Retread strips and uncured rubber from China
Camel-back strips for retreading tyres and other unvulcanised rubber forms from China, such as rods, tubes, profiles, discs and rings, pay 0% UK duty on both lines of heading 4006, with no anti-dumping duty. Treads for retreading must meet the UK REACH limit on extender oils, and retreaded tyres the Motor Vehicle Tyres (Safety) Regulations 1994.
Camel-back retread strips and other unvulcanised rubber rods, tubes, profiles, discs and rings from China pay 0% UK duty. Extender oil and cure checks.
0% duty
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 27 September 2026, heading 4006 covers other forms (for example, rods, tubes and profile shapes) and articles (for example, discs and rings) of unvulcanised rubber. Both lines, camel-back strips for retreading rubber tyres (4006 10 00 00) and other (4006 90 00 00), carried 0% on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure and no suspension.
Compounded rubber in primary forms, plates, sheets and strip is heading 4005, vulcanised rubber goods are headings 4008 to 4016 (see our rubber sheet and matting guide), and retreaded tyres are 4012 (see our solid and retreaded tyres guide), so confirm the commodity code.
| Goods | Commodity code | Duty | Anti-dumping duty on China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camel-back strips for retreading rubber tyres | 4006 10 00 00 | 0% | None |
| Other forms and articles of unvulcanised rubber | 4006 90 00 00 | 0% | None |
Extender oils and tyre rules
Entry 50 of Annex XVII to UK REACH says tyres and treads for retreading manufactured after 1 January 2010 must not be placed on the market if they contain extender oils above the limits in the entry; the limits are regarded as kept if the vulcanised compound does not exceed 0.35% Bay protons measured by ISO 21461. Ask the supplier for that test on the vulcanised tread compound.
Retreaders fitting the strip must meet the Motor Vehicle Tyres (Safety) Regulations 1994 for the retreaded tyres they supply, so the tread compound must support the marking and performance those tyres need.
Specifying retread strip and uncured rubber
Specify the polymer blend (natural rubber, styrene-butadiene, polybutadiene), hardness after cure, tensile strength and abrasion loss, width, thickness and profile, cure system and recommended cure time and temperature, cushion gum or bonding layer, shelf life and storage temperature, and interleaving film on rolls.
Worked duty example
An invented example rather than a quote: 12 tonnes of camel-back tread strip on rolls, commodity code 4006 10 00 00, bought for £27,000 free on board, with £1,800 of freight and insurance, so £28,800 is the value customs works from. No duty is due on camel-back strip; import VAT at 20% of £28,800 is £5,760. If you are VAT-registered, that VAT is normally reclaimable. See calculating UK import duty and VAT for the method.
Inspection checklist
Compound: cure samples to the stated cycle and check hardness, tensile strength, elongation and abrasion against the specification, and ask for the ISO 21461 result.
Dimensions: measure width, thickness and profile along each sampled roll.
Storage and shelf life: check production dates, interleaving and that rolls are not pre-cured or scorched from heat in transit.
What goes wrong
Uncured rubber orders fail on scorch, shelf life and compound. Strip partly cures in a hot container and will not bond, rolls arrive near the end of their shelf life, the compound wears faster than the retreader's current supply, and extender oil content is not documented.
Ship in cool conditions, test cured samples and keep the compound documents. See our quality inspection guide.
Cambridge China Bridge sources retread strip and uncured rubber profiles for UK retreaders and rubber fabricators, checking the compounding plant first. See factory verification.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UK import duty on camel-back retread strip from China?
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 27 September 2026, camel-back strips under 4006 10 00 00 carried 0% from China, with no anti-dumping duty.
Do treads for retreading have chemical limits?
Yes. UK REACH Annex XVII entry 50 limits extender oils in tyres and treads for retreading.
How is extender oil compliance shown?
By a vulcanised compound result of not more than 0.35% Bay protons under ISO 21461.
Are retreaded tyres in heading 4006?
No. Retreaded tyres are heading 4012.