Sourcing textile swimming caps from China

Duty on textile swimming caps

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, heading 6505 covers knitted or crocheted headgear and headgear made up from textile fabric, alongside other specified headgear and hairnets. Textile swimming caps should be checked against 6505 00 90 90, carrying 2% duty from China. The table shows product variants under that same line. See the caps and hats guide for the wider heading.

The supplied tariff facts show no anti-dumping or countervailing duty for this line. Its suspension applies only to disposable hairnets, not swimming caps. The tariff attaches CITES, cat and dog fur, and seal-product import controls. Cat and dog fur products are banned; CITES specimens require permit checks. Seal products can enter Great Britain for sale only under the indigenous-community exemption, with a seal catch certificate. Specify the materials and ask your customs broker to confirm the applicable declarations.

Confirm the commodity code using the finished cap's material and construction, particularly for coated or mixed-material designs. The guidance here concerns textile caps and selling in Great Britain. For the import tax calculation, see UK import duty and VAT.

Specify wet fit and fabric recovery

Specify fibre composition, knit construction, fabric weight, panel shape, seam method, edge elastic, lining and intended head circumference range. Approve a physical sample on the intended wearer, including wet use. Agree how to assess stretching, recovery, chlorine exposure, rinsing and drying, rather than accepting an undefined claim of chlorine resistance.

Textile products need fibre content labelling. Consumer caps placed on the Great Britain market must be safe in normal or reasonably foreseeable use. Confirm with HSE whether UK REACH restrictions apply to the dyes used in the textile parts. Agree logo position and print stretch performance, and assess any claim that the cap keeps hair dry on the finished sample.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order of 2,500 plain textile swimming caps under 6505 00 90 90, invoiced at £2,500 free on board, with £900 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £3,400. Duty at 2% is £68. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £3,468, so it is £693.60. Import taxes total £761.60; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £68 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Fit and recovery: compare relaxed dimensions with the approved sample, try the cap wet and check whether the opening recovers after stretching.

Seams and edge: stretch panel joins and the opening; check broken stitches, exposed elastic, rough seam allowances and uneven tension.

Fabric and decoration: check colour transfer when wet, fabric distortion after the agreed chlorine exposure, and print cracking or peeling under stretch.

Labels and packing: match fibre content, size and agreed care information to the specification; check dry packing, colour segregation and carton contents at inspection.

What goes wrong

A cap can fit dry but slip when wet, or feel tight because its edge elastic differs from the approved sample. Seams can open during fitting, fabric can lose recovery after pool use, and prints can crack as the crown stretches. Approve the fabric and elastic together, then repeat the agreed wet-use checks on production samples.

Treat hair volume and wet fit as part of sizing. A fabric swatch alone cannot establish the finished cap's fit or ability to keep hair dry. Record the agreed performance checks and reject substitutions in fabric, elastic or seam construction unless a replacement sample is approved.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For own-brand ranges, see sourcing for brands.