Sourcing women's woven shorts from China

Duty on women's woven shorts

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 29 September 2026, heading 6204 includes women's shorts other than swimwear. The supplied shorts rows specifically cover hand-printed batik goods in cotton, synthetic fibres, artificial fibres and other textile materials. All carry 12% duty from China, with no anti-dumping or countervailing duty or suspension recorded. These rows do not establish the code for ordinary plain or printed shorts.

The listed rows attach cat and dog fur and seal-product import controls; the other-textile row also attaches CITES. Ask your customs broker and the relevant authorities to confirm whether any cat and dog fur products can be imported. For commercial seal-product imports into Great Britain, confirm eligibility and the required documentation with your broker and the relevant authorities before ordering. For CITES-listed materials, confirm the applicable import and export documents with your customs broker and the authorities before ordering from China.

Confirm the commodity code using the finished shorts, fabric composition and printing method. Do not use a trousers or overalls row simply because its fibre description matches. For the wider heading context, see women's woven culottes. For jumpsuit sourcing, see our women's woven jumpsuit sourcing guide.

Specify the waistband, rise and leg opening

Specify woven construction, fibre composition, fabric weight, stretch, lining and finish. Agree measurement points and tolerances for waist, hip, front and back rise, inside leg and leg opening. Define whether the waistband is fixed, elasticated or partly elasticated, and describe belt loops, pockets, zip, button and hem construction.

Approve a sample while sitting, bending and walking, checking crotch comfort, pocket gaping and hem coverage. For batik shorts, agree acceptable shade variation and pattern placement. Fibre content must appear on the label. Agree care instructions and size identification, then check a washed sample against the original.

UK businesses importing consumer products are responsible for their safety. Include checks for sharp fastener edges, loose attachments and uncomfortable seam ends in the sample review.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: 500 women's cotton woven batik shorts; illustrative order, FOB value and freight under 6204 62 90 10, invoiced at £5,000 free on board, with £800 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £5,800. Duty at 12% is £696. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £6,496, so it is £1,299.20. Import taxes total £1,995.20; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £696 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Fit: measure supplied sizes against the approved chart; check waistband recovery, rise, leg symmetry and pocket openings.

Fabric and print: compare production with approved swatches; check opacity, shade variation, pattern placement and colour transfer after washing.

Seams and fasteners: inspect crotch seams, pocket reinforcement, hems and belt loops; operate zips and buttons and check for sharp edges.

Labels and packing: compare fibre labels with material records, verify size assortments and inspect unpacked shorts for stains, dampness and distorted waistbands. Plan checks with the quality inspection guide.

What goes wrong

A waist measurement can match while the rise is too short or the leg opening restricts movement. Elastic can twist inside its casing, pockets can gape and crotch seams can open under tension. Keep the approved construction sample and measurement method available during production.

Production fabric can shrink differently from the sample, leaving puckered hems or tight waistbands. Batik shade variation can exceed what the buyer approved, and colour can transfer onto lining or adjacent garments. Agree wash checks and acceptable variation before cutting, and review the packed goods again on arrival.

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.