Subheading · Chapter 96 · Heading 9608
9608.60: Refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball point and ink-reservoir
9608.60 is a six-digit subheading of heading 9608, ballpoint pens, chapter 96.
What you pay
Importing into UK
Rates by national line · UK Global Tariff
UK lines →- 9608 60 00 00 Refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball point and ink-reservoir 2%p/st
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
- Additional dutyAdditional duties 35%
- Applies to goods from
- Belarus, Russia
- Legal act
- 2022 No. 598
- Documents
- 9014
Import requirements 1
- Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
- Applies to goods from
- Ukraine
- Legal act
- S.I. 2022/395
- Documents
- 9009
- 9010
- 9017
Preferential rates by country
| Agreement or scheme | Countries | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| standard rate (no agreement) | — | 2% |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
 Germany | £882k | 36.7% | -3.1% |
 China | £471k | 19.6% | -0.1% |
 Japan | £399k | 16.6% | -15.8% |
 France | £354k | 14.7% | +31.2% |
 India | £134k | 5.6% | -64.9% |
 Switzerland | £61k | 2.6% | -60.6% |
 United States | £53k | 2.2% | -34.4% |
 Bulgaria | £12k | 0.5% | — |
Same subheading in other tariffs
EU
TürkiyeWorld trade in 2024
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$21kUS$21k+US$307k+US$2m+> US$19m
Exports: 98
- Japan: US$70m
- China: US$27m
- France: US$19m
- Germany: US$18m
- Italy: US$8m
- India: US$7m
- Mexico: US$5m
- South Korea: US$3m
- Switzerland: US$3m
- Czechia: US$2m
- Poland: US$2m
- Malaysia: US$1m
- United States: US$1m
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$890k
- Singapore: US$781k
- Netherlands: US$599k
- United Kingdom: US$569k
- Austria: US$459k
- Spain: US$418k
- Indonesia: US$402k
- Belgium: US$354k
- Slovakia: US$339k
- Sweden: US$307k
- Taiwan: US$284k
- Hungary: US$274k
- Latvia: US$262k
- Greece: US$231k
- Slovenia: US$207k
- Israel: US$164k
- Türkiye: US$133k
- Thailand: US$124k
- Bulgaria: US$109k
- Brazil: US$105k
- Tunisia: US$102k
- Portugal: US$75k
- Denmark: US$66k
- Cyprus: US$60k
- South Africa: US$50k
- Australia: US$47k
- Estonia: US$41k
- Canada: US$35k
- Romania: US$33k
- Russia: US$31k
- Serbia: US$29k
- Vietnam: US$29k
- United Arab Emirates: US$21k
- Lithuania: US$20k
- Croatia: US$16k
- Ukraine: US$14k
- Chile: US$12k
- Luxembourg: US$10k
- Ireland: US$10k
- New Zealand: US$6k
- Finland: US$6k
- Aruba: US$5k
- Panama: US$5k
- Guatemala: US$5k
- Moldova: US$4k
- Afghanistan: US$3k
- Philippines: US$2k
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$45kUS$45k+US$447k+US$3m+> US$8m
Imports: 191
- China: US$22m
- France: US$19m
- Germany: US$13m
- United States: US$13m
- Italy: US$9m
- Taiwan: US$8m
- South Korea: US$7m
- Poland: US$5m
- Spain: US$5m
- Czechia: US$4m
- India: US$4m
- Tunisia: US$4m
- Vietnam: US$4m
- United Kingdom: US$3m
- Japan: US$3m
- Mexico: US$3m
- Belgium: US$3m
- Slovakia: US$3m
- Indonesia: US$3m
- Thailand: US$2m
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$2m
- Austria: US$2m
- Switzerland: US$2m
- Netherlands: US$2m
- Türkiye: US$2m
- United Arab Emirates: US$2m
- Malaysia: US$2m
- Singapore: US$2m
- Russia: US$2m
- Algeria: US$2m
- Pakistan: US$1m
- Philippines: US$1m
- Canada: US$1m
- Romania: US$1m
- Kyrgyzstan: US$870k
- Greece: US$800k
- Australia: US$695k
- Brazil: US$691k
- Israel: US$630k
- Bulgaria: US$622k
- Sweden: US$581k
- Ukraine: US$563k
- Slovenia: US$536k
- Hungary: US$528k
- Luxembourg: US$473k
- Argentina: US$447k
- Saudi Arabia: US$440k
- Morocco: US$436k
- Chile: US$409k
- Cambodia: US$370k
