Sourcing steel compression springs from China

UK duty on steel compression springs

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, heading 7320 covers springs and leaves for springs of iron or steel. Non-hot-worked coil compression springs fall under 7320 20 81 90; hot-worked helical springs have a separate line. The table also includes related spring forms for classification comparison.

The supplied lines carry 0% third-country duty for goods from China. They list no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspension or attached import control, and no steel measure. Import VAT is normally 20%. See UK import duty and VAT when budgeting the shipment.

Confirm the manufacturing process and spring geometry against the commodity code guidance. Do not classify a disc or other non-helical spring as a coil compression spring just because it works under compression. For the wider heading and tension designs, see extension springs.

Specify working loads and compression travel

Give the factory a drawing stating steel grade, wire diameter, outside or inside diameter, free length, active and total coil counts, winding direction and end form. State whether ends are closed and ground. Specify loads and tolerances at the working lengths, maximum compression travel and the available space around the spring.

Agree stress relieving, pre-setting, shot peening where specified, coating and fatigue testing for the intended duty. Approve a sample against the drawing before production, then retain its load results as a comparison for production inspection.

Ask for steel and coating composition information. In Great Britain, supplying an article containing a UK REACH Candidate List substance above 0.1% by weight requires sufficient safe-use information for business recipients, including the substance name. Assess this against the actual spring composition rather than accepting a general factory declaration.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 200,000 coil compression springs under 7320 20 81 90, invoiced at £18,000 free on board, with £1,500 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £19,500. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £19,500, so it is £3,900. With no duty, the only import tax is the VAT, which a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Load: measure force at the drawing's working lengths on a calibrated spring tester; compare samples across the production lot with the agreed tolerances.

Geometry: check wire diameter, free length, outside diameter, coil count, end squareness and parallelism; trial-fit samples in the intended assembly.

Material and treatment: match wire certificates to the agreed grade and batch; review stress-relieving, pre-setting and any specified shot-peening records.

Finish and packing: inspect tool marks, cracks and rust; verify coating tests and baking after plating where agreed, and check separators prevent tangling. Arrange quality inspection around these checks.

What goes wrong

A spring can match free length yet deliver the wrong force because wire diameter or active coil count differs. Poor end geometry can make it sit unevenly or rub against its housing. Missing pre-setting or stress relieving can leave permanent set after compression.

Surface damage and decarburisation can initiate fatigue cracks. Plated high-strength springs can suffer hydrogen embrittlement without suitable baking. Agree load, fatigue and coating acceptance before ordering, then compare arrival samples and batch records with that agreement.

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.