UK Global Tariff · commodity code · HS 5503.20

5503 20 00 00: Synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: of polyesters

Polyester staple fibre

✓ Can be used in a customs declaration Data: UK Global Tariff · checked on 24 October 2026

5503 Synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise processed for spinning
5503 20 00 00 Of polyesters

Country of origin Valid on

What you pay

Importing into UK

Customs duty Free standard rate depends on the country of origin

Additional duties and charges 1 additional measure Import requirements: 4

VAT 20.00 % import VAT

Duty calculatorCalculate duty and taxes →

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, North Korea

Legal act
S.I. 2019/461, S.I. 2019/411
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)
- Y920 Goods other than those described in the footnotes linked to the measure

Preferential rates by country

Agreement or scheme	Countries	Rate
standard rate (no agreement)	—	Free
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–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

Footnotes

TN701 According to the Council Regulation (EU) No 692/2014 (OJ L183, p. 9), as retained in UK La…

According to the Council Regulation (EU) No 692/2014 (OJ L183, p. 9), as retained in UK Law, it shall be prohibited to import into European Union goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol.
The prohibition shall not apply in respect of:
(a) the execution until 26 September 2014, of trade contracts concluded before 25 June 2014, or of ancillary contracts necessary for the execution of such contracts, provided that the natural or legal persons, entity or body seeking to perform the contract have notified, at least 10 working days in advance, the activity or transaction to the competent authority of the Member State in which they are established.
(b) goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol which have been made available to the Ukrainian authorities for examination, for which compliance with the conditions conferring entitlement to preferential origin has been verified and for which a certificate of origin has been issued in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 and Regulation (EU) No 374/2014, as retained in UK Law, or in accordance with the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement

UK: imports by month · HS 5503.20

last 12 months£79.5m-14.6% · previous 12 months

Average import price£0.84 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
Vietnam	£17.2m	21.6%	+6.9%
Indonesia	£14m	17.6%	-6.6%
China	£12.6m	15.8%	-6.7%
South Korea	£11.4m	14.3%	-33.8%
Taiwan	£7.2m	9.1%	-32.6%
India	£3.7m	4.7%	+8.5%
Thailand	£2.8m	3.5%	-10.2%
Malaysia	£2.7m	3.4%	-0.5%

Same subheading in other tariffs

5503.20 Synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: of polyesters

EU 4% Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Türkiye 4% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines

USA 4.3% General (MFN) 1 tariff line

Canada Free Third-country duty 6 tariff lines

Mexico Free – 30% Third-country duty 4 tariff lines · average 22.5%

Brazil Free – 16% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines · average 8%

Argentina Free – 2% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines · average 1%

Peru Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line

New Zealand Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Japan 6.6% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines

Taiwan 1.5% Third-country duty 1 tariff line

GCC 5% Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Switzerland Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Norway Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line

North Macedonia Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Nigeria 10% Third-country duty 1 tariff line

Binding rulings for similar goods

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.

600011689 HMRC 31 October 2024 – 30 October 2027 · 5503 20 00 00

Stuffing Polyester stuffing for soft toys. The product is made of man- made polyester staple fibres, not carded, combed, or otherwise processed for spinning. Originating as a filament TOW and cutdown to make a staple filament. Used for the internal stuffing of a variety of soft toys. The product…
600010394 HMRC 8 May 2024 – 7 May 2027 · 5503 20 00 00

Polyester stuffing for soft toys. The product is made of man- made polyester staple fibres, not carded, combed, or otherwise processed for spinning. Originating as a filament TOW and cutdown to make a staple filament. Used as an internal stuffing of a variety of soft toys. The length of tow…

Legal notes

Note

1. Headings 5501 and 5502 apply only to man-made filament tow, consisting of parallel filaments of a uniform length equal to the length of the tow, meeting the following specifications:

(a) length of tow exceeding 2 m;
(b) twist less than five turns per metre;
(c) measuring per filament less than 67 decitex;
(d) synthetic filament tow only: the tow must be drawn, that is to say, be incapable of being stretched by more than 100 % of its length;
(e) total measurement of tow more than 20000 decitex.

Tow of a length not exceeding 2 m is to be classified in heading 5503 or 5504.

Chapter notes: Chapter 55 →

Commodity code 5503 20 00 00 is a line of the UK Global Tariff under HS subheading 5503.20 (synthetic staple fibres, not carded, combed or otherwise: of polyesters).

The third-country duty is free.

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 polyester staple fibre (HS 5503.20) into the UK came to £79.5m between September 2025 and August 2026 (down 15% on the year before); Vietnam supplied 22%, followed by Indonesia.

For the same subheading, the EU duty is 4%, the Türkiye duty is 4%, the US duty is 4.3%, the Canada duty is free, the Mexico duty is 0%–30%, the Brazil duty is 0%–16%, the Argentina duty is 0%–2%, the Peru duty is free, the New Zealand duty is free, the Japan duty is 6.6%, the Taiwan duty is 1.5%, the GCC duty is 5%, the Switzerland duty is free, the Norway duty is free, the North Macedonia duty is free and the Nigeria duty is 10%.

The UK imported goods of subheading 5503.20 worth US$124m in 2024; the largest supplier was South Korea.

Questions and answers

What is the UK import duty for commodity code 5503 20 00 00?

The third-country duty in the UK Global Tariff is free. Preferential rates for goods from agreement countries, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.

Which countries get a lower rate on 5503 20 00 00?

174 countries have a preferential rate on this line, 174 of them at 0%, under DCTS Comprehensive, European Union and DCTS Enhanced and other arrangements. The rate applies only to goods that meet the rules of origin of the agreement, with proof of origin. Choose the country of origin on this page to see its rate.

Where does the UK import these goods from?

For subheading 5503.20 as a whole, the largest supplier in 2024 was South Korea (US$25m), followed by Indonesia.

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