Walking sticks from China: import duty and MHRA rules

Import duty: 2% on heading 6602

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, walking sticks, seat-sticks, whips, riding crops and the like, heading 6602, carried 2% on goods from China, hand-made or not, with no anti-dumping measure and no suspension. The line also carries import controls for goods made from CITES-listed species, seal products and goods that could be used for torture, which matter only for sticks with protected woods, ivory, seal skin or weighted or spiked ends. Crutches are orthopaedic appliances of heading 9021 and are covered in our elbow crutches guide; confirm the commodity code for each product. For the reverse trade route, see UK walking stick exports to China.

Suppose, purely for illustration, you import 3,000 height-adjustable aluminium walking sticks under 6602 00 00 90 at £9,000 free on board, with £900 to ship and insure. The customs value is £9,900, duty at 2% is £198, and VAT on £10,098 is £2,019.60. Only the £198 of duty stays a cost for a VAT-registered business. The method is in how UK import duty and VAT work.

Decide first: mobility aid or not?

Under the Medical Devices Regulations 2002, a product the manufacturer intends to help people with an injury or disability is a medical device. A walking stick or tripod sold as a mobility aid falls within that definition and is normally class I, so it needs UKCA or CE marking on the manufacturer's own declaration, technical documentation, a UK responsible person where the manufacturer is outside the UK, and registration with the MHRA. Our medical devices and PPE guide sets out that route.

Fashion canes, hiking poles, riding crops and seat-sticks sold for shooting, racing or spectating, with no medical claims, fall under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 instead. The decision is made by the words you use, so take it in this order: write a one-line intended purpose for each stick, check that the pack, the instructions and every online listing say the same thing, and only then approve artwork. A seat-stick described as helping someone who cannot stand for long is being sold as a mobility aid.

If the stick will carry your brand rather than the factory's, ask your regulatory adviser before ordering who is the legal manufacturer and therefore who holds the technical documentation and signs the declaration.

What to ask the factory before sampling

The test report behind the maximum user weight it prints on the stick, and the method used. ISO 11334-4 sets requirements and test methods for walking sticks with three or more legs; for single-leg sticks, write an equivalent static load test into the order. A weight printed on a label with no report behind it is a claim you will be making, not the factory.

The tube alloy and wall thickness, the type of height lock (spring push-button or twist collar), the ferrule compound and whether it has a steel insert, and how the handle is fixed to the shaft. For seat-sticks, also ask for the seat load the design was tested to and how the spike or ground plate is retained. For a mobility aid, ask whether the factory already holds technical documentation for this model for the UK or EU market and whether it will share it with your UK responsible person. For component sourcing, see our umbrella and walking stick parts guide.

Extra checks for seat-sticks and folding sticks

Seat-sticks fail at the seat hinge and the ground end. On production samples, open and close the seat repeatedly, load the seat in the position a user sits, and check that the spike or plate cannot pull out. Check that the seat locks open and does not fold under a sideways load.

Folding sticks fail at the joints and the internal elastic cord. Check that every section seats fully with no play, that the cord returns the sections firmly, and that the latch holds under load. On adjustable sticks, check that each push button protrudes fully through its hole at every height setting and that the height range and increments match the specification.

Common mistakes

Ordering a mobility range with no marking or UK responsible person in place, or printing medical claims on a stick that was never placed on the market as a device. Accepting a maximum user weight with no test report. Approving a sample with a different ferrule or handle fixing from the one used in production. Treating a hiking-pole factory's paperwork as if it covered a mobility aid.

Load-test samples from production, check every lock and fold, approve labels and claims before printing, and keep the test report with the declaration. Cambridge China Bridge sources walking sticks, folding sticks and seat-sticks for pharmacies, mobility shops and country-sports retailers, and checks the factory and its documents before the first order. See factory verification. For other mobility products, see sourcing wheelchairs and mobility scooters. For continence products, see our adult incontinence pants sourcing guide.