Subheading · Chapter 15 · Heading 1516

1516.30: Microbial fats and oils and their fractions

Subheading 1516.30 belongs to heading 1516 (animal, vegetable or microbial fats and oils and their fractions, partly or…) in chapter 15.

Importing into Country of origin

What you pay

Importing into UK

Customs duty 10% – 12% standard rate · across 2 national lines depends on the country of origin

Additional duties and charges 1 additional measure Import requirements: 3

VAT 20.00 % import VAT

Duty calculatorCalculate duty and taxes →

Rates by national line · UK Global Tariff

UK lines →

1516 30 00 00 Microbial fats and oils and their fractions
1516 30 91 00 In immediate packings of a net content not exceeding 1 kg 12%
1516 30 98 00 Other 10%

Additional duties and import rules

Charges on top of the customs duty, and rules the goods must meet at the border.

Additional duties and charges 1

Duty suspensionSuspension - goods for certain categories of ships, boats and other vessels and for drilling or production platforms Free
Applies to goods from
all countries

Legal act
2020 No. 1431
Documents
- C990 End use authorisation ships and platforms (Column 8c, Annex A of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446)

Import requirements 3

Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
Applies to goods from
Ukraine

Legal act
S.I. 2022/395
Documents
- 9009
- 9010
- 9017
Import controlImport control of organic products
Applies to goods from
all countries except Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Spain, Finland, France, United Kingdom, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia

Legal act
S.I. 2019/693
Documents
- C644 Certificate of inspection for organic products
- Y929 Goods not concerned by Regulation (EU) 2018/848 (organic products)
Import controlImport control - Waste
Applies to goods from
all countries

Legal act
S.I. 2019/590
Documents
- C672 Information document accompanying shipments of waste as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 – Article 18 and Annex VII
- C669 Notification document as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 - Article 5 and Annex IA
- Y923 Product not subjected to the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2024/1157
- C670 Movement document as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 – Article 5 and Annex IB

Preferential rates by country

Agreement or scheme	Countries	Rate
standard rate (no agreement)	—	10% – 12%
DCTS Comprehensive	Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin and 38 more Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo - Kinshasa, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Laos, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé & Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia	Free
European Union (including code "EU")	Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia and 23 more Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden	Free
DCTS Enhanced	Algeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville and 13 more Algeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville, Cook Islands, Kyrgyzstan, Micronesia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Niue, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu	Free
CARIFORUM	Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize and 10 more Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago	Free
OCTs (Overseas Countries and Territories)	Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands and 7 more Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands, St Helena, Turks & Caicos Islands	Free
Central America	Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama	Free
SADC EPA	Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia	Free
Eastern and Southern Africa States	Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Zimbabwe	Free
CPTPP	Brunei, Malaysia	Free
UK–Albania agreement	Albania	Free
UK–Australia agreement	Australia	Free
UK–Canada agreement	Canada	Free
UK–Côte d’Ivoire agreement	Côte d’Ivoire	Free
UK–Chile agreement	Chile	Free
UK–Cameroon agreement	Cameroon	Free
UK–Colombia agreement	Colombia	Free
UK–Ceuta & Melilla agreement	Ceuta & Melilla	Free
UK–Ecuador agreement	Ecuador	Free
UK–Egypt agreement	Egypt	Free
UK–Fiji agreement	Fiji	Free
UK–Georgia agreement	Georgia	Free
UK–Ghana agreement	Ghana	Free
UK–Israel agreement	Israel	Free
UK–India agreement	India	Free
UK–Iceland agreement	Iceland	Free
UK–Jordan agreement	Jordan	Free
UK–Japan agreement	Japan	Free
UK–Kenya agreement	Kenya	Free
UK–South Korea agreement	South Korea	Free
UK–Lebanon agreement	Lebanon	Free
UK–Morocco agreement	Morocco	Free
UK–Moldova agreement	Moldova	Free
UK–North Macedonia agreement	North Macedonia	Free
UK–Mexico agreement	Mexico	Free
UK–Norway agreement	Norway	Free
UK–New Zealand agreement	New Zealand	Free
UK–Peru agreement	Peru	Free
UK–Papua New Guinea agreement	Papua New Guinea	Free
UK–Palestinian Territories agreement	Palestinian Territories	Free
UK–Serbia agreement	Serbia	Free
UK–Solomon Islands agreement	Solomon Islands	Free
UK–Singapore agreement	Singapore	Free
UK–San Marino agreement	San Marino	Free
UK–Türkiye agreement	Türkiye	Free
UK–Ukraine agreement	Ukraine	Free
UK–Vietnam agreement	Vietnam	Free
UK–Samoa agreement	Samoa	Free
UK–Kosovo agreement	Kosovo	Free
UK–South Africa agreement	South Africa	Free

UK: imports by month

last 12 months£954k+29.4% · previous 12 months

Average import price£58.69 per kg

Data up to August 2026 (provisional) · Monthly data: Eurostat Comext (CC BY 4.0), HMRC (OGL v3.0)

Main suppliers, last 12 months

Country	Value	Share	Change
France	£933k	97.8%	+27.5%
Sri Lanka	£7k	0.7%	+94.3%
United Arab Emirates	£6k	0.6%	—
Netherlands	£4k	0.5%	—
United States	£3k	0.3%	+44.4%
Poland	£936	0.1%	—
Italy	£931	0.1%	—
Ireland	£0	0%	-100%

Same subheading in other tariffs

EU 10.9% – 12.8% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines · average 11.9%

Türkiye 46.8% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines

USA specific or compound duty General (MFN) 1 tariff line

World trade in 2024

1516.30 · US$35.9m

Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$47kUS$47k+US$549.3k+US$1.8m+> US$4.8m

