Subheading · Chapter 55 · Heading 5503
5503.30: Synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: acrylic or modacrylic
Official description Acrylic or modacrylic
Subheading 5503.30 belongs to heading 5503 (synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise processed for spinning) in chapter 55.
What you pay
Importing into UK
Rates by national line · UK Global Tariff
UK lines →- 5503 30 00 00 Acrylic or modacrylic Free
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 suspensionAirworthiness tariff suspension Free
- Applies to goods from
- all countries
- Legal act
- S.I. 2018/1249
- Documents
- C119 Authorised Release Certificate — EASA Form 1 (Appendix I to Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 748/2012), or equivalent certificate
Import requirements 4
- Prohibition or restrictionImport prohibition
- Applies to goods from
- North Korea
- Legal act
- S.I. 2019/411
- Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
- Applies to goods from
- Ukraine
- Legal act
- S.I. 2022/395
- Documents
- 9009
- 9010
- 9017
- Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
- Applies to goods from
- North Korea
- Legal act
- S.I. 2019/411
- Documents
- Y084 Derogation from import prohibition by virtue of Article 16i (1) of Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1509
- Import controlImport control on restricted goods and technologies
- Applies to goods from
- Iran
- Legal act
- S.I. 2019/461
- Documents
- Y966 Goods other than those described in the MG footnotes linked to the measure (Missile Technology Control Regime list - Annex III of Reg. (EU) 267/2012)
Preferential rates by country
| Agreement or scheme | Countries | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| standard rate (no agreement) | — | Free |
| DCTS Comprehensive | Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin and 38 moreAfghanistan, 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") | Free | |
| DCTS Enhanced | Algeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville and 13 moreAlgeria, 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 moreAntigua & 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 moreAnguilla, 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–Andorra agreement | Andorra | Free |
| UK–Albania agreement | Albania | Free |
| UK–Australia agreement | Australia | Free |
| UK–Canada agreement | Canada | Free |
| UK–Switzerland agreement | Switzerland | 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–Faroe Islands agreement | Faroe Islands | Free |
| UK–Georgia agreement | Georgia | Free |
| UK–Ghana agreement | Ghana | Free |
| DCTS Standard | Indonesia | 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–Liechtenstein agreement | Liechtenstein | 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–Tunisia agreement | Tunisia | 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
Main suppliers, last 12 months
| Country | Value | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
 Japan | £4m | 73.6% | -33.9% |
 Peru | £873k | 16.2% | +48.9% |
 Türkiye | £182k | 3.4% | -37.9% |
 Germany | £170k | 3.2% | -60.8% |
 United States | £107k | 2% | -35.4% |
 China | £49k | 0.9% | -21.4% |
 Spain | £19k | 0.4% | +35.2% |
 Mexico | £12k | 0.2% | +39.2% |
Same subheading in other tariffs
EUWorld trade in 2024
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$100kUS$100k+US$4m+US$17m+> US$119m
Exports: 59
- Japan: US$143m
- Türkiye: US$119m
- Thailand: US$71m
- Portugal: US$25m
- China: US$21m
- United States: US$17m
- Mexico: US$12m
- Peru: US$9m
- South Korea: US$8m
- India: US$6m
- France: US$5m
- United Kingdom: US$5m
- Belgium: US$5m
- Vietnam: US$4m
- Hungary: US$4m
- Italy: US$4m
- Malaysia: US$4m
- Germany: US$3m
- Taiwan: US$1m
- Indonesia: US$1m
- Austria: US$717k
- Netherlands: US$626k
- Spain: US$602k
- South Africa: US$254k
- Romania: US$249k
- Canada: US$177k
- Singapore: US$160k
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$150k
- Poland: US$100k
- Slovakia: US$40k
- Switzerland: US$38k
- Serbia: US$36k
- Bulgaria: US$28k
- Slovenia: US$15k
- Mauritius: US$13k
- Australia: US$6k
- Cambodia: US$5k
- Uruguay: US$4k
- Armenia: US$3k
- Denmark: US$2k
- Sweden: US$2k
