Resistors and potentiometers from China

0% duty

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 27 September 2026, electrical resistors, including rheostats and potentiometers but not heating resistors, heading 8533, carried 0% on goods from China on every line: fixed carbon resistors, other fixed resistors, wirewound variable resistors, other variable resistors, and parts. No line carried an anti-dumping measure.

Heating resistors are under heading 8516, and resistor networks mounted on a board are assemblies classified by what they are part of. Bare boards are covered in our printed circuit boards guide and finished products in our electronics guide.

Standards and restricted substances

Fixed resistors for electronic equipment are specified to the IEC 60115 series, and parts for vehicles are usually qualified to AEC-Q200. Components going into electrical products sold in the UK must let the finished product meet the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012, so ask for RoHS declarations and material data for each part number.

Specifying resistors

Specify resistance value and tolerance, power rating, temperature coefficient, package or case size, technology (thick film, thin film, metal film, wirewound), maximum working voltage, for potentiometers the taper, rotation life and shaft, and reel or tray packing with moisture labelling.

Worked duty example

Suppose, purely for illustration, you import 2 million surface-mount chip resistors under 8533 21 00 00. At £9,000 free on board and £300 to ship and insure, the customs value is £9,300. With 0% duty on chip resistors, the only charge is import VAT: 20% of £9,300, or £1,860. VAT-registered businesses usually recover that in their next return. The method is set out in how UK import duty and VAT work.

Inspection checklist

Values: measure a sample from each reel or lot for resistance and tolerance, and check markings and case size against the datasheet.

Authenticity: check the manufacturer's labels, lot and date codes, and that parts come from the maker or an authorised distributor, since relabelled or recycled parts are common in the open market.

Packing and documents: check reels are sealed with the right labels, and RoHS declarations and certificates of conformance match the part numbers.

What goes wrong

Resistor orders fail on substitution, drift and authenticity. A cheaper technology is supplied under the same value, tolerance or temperature coefficient is wider than ordered, power resistors run hot and drift, potentiometers become noisy, and open-market parts turn out to be relabelled.

Buy against a full part number, measure samples, and trace the source. See our quality inspection guide.

Cambridge China Bridge sources resistors and other passives for UK electronics makers, and can take over an existing supplier relationship with lot checks. See existing suppliers.