Subheading · Chapter 55 · Heading 5509
5509.21: Containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester staple fibres: single yarn
Official description Single yarn
Subheading 5509.21 belongs to heading 5509 (yarn (other than sewing thread) of synthetic staple fibres, not put up for…) in chapter 55.
What you pay
Importing into UK
Rates by national line · UK Global Tariff
UK lines →- 5509 21 00 00 Single yarn 4%
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) | — | 4% |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| DCTS Standard | Indonesia | 3.2% |
UK: imports by month
Main suppliers, last 12 months
| Country | Value | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
 Indonesia | £217k | 23.6% | +57.9% |
 Türkiye | £182k | 19.8% | -28.2% |
 China | £159k | 17.3% | +306.1% |
 Germany | £151k | 16.5% | -26.1% |
 Slovenia | £71k | 7.7% | -6.3% |
 Spain | £29k | 3.1% | +8.3% |
 France | £27k | 3% | -28.4% |
 Bulgaria | £27k | 2.9% | — |
Same subheading in other tariffs
EUWorld trade in 2024
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$266kUS$266k+US$2m+US$8m+> US$40m
Exports: 69
- China: US$327m
- Indonesia: US$117m
- India: US$40m
- Nepal: US$34m
- Vietnam: US$19m
- Thailand: US$11m
- United States: US$8m
- Türkiye: US$8m
- Pakistan: US$7m
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$7m
- Italy: US$6m
- Belgium: US$6m
- Canada: US$5m
- Slovakia: US$5m
- Germany: US$4m
- Spain: US$2m
- Taiwan: US$2m
- Croatia: US$1m
- Portugal: US$1m
- Slovenia: US$925k
- Poland: US$862k
- Denmark: US$848k
- Mexico: US$830k
- Austria: US$780k
- Japan: US$775k
- South Korea: US$775k
- Greece: US$756k
- Romania: US$694k
- France: US$682k
- Czechia: US$610k
- Netherlands: US$509k
- United Kingdom: US$388k
- Egypt: US$282k
- Uzbekistan: US$266k
- Sri Lanka: US$236k
- Nicaragua: US$211k
- Singapore: US$181k
- Laos: US$164k
- Bulgaria: US$131k
- Estonia: US$128k
- Brazil: US$94k
- Malaysia: US$92k
- Guatemala: US$92k
- El Salvador: US$47k
- Philippines: US$39k
- Cambodia: US$36k
- Paraguay: US$27k
- Tunisia: US$22k
- Bangladesh: US$11k
- Switzerland: US$11k
- Bosnia & Herzegovina: US$8k
- Serbia: US$7k
- South Africa: US$7k
- Sweden: US$6k
- Lithuania: US$3k
- Honduras: US$3k
- Kazakhstan: US$2k
- North Macedonia: US$2k
- Costa Rica: US$2k
- United Arab Emirates: US$1k
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$550kUS$550k+US$4m+US$13m+> US$29m
Imports: 136
- India: US$73m
- Brazil: US$68m
- Vietnam: US$48m
- Egypt: US$35m
- Bangladesh: US$29m
- United States: US$24m
- Mexico: US$22m
- Pakistan: US$20m
- Türkiye: US$18m
- South Korea: US$18m
- Jordan: US$17m
- Morocco: US$16m
- Germany: US$14m
- Italy: US$13m
- Indonesia: US$12m
- Colombia: US$11m
- United Arab Emirates: US$11m
- Iran: US$10m
- Japan: US$10m
- Thailand: US$9m
- Cambodia: US$9m
- Ethiopia: US$9m
- Spain: US$8m
- China: US$8m
- Portugal: US$7m
- Taiwan: US$7m
- Belgium: US$5m
- Romania: US$5m
- Sri Lanka: US$5m
- Peru: US$5m
- El Salvador: US$5m
- Poland: US$5m
- France: US$5m
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$4m
- Malaysia: US$4m
- Kenya: US$4m
- Djibouti: US$3m
- Uzbekistan: US$3m
- Canada: US$3m
- Argentina: US$3m
- United Kingdom: US$3m
- Czechia: US$2m
- Austria: US$2m
- Saudi Arabia: US$2m
- South Africa: US$2m
- Tunisia: US$2m
- Myanmar (Burma): US$2m
- Greece: US$2m
- Philippines: US$2m
- Netherlands: US$2m
- Russia: US$1m
- Nepal: US$1m
- North Korea: US$1m
- Honduras: US$1m
- Australia: US$1m
- Syria: US$960k
- Guatemala: US$929k
- Algeria: US$919k
- Nigeria: US$872k
- Ukraine: US$811k
Top exporters
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | US$327m | 52.4% |
| 2 | Indonesia | US$117m | 18.8% |
| 3 |  India | US$40m | 6.4% |
| 4 |  Nepal | US$34m | 5.5% |
| 5 |  Vietnam | US$19m | 3% |
| 6 |  Thailand | US$11m | 1.7% |
| 7 |  United States | US$8m | 1.3% |
| 8 | Türkiye | US$8m | 1.3% |
| 9 |  Pakistan | US$7m | 1.2% |
| 10 |  Hong Kong SAR China | US$7m | 1.2% |
Top importers
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | US$73m | 11.7% |
| 2 |  Brazil | US$68m | 11% |
| 3 | Vietnam | US$48m | 7.7% |
| 4 |  Egypt | US$35m | 5.6% |
| 5 |  Bangladesh | US$29m | 4.6% |
| 6 | United States | US$24m | 3.8% |
| 7 |  Mexico | US$22m | 3.6% |
| 8 | Pakistan | US$20m | 3.2% |
| 9 | Türkiye | US$18m | 2.9% |
| 10 |  South Korea | US$18m | 2.8% |
The UK Global Tariff has one tariff line for subheading 5509.21; the duty is 4%.
Subheading 5509.21 is a single line in the EU Combined Nomenclature, where the duty is 4%.
173 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 4%.
Imports of these goods into the UK came to £918.5k between September 2025 and August 2026 (down 8% on the year before); Indonesia supplied 24%, followed by Türkiye.
In 2024, countries exported these goods worth US$624m (−10.9% year on year).
The largest exporter was China (US$327m), followed by Indonesia.
Questions and answers
What is the HS code for containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester staple fibres: single yarn?
Containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester staple fibres: single yarn fall under HS subheading 5509.21, part of heading 5509, in section XI of the Harmonized System.
What is the import duty on containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester… in the UK?
Under the UK Global Tariff, imports under 5509.21 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 4%. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
What is the import duty on containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester… in the EU?
Under the EU Combined Nomenclature, imports under 5509.21 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 containing 85 % or more by weight of polyester…?
China, with US$327m in 2024 (52.4% of world exports).
Which countries can export these goods to the UK duty-free?
173 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 4% 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 Indonesia (24%), Türkiye (20%) and China (17%), out of total imports of £918.5k.