Clothing and apparel duty into Great Britain 12%
Under the standard tariff, clothing and apparel imported into Great Britain carry a flat 12% customs duty, plus import VAT of 0% to 20% depending on the exact goods, effective 1 January 2021. Preferential rates can apply when origin requirements are met. In Great Britain, consignments at or under £135.00 are relieved of duty, but VAT treatment must be checked separately, including tax collected at checkout.
178 origins qualify for a preferential rate below the 12% standard, ranging from 0% to 9.6%. None of them changes the worked example: at £72.00 that consignment is already under the £135.00 relief threshold, so no duty is charged whatever the origin. Preference starts to matter above it. Claiming a preferential rate requires proof of origin at customs; without acceptable proof the standard rate applies.
- Route
- Any origin → Great Britain
- Standard customs duty
- 12% on all 12 codes in this category
- Import VAT
- 0%–20% by goods
- Duty assessed on
- Goods value plus freight and insurance (CIF)
- Low-value treatment
- Consignments at or under £135.00 are relieved of duty, but VAT treatment must be checked separately, including tax collected at checkout
- Typical clearance fee
- £8.00, charged by the carrier
- Commodity codes covered
- 12
- Source record date
- 23 August 2026
Rates by commodity code
| HS code | Description | Duty | In force since | Instrument |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6105.10 | Men's or boys' shirts, knitted or crocheted | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6106.10 | Women's or girls' blouses, shirts and shirt-blouses, knitted or crocheted | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6109.10 | T-shirts, singlets and other vests, knitted or crocheted, of cotton | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6109.90 | T-shirts, singlets and other vests, knitted or crocheted, of other textile materials | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6110.20 | Jerseys, pullovers, cardigans, waistcoats and similar articles, knitted or crocheted, of cotton | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6112.11 | Tracksuits, ski suits and swimwear, knitted or crocheted, tracksuits | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6203.42 | Men's or boys' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts (other than swimwear), of cotton | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6203.43 | Men's or boys' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts (other than swimwear), of synthetic fibres | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6204.62 | Women's or girls' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, dresses, skirts, divided skirts, trousers, bib and brace overalls…, of cotton | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6204.63 | Women's or girls' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, dresses, skirts, divided skirts, trousers, bib and brace overalls…, of synthetic fibres | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6205.20 | Men's or boys' shirts, of cotton | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 | |
| 6210.40 | Garments, made up of fabrics of heading 5602, 5603, 5903, 5906 or 5907 | 12% | S.I. 2020/1430 |
A worked example
A £72.00 order of men's or boys' shirts, knitted or crocheted (HS 6105.10) with £10.00 shipping, imported into Great Britain, has a modelled total of £106.40. This includes £24.40 in estimated duty, VAT and carrier fees.
| Goods value | £72.00 |
|---|---|
| Shipping and insurance | £10.00 |
| Customs duty · No duty — below the relief threshold | £0.00 |
| Import VAT · 20% | £16.40 |
| Carrier clearance fee | £8.00 |
| Estimated taxes and fees | £24.40 |
| Total landed cost | £106.40 |
The model assumes import tax has not already been paid at checkout. It uses the standard tariff before preferential origin relief. This is not a prediction of the amount collected at delivery. Order value is an assumed figure converted from euros at an illustrative rate, for the sake of a realistic example. Use the calculator for your actual numbers.
- This six-digit code covers goods at more than one VAT rate. The higher rate is shown; a lower rate applies to part of the heading, so check the full commodity code.
Origins with a preferential rate
| Agreement | Preferential rate | vs standard | Saving on the example |
|---|---|---|---|
| CARIFORUM14 countriesAntigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Central America6 countriesCosta Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Channel Islands2 countriesGuernsey, Jersey | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| CPTPP All Members excluding Canada2 countriesBrunei, Malaysia | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) - Comprehensive Preferences43 countriesAfghanistan, 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, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) - Enhanced Preferences17 countriesAlgeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville, Cook Islands, Kyrgyzstan, Micronesia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Niue, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Eastern and Southern Africa States4 countriesMadagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Zimbabwe | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| European Union28 countriesAustria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| OCTs (Overseas Countries and Territories)11 countriesAnguilla, 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 | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| SADC EPA5 countriesBotswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) - Standard Preferences1 countryIndonesia | 9.6% | -2.4pp | Relieved |
| Best rate comes from different agreements by commodity code8 countriesAustralia, Chile, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
| Named individually in the tariff37 countriesAlbania, Andorra, Cameroon, Canada, Ceuta, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ecuador, