Sourcing carpets and artificial grass from China
Tufted carpets and textile floor coverings from China, including broadloom carpet, carpet tiles, rugs and artificial grass, pay 8% UK duty, with no anti-dumping duty. Carpets and artificial grass used in buildings are construction products with a declaration of performance and a fire class. Cambridge China Bridge sources tufted carpets and artificial grass.
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A flat 8%
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, tufted carpets and textile floor coverings of wool, of nylon or other polyamides, of other man-made textile materials and of other textiles, including turf, carpet tiles up to 1 m² and other tufted floor coverings of heading 5703, carried 8% duty on goods from China, with no anti-dumping measure.
Woven carpets are in heading 5702 and needle-felt carpets in 5704; confirm the commodity code from the construction and pile fibre. For other floor coverings, see rugs and bath mats.
| Goods | Commodity code | Duty | Anti-dumping duty on China |
|---|---|---|---|
| Of wool or fine animal hair | 5703 10 00 00 | 8% | None |
| Turf of nylon or other polyamides | 5703 21 00 00 | 8% | None |
| Nylon carpet, other than tiles, other | 5703 29 19 00 | 8% | None |
| Turf of other man-made materials | 5703 31 00 00 | 8% | None |
| Other man-made carpet, not tiles, other | 5703 39 99 00 | 8% | None |
| Of other textiles, other | 5703 90 80 90 | 8% | None |
Fire classes and standards
Textile floor coverings are covered by the harmonised standard EN 14041, so under the Construction Products Regulation as it applies in Great Britain they need a declaration of performance and UKCA or CE marking, including the reaction to fire class, such as Cfl-s1, and slip resistance where declared. Contract buyers also ask for the use class under EN 1307 for carpet and EN 15102 or the artificial turf standards for sports and landscaping grass.
Worked duty example
For a made-up shipment of 5,000 square metres of artificial grass under 5703 21 00 00, add the £3,500 of freight and insurance to the £21,000 free-on-board price and customs sees £24,500. At 8%, duty on these artificial grass is £1,960; import VAT of £5,292 is 20% of the value with duty added. Together that is £7,252, but a VAT-registered importer usually gets the VAT back. The duty and VAT guide walks through the calculation.
Inspection checklist
Fire and performance: the reaction to fire class tested to EN ISO 9239-1 and EN ISO 11925-2 and classified to EN 13501-1 for the exact construction and backing, and the declaration of performance under EN 14041 checked against that report before the product is sold.
Construction: pile mass and total mass measured by the methods of ISO 8543, tuft withdrawal force to ISO 4919, and dimensional stability of tiles to ISO 2551 so that tiles do not curl or gap, each compared with the specification on samples from each production batch.
Artificial grass and colour: sports surfaces checked against the relevant part of EN 15330-1, colour and UV resistance checked by xenon-arc exposure to ISO 4892-2 against the approved standard, and roll width, length, batch numbers and core wrapping checked at loading. For wall greenery alongside artificial grass, see our artificial green wall panels guide.
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What goes wrong
Carpets and artificial grass fail on pile weight, backing and colour. Pile weight below the specification wears out fast, backings delaminate or shrink so tiles curl and broadloom ripples, and latex that smells strongly causes complaints indoors. Artificial grass without UV stabiliser fades and turns brittle in a few summers, drainage holes are missing or blocked, and colour differs between rolls cut from different batches.
Ask for the test report for the fire class and pile weight, measure pile height and weight on samples, check tuft bind and backing adhesion, run a UV and colour fastness check on grass, and at inspection check roll widths, lengths, batch numbers and wrapping so rolls are not crushed.
Cambridge China Bridge sources broadloom carpet, carpet tiles, rugs and artificial grass, with fire classes, pile specifications and batch control agreed before the order. Find out how we source flooring.
Related guides: Needle-felt carpet and carpet tiles from China. For trade in the other direction, see exporting UK carpets to China.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UK import duty on artificial grass from China?
Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, artificial grass and tufted carpets of heading 5703 carried 8% duty from China.
Does carpet need a fire class?
Yes when used in buildings. EN 14041 requires a declaration of performance with the reaction to fire class.
Where do woven carpets go?
Woven carpets are in heading 5702 and needle-felt carpets in 5704.
Why does artificial grass fade?
Usually because the yarn lacks enough UV stabiliser for outdoor use.