- South Africa: US$367k
- Finland: US$361k
- Norway: US$349k
- Colombia: US$346k
- Mongolia: US$342k
- Portugal: US$340k
- Denmark: US$253k
- North Korea: US$244k
- Lebanon: US$218k
- Nepal: US$213k
Top exporters
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan | US$70m | 39.9% |
| 2 | China | US$27m | 15.6% |
| 3 | France | US$19m | 10.9% |
| 4 | Germany | US$18m | 10.5% |
| 5 |  Italy | US$8m | 4.6% |
| 6 | India | US$7m | 4% |
| 7 |  Mexico | US$5m | 2.7% |
| 8 |  South Korea | US$3m | 1.8% |
| 9 | Switzerland | US$3m | 1.7% |
| 10 |  Czechia | US$2m | 1.3% |
Top importers
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | US$22m | 12.7% |
| 2 | France | US$19m | 10.9% |
| 3 | Germany | US$13m | 7.6% |
| 4 | United States | US$13m | 7.5% |
| 5 | Italy | US$9m | 5.1% |
| 6 |  Taiwan | US$8m | 4.4% |
| 7 | South Korea | US$7m | 3.8% |
| 8 |  Poland | US$5m | 2.7% |
| 9 |  Spain | US$5m | 2.6% |
| 10 | Czechia | US$4m | 2.2% |
Binding rulings for similar goods 2
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.
- N274233 U.S. CBP
The eligibility for duty free treatment under the U.S. Korea Free Trade Agreement (UKFTA) of ball point pens, felt tipped markers, refills for ball point pens and erasers from Korea
- N273297 U.S. CBP
The eligibility for duty free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences for ball point pens, felt tipped markers, ball point pen refills and erasers from India
Subheading 9608.60 is a single line in the UK Global Tariff, where the duty is 2%.
The EU Combined Nomenclature has one tariff line for subheading 9608.60; the duty is 2.7%.
Goods from 174 countries can enter the UK at a preferential rate instead of the standard 2%; 174 of them pay no duty at all, for example under DCTS Comprehensive or European Union.
In the UK, additional duty of 35% applies on top of the customs duty to goods from Belarus and Russia.
In the 12 months to August 2026, the UK imported these goods worth £2.4m (down 15% on the year before), at an average of £49.25 per kg; Germany supplied 37%, followed by China.
World trade in these goods reached US$176m in 2024, down 4.3% on 2023.
Japan was the largest exporter with 39.9% of the total, ahead of China.
Questions and answers
What is the HS code for refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball point and ink-reservoir?
Refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball point and ink-reservoir fall under HS subheading 9608.60, part of heading 9608, in section XX of the Harmonized System.
What is the import duty on refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball… in the UK?
Under the UK Global Tariff, imports under 9608.60 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 2%. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
What is the import duty on refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball… in the EU?
Under the EU Combined Nomenclature, imports under 9608.60 from countries without a preferential agreement are charged at 2.7%. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
Which country exports the most refills for ballpoint pens, comprising the ball…?
Japan, with US$70m in 2024 (39.9% 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 2% applies. Pick a country above to see its rate.
Is there anti-dumping duty on these goods?
The UK charges additional duty of 35% on goods from Belarus and Russia. Lower rates apply to the named exporters listed in the measure.
Where does the UK import these goods from?
In the 12 months to August 2026, the largest suppliers were Germany (37%), China (20%) and Japan (17%), out of total imports of £2.4m.