name and hydration state on the order, bag labels and batch certificate. Check that the certificate describes potassium sodium tartrate.

Analysis: compare assay, its reporting basis, water content and agreed impurity results with the purchase specification. Arrange independent testing where the supplier's results need confirmation.

Condition: open sampled packs to check for moisture, hard lumps, discolouration and foreign material. Compare particle size and dissolution behaviour with the approved sample.

Packing: check sealed liners, dry outer packaging, net weight and readable batch identification. Match each sampled batch to its analysis certificate during quality inspection.

What goes wrong

A quotation headed only 'tartrate' leaves room for the wrong salt or grade. Assay figures can also be misleading when the reporting basis or hydration state differs. Require the complete substance name and agreed test methods on the order and certificate.

Damp packs, hard lumps and missing batch identifiers make incoming stock difficult to use or verify. Hold affected material apart while you investigate. A technical-grade certificate does not establish compliance with a food additive specification, and a satisfactory sample does not establish the quality of the shipment.

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.