Sourcing vegetable parchment paper from China

Vegetable parchment duty and classification

Heading 4806 covers vegetable parchment, greaseproof, tracing and glassine or other glazed transparent or translucent papers in rolls or sheets. Vegetable parchment is listed under 4806 10 00 00. The table shows purchasing forms under that same code, rather than separate tariff subdivisions.

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, vegetable parchment from China carries 0% duty. The supplied record lists no anti-dumping or countervailing duty, suspension or attached import control for this line.

Silicone-, wax- or plastics-coated or impregnated paper falls outside heading 4806; paper cut to shape for a particular use can move to heading 4823. Confirm the commodity code using the composition, treatment and supplied form. See the greaseproof and glassine paper guide for the wider heading.

Specify the parchment treatment and food use

Ask the mill to identify the parchment grade, pulp source and treatment, including any coating or added grease-resistant chemicals. Agree grammage, colour, reel width, core size, sheet dimensions, splice marking and packing. Approve a sample using your actual food and converting process; a supplier's description of 'parchment' does not establish suitability for baking.

Confirm with the relevant food safety authority the applicable requirements for transfer of constituents from food-contact paper into food. Ask for compliance documentation and migration testing matched to the intended food, contact time and temperature. Agree any fluorine testing with the laboratory where the purchase specification excludes fluorinated treatments.

Confirm with the relevant timber regulation authority whether the paper falls within the UK Timber Regulations, what due diligence applies to the business first placing it on the Great Britain market, and whether any exclusion applies to bamboo-based or recovered products described in the wider guide. Obtain the pulp source, species and country of harvest before ordering, rather than relying solely on a supplier certificate.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 20 tonnes of vegetable parchment in reels under 4806 10 00 00, invoiced at £26,000 free on board, with £2,800 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £28,800. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £28,800, so it is £5,760. 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: compare the batch description, treatment information and supplied form with the approved vegetable parchment sample and order.

Performance: test grease resistance across the paper and at folds using the intended food; check for pinholes, tearing and objectionable odour.

Dimensions: measure grammage, sheet or reel width and core size; check curl and feeding behaviour against the agreed specification.

Arrival condition: inspect reel edges, cores, wrapping and sheets for crushing, dampness and contamination; match batch references to the test documents.

What goes wrong

An order described simply as parchment can arrive as a different paper grade or as coated baking paper. That can change classification and performance. Keep the approved sample, treatment description and intended use together, and investigate substitutions before releasing the batch.

Grease penetration at folds, pinholes, uneven grammage and curled sheets can make otherwise acceptable paper unsuitable for the buyer's process. Damaged reel edges or cores can interrupt converting. Agree these checks before production and compare arrival samples with the approved sample.

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.