- Tunisia: US$1k
- North Macedonia: US$1k
- Malta: US$1k
- Qatar: US$900
- Czechia: US$800
- Pakistan: US$700
- New Zealand: US$600
- Philippines: US$600
- Ireland: US$500
- Nigeria: US$400
- Colombia: US$200
- United Arab Emirates: US$100
- Egypt: US$100
- Israel: US$100
- Kenya: US$100
- Luxembourg: US$100
- Uganda: US$100
- Ukraine: US$0
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$104kUS$104k+US$3m+US$7m+> US$34m
Imports: 126
- China: US$112m
- United States: US$57m
- Spain: US$45m
- India: US$34m
- Italy: US$25m
- Indonesia: US$24m
- Türkiye: US$18m
- Pakistan: US$13m
- Germany: US$10m
- Philippines: US$10m
- Romania: US$10m
- Netherlands: US$9m
- Vietnam: US$7m
- Portugal: US$6m
- United Kingdom: US$6m
- Mexico: US$5m
- France: US$4m
- Brazil: US$4m
- Malaysia: US$4m
- Morocco: US$4m
- Iran: US$4m
- Taiwan: US$4m
- Belgium: US$4m
- Serbia: US$4m
- Nigeria: US$3m
- Canada: US$3m
- Nepal: US$3m
- United Arab Emirates: US$3m
- Hungary: US$3m
- Slovenia: US$3m
- South Africa: US$3m
- South Korea: US$3m
- Myanmar (Burma): US$2m
- Russia: US$2m
- Japan: US$2m
- Thailand: US$2m
- Kenya: US$2m
- Bangladesh: US$2m
- Belarus: US$1m
- Algeria: US$1m
- Egypt: US$977k
- Czechia: US$911k
- Austria: US$803k
- Bulgaria: US$624k
- Greece: US$605k
- Croatia: US$562k
- Colombia: US$479k
- Poland: US$381k
- Cuba: US$346k
- Saudi Arabia: US$253k
- Mozambique: US$219k
- Zimbabwe: US$211k
- Uzbekistan: US$210k
- Switzerland: US$205k
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$198k
- Guatemala: US$194k
- Australia: US$182k
- Ecuador: US$169k
- Sweden: US$116k
- Argentina: US$108k
Top exporters
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan | US$143m | 30.3% |
| 2 | Türkiye | US$119m | 25.2% |
| 3 |  Thailand | US$71m | 15.1% |
| 4 |  Portugal | US$25m | 5.4% |
| 5 | China | US$21m | 4.5% |
| 6 | United States | US$17m | 3.7% |
| 7 | Mexico | US$12m | 2.6% |
| 8 | Peru | US$9m | 1.8% |
| 9 |  South Korea | US$8m | 1.8% |
| 10 |  India | US$6m | 1.3% |
Top importers
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | US$112m | 23.9% |
| 2 | United States | US$57m | 12.1% |
| 3 | Spain | US$45m | 9.5% |
| 4 | India | US$34m | 7.3% |
| 5 |  Italy | US$25m | 5.4% |
| 6 |  Indonesia | US$24m | 5.1% |
| 7 | Türkiye | US$18m | 3.8% |
| 8 |  Pakistan | US$13m | 2.7% |
| 9 | Germany | US$10m | 2.1% |
| 10 |  Philippines | US$10m | 2.1% |
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.
- Sanctions · Applies from:
The Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
S.I. 2026/543 · Source: legislation.gov.uk
The UK Global Tariff has one tariff line for subheading 5503.30; the duty is duty-free.
Subheading 5503.30 is a single line in the EU Combined Nomenclature, where the duty is 4%.
174 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 Free.
Imports of these goods into the UK came to £5.4m between September 2025 and August 2026 (down 30% on the year before); Japan supplied 74%, followed by Peru.
In 2024, countries exported these goods worth US$471m (+4.8% year on year).
The largest exporter was Japan (US$143m), followed by Türkiye.
Questions and answers
What is the HS code for synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: acrylic or modacrylic?
Synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: acrylic or modacrylic fall under HS subheading 5503.30, part of heading 5503, in section XI of the Harmonized System.
What is the import duty on synthetic staple fibres in the UK?
Under the UK Global Tariff, imports under 5503.30 from countries without a preferential agreement are free of duty. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
What is the import duty on synthetic staple fibres in the EU?
Under the EU Combined Nomenclature, imports under 5503.30 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 4%. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
Which country exports the most synthetic staple fibres?
Japan, with US$143m in 2024 (30.3% of world exports).
Which countries can export these goods to the UK duty-free?
174 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 Free 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 Japan (74%), Peru (16%) and Türkiye (3%), out of total imports of £5.4m.