Sourcing steel fire doors from China

Steel fire door duty and import controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 8 October 2026, steel doors, their frames and thresholds under 7308 30 00 00 carried 0% duty for goods from China. The supplied data records no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspension or steel measure for this line. The table separates products within the same commodity line.

The UK Trade Tariff attaches an import control of fluorinated greenhouse gases to this line. Products containing banned fluorinated gases must not be placed on the market in Great Britain. Ask the factory for the core composition and blowing-agent details, then have your customs broker confirm the applicable declaration and any restriction before shipment.

Heading 7308 covers iron or steel structures and their parts. Confirm the classification of separately supplied hardware through finding your commodity code. For other fabricated products, see steel structures and fabrications. For another steel door type, see steel roller shutter doors. For guarding, see our steel balustrade sourcing guide.

Specify the complete steel fire doorset

State the intended internal or external location, opening dimensions, handing, frame profile, wall construction, fixing arrangement and required fire and smoke performance. List the leaf construction, core, glazing, seals, hinges, latch and closer together. Ask the supplier to identify the evidence covering that configuration, rather than sending a certificate for a different door. For lintel procurement, see our steel cavity wall lintel guide.

For the Great Britain market, CE marking remains available for construction products. Ask for the relevant declaration of performance and supporting assessment documents, and have the project adviser check their scope. Do not use a structural steel fabrication certificate as a substitute for doorset evidence. Arrange testing and certification checks before approving production.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative steel fire doorset package for a small contractor's building project under 7308 30 00 00, invoiced at £60,000 free on board, with £6,000 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £66,000. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £66,000, so it is £13,200. 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

Identity: match the supplied doorset, labels and hardware schedule to the approved drawings and performance documents.

Fit: check frame squareness, leaf alignment, opening direction and clearances against the agreed specification; operate the door and closer.

Components: check seals, hinges, latch, glazing and fixings against the approved component list, including any permitted substitutions.

Arrival condition: inspect for distorted frames, damaged edges, coating damage and crushed seals; photograph discrepancies before installation.

What goes wrong

A supplier may offer a door for external use while its fire-performance claim covers only internal use. An official safety report on Metador doorsets found that the affected products did not meet the regulatory requirements to declare fire resistance for an external location. Treat location and declared performance as separate checks.

Unapproved changes to the core, glazing, seals or hardware can leave the buyer with a configuration that differs from the submitted evidence. Write substitution approval into the order and compare the production sample with the documents. Distorted frames and mismatched hardware also create installation problems even when the paperwork appears complete.

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.