Sourcing wool tops and carded wool from China

Zero duty

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, wool and fine or coarse animal hair of heading 5105, carded or combed, including combed wool in tops and cashmere tops, carried 0% on goods from China on every line, with no anti-dumping measure and no veterinary control on these lines.

Greasy or scoured wool that has not been carded or combed is heading 5101, uncarded fine animal hair such as raw cashmere is covered in our cashmere and animal hair guide, and spun yarn is a later heading; worsted fabric is in our worsted wool fabrics guide. Confirm the commodity code from the processing stage.

Specifying tops

Tops are bought on mean fibre diameter in microns and its variation, mean fibre length and short-fibre content, vegetable matter, colour and residual grease, measured by IWTO test methods on a certificate for each lot; cashmere is also bought on guard hair content. Put these in the product specification with the top weight and packing.

Wool sold on to spinners, crafters or garment makers is a textile product, so the fibre names and percentages on labels and invoices must follow the [Textile Products (Labelling and Fibre Composition) Regulations 2012](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/1102/contents); claims such as mulesing-free or certified responsible wool need the certificate and transaction certificate from the supplier.

Worked duty example

For a made-up shipment of 5 tonnes of merino wool tops under 5105 29 00 00, add the £1,800 of freight and insurance to the £50,000 free-on-board price and customs sees £51,800. Duty on wool tops is zero, leaving import VAT of £10,360, 20% of the customs value. For a VAT-registered buyer that is a cash-flow cost rather than a lasting one. The duty and VAT guide walks through the calculation.

What goes wrong

Tops fail on micron, length and cleanliness. Fibre diameter is coarser than the certificate, so the yarn or felt is harsher; short fibres and neps raise waste in spinning; vegetable matter and kemp show in finished goods; cashmere is blended with finer wool or contains more guard hair than stated; and bales arrive damp and yellowed.

Test mean diameter and length on samples from several bales against the lot certificate, check vegetable matter and neps, run a short spinning or felting trial, test cashmere for fibre identity and guard hair, check bale moisture and weight, and keep a retained sample of the approved lot.

Cambridge China Bridge sources wool and cashmere tops and carded wool for spinners, felt makers and craft brands, starting with sample tops and small first lots. See how we handle first and smaller orders.