Sourcing woven alpaca pile fabric from China

8% duty on woven alpaca pile fabric

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, heading 5801 covers woven pile and chenille fabrics. Its wool or fine animal hair line, 5801 10 00 00, carries 8% duty for goods from China. The supplied record lists no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension. The table shows fabric variants sharing this commodity line, rather than separate tariff subdivisions.

The UK Trade Tariff attaches CITES import and export controls to this line. For an import from China, have your customs broker confirm the requirement against the actual animal species and material. Official guidance requires a permit for species listed in Annex A, B or C in Species+. The tariff flag alone does not establish the paperwork needed for the proposed alpaca fabric.

Give your broker a fabric sample, construction details and the pile and ground fibre composition to confirm the commodity code. Knitted plush belongs under heading 6001. For the wider heading and related upholstery buying, see woven mohair upholstery fabric.

Specify the alpaca pile and the ground separately

State the alpaca content of the pile separately from the ground yarns, including any wool or synthetic blend. Agree usable width, fabric weight, pile height, density, nap direction, shade, backing and finish. Keep an approved physical sample showing the required handle and appearance with the pile brushed in the agreed direction.

Fabric sold by the metre to consumers needs fibre composition information. For domestic upholstery, confirm applicable cigarette and match resistance requirements with the relevant authority. Ask whether permanent covers of the actual composition and finish may use a fire-resistant interliner instead of passing the match test. Have the testing provider check the proposed route against the actual composition and finish before choosing it.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 100 metres of woven alpaca pile fabric under 5801 10 00 00, invoiced at £6,000 free on board, with £400 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £6,400. Duty at 8% is £512. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £6,912, so it is £1,382.40. Import taxes total £1,894.40; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £512 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Identity: compare the tested fibre composition with the order and proposed label; check the pile and ground descriptions separately.

Appearance: inspect rolls with the nap aligned, checking shade across the width and between dye lots, crush marks, bald patches and exposed ground.

Performance: check shedding, abrasion, colour transfer and dimensional change after the agreed cleaning method against the approved sample and purchase specification.

Finish and packing: check backing adhesion and stiffness, match upholstery reports to the supplied finish, and inspect roll ends, moisture damage and compression marks. Use the quality inspection guide to brief the inspection.

What goes wrong

A sample can feel soft while bulk fabric has a different blend, sparse pile or a stiffer backing. Reversed nap can make matching panels look different in colour. Tight packing can leave crush marks, while weak pile anchorage causes shedding during cutting and use.

Approve a production sample after finishing, retain shade references by dye lot and agree how defective lengths will be recorded. A report for a different backing or finish does not show how the delivered fabric performs. Keep roll identities linked to the samples and reports.

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.