Sourcing warp-knit shoe fabrics from China

UK duty on shoe upper fabric

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, heading 6005 covers warp-knitted fabrics, including galloon-knitted fabrics, outside headings 6001 to 6004. This guide concerns fabric in rolls for shoe uppers. Width, pile construction and elastane content matter: knitted fabric wider than 30 cm containing 5% or more elastane or rubber thread belongs in heading 6004. See the wider warp-knitted sports mesh guide.

The listed synthetic-fibre lines carry 8% duty for goods from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing measures and no attached import controls. Under 6005 36 00 00, a 0.00 % suspension is limited to weft-inserted warp-knitted polyester fabric meeting the specified width and length conditions. It excludes mixtures, preparations and products made from different components containing that fabric. Do not assume ordinary shoe mesh qualifies.

Other-fibre lines 6005 90 10 00 and 6005 90 90 00 attach CITES and cat-and-dog-fur controls. Importing CITES specimens requires a permit; cat and dog fur and products containing it are banned. For animal-derived material from China, confirm the species and applicable requirements with your customs broker before ordering. Confirm the commodity code from the fabric construction, fibre composition, width and finish.

Specify the mesh and shoe-making process

Specify polyester or nylon composition, yarn type, mesh opening, knit structure, mass per square metre and usable width after finishing. For spacer fabric, agree thickness and recovery after compression. Mark the cutting direction and agree stretch and recovery in each direction. Keep an approved swatch and colour sample for each quality.

Trial the fabric with the intended backing, adhesive, stitching and forming process. Check whether heat changes the shade, shrinks the mesh or flattens the spacer structure. Agree the required resistance to abrasion, snagging and colour transfer rather than accepting a report for a different fabric.

Ask HSE to confirm applicable UK REACH restrictions on azo dyes that release listed aromatic amines in textiles used in prolonged skin contact. Ask for testing appropriate to the intended use and the supplied dyed or printed quality. If selling fabric by the metre to consumers, its fibre composition must be labelled; ask Trading Standards to confirm the fibre names to use.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative trial order of dyed polyester shoe upper fabric in rolls under 6005 37 00 00, invoiced at £3,000 free on board, with £1,200 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £4,200. Duty at 8% is £336. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £4,536, so it is £907.20. Import taxes total £1,243.20; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £336 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Identity: compare fibre composition, knit structure, finish and roll identification with the approved sample and order.

Dimensions: measure usable width and mass per square metre across rolls; check spacer thickness and whether mesh openings remain consistent.

Colour and surface: compare rolls and edge-to-centre shade against the approved colour sample; inspect for needle lines, holes, snagged yarns and print defects.

Shoe-making trial: cut and stitch sample panels, apply the intended backing and forming process, and check distortion, colour transfer and bond performance before bulk cutting.

What goes wrong

Mesh can look correct on a swatch but stretch unevenly during cutting or forming. Narrow usable width disrupts the cutting plan, shade variation produces mismatched uppers, and snagged yarns become visible after the fabric is stretched over the last. Spacer fabric can lose thickness under processing pressure.

A changed finish can affect adhesive bonding, while heat can alter shade or dimensions. Approve a shoe-making trial using production fabric and retain reference samples from the supplied lots. Check incoming rolls before cutting and agree how faults will be recorded through the inspection process.

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.