Exports: 70

Canada: US$7.8m
Italy: US$4.8m
Tanzania: US$4.8m
France: US$3.4m
Austria: US$2.2m
Netherlands: US$1.8m
Bulgaria: US$1.6m
United States: US$1.3m
Norway: US$1m
Türkiye: US$933.1k
Malaysia: US$901.6k
Indonesia: US$689.6k
China: US$665.2k
Spain: US$638.4k
Kenya: US$549.3k
Germany: US$536.6k
Latvia: US$424.5k
Belgium: US$331.2k
India: US$183.1k
Portugal: US$141.3k
Poland: US$137.4k
Sweden: US$135k
Finland: US$125.7k
Saudi Arabia: US$84.7k
Switzerland: US$73.3k
Ghana: US$70.9k
Czechia: US$67.5k
Vietnam: US$60.8k
Singapore: US$58.9k
Taiwan: US$47k
United Arab Emirates: US$46.9k
Thailand: US$45.6k
South Korea: US$38.1k
Honduras: US$25.3k
South Africa: US$23.5k
Croatia: US$18.1k
Lithuania: US$18.1k
United Kingdom: US$18k
Denmark: US$17.3k
Romania: US$14.8k
Cyprus: US$14.2k
Russia: US$14k
Australia: US$11.3k
Brazil: US$9.5k
Israel: US$2.2k
Morocco: US$2.2k
Mexico: US$2.1k
Iceland: US$1.2k
Fiji: US$1.1k
Côte d’Ivoire: US$500
Congo - Kinshasa: US$300
Japan: US$300
Panama: US$300
Costa Rica: US$200
Bosnia & Herzegovina: US$100
Colombia: US$100
Ireland: US$100
Luxembourg: US$100
Chad: US$100
Argentina: US$0

Top exporters

Rank	Country	Value	Share
1	Canada	US$7.8m	21.7%
2	Italy	US$4.8m	13.5%
3	Tanzania	US$4.8m	13.3%
4	France	US$3.4m	9.4%
5	Austria	US$2.2m	6.2%
6	Netherlands	US$1.8m	4.9%
7	Bulgaria	US$1.6m	4.5%
8	United States	US$1.3m	3.6%
9	Norway	US$1m	2.8%
10	Türkiye	US$933.1k	2.6%

Top importers

Rank	Country	Value	Share
1	South Korea	US$8.1m	22.5%
2	Greece	US$6.1m	17%
3	Zambia	US$4.4m	12.1%
4	United States	US$2.8m	7.8%
5	Hungary	US$2m	5.7%
6	Austria	US$1.7m	4.7%
7	Germany	US$1.1m	3%
8	Tanzania	US$801.1k	2.2%
9	Netherlands	US$752.3k	2.1%
10	Lithuania	US$747.3k	2.1%

Binding rulings for similar goods 1

Decisions of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CROSS) and HMRC (Advance Tariff Rulings) on goods classified here. A ruling binds only its holder, but shows how the authorities classify similar goods. The descriptions are the authorities’ own, in English.

N355338 U.S. CBP 24 November 2025 · 1516.30.00.00

The tariff classification of Algae Oil from Norway

Recent rule changes mentioning this code

Acts whose text cites this code or its heading. Check the act itself: a code can be cited for reasons other than a change of its duty.

Tariff change 22 June 2026 · Applies from: 12 July 2026

Regulation (EU) 2026/1395 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2026 on applying a generalised scheme of tariff preferences and repealing Regulation (EU) No 978/2012

CELEX 32026R1395 · Source: eur-lex.europa.eu

Rule changes →

Code history

Since 2022; before, these goods were classified under 1516.20.

The UK Global Tariff divides subheading 1516.30 into 2 tariff lines; the duty is between 10% and 12% (average 11%).

In the EU Combined Nomenclature, subheading 1516.30 covers 2 tariff lines and the duty is between 10.9% and 12.8%.

168 countries pay no duty in the UK thanks to trade agreements and preference schemes such as DCTS Comprehensive and European Union, against a standard rate of 10% – 12%.

Imports of these goods into the UK came to £953.8k between September 2025 and August 2026 (up 29% on the year before); France supplied 98%, followed by Sri Lanka.

In 2024, countries exported these goods worth US$35.9m (+76.9% year on year).

The largest exporter was Canada (US$7.8m), followed by Italy.

Questions and answers

What is the HS code for microbial fats and oils and their fractions?

Microbial fats and oils and their fractions fall under HS subheading 1516.30, part of heading 1516, in section III of the Harmonized System.

What is the import duty on microbial fats and oils and their fractions in the UK?

Under the UK Global Tariff, imports under 1516.30 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 10% to 12%, depending on the line. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.

What is the import duty on microbial fats and oils and their fractions in the EU?

Under the EU Combined Nomenclature, imports under 1516.30 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 10.9% to 12.8%, depending on the line. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.

Which country exports the most microbial fats and oils and their fractions?

Canada, with US$7.8m in 2024 (21.7% of world exports).

Which countries can export these goods to the UK duty-free?

168 countries pay no duty under a trade agreement or preference scheme, among them partners under DCTS Comprehensive, European Union, DCTS Enhanced. The goods must meet the agreement’s rules of origin and the importer needs proof of origin; otherwise the standard rate of 10% – 12% applies. Pick a country above to see its rate.

Where does the UK import these goods from?

In the 12 months to August 2026, the largest suppliers were France (98%), Sri Lanka (1%) and United Arab Emirates (1%), out of total imports of £953.8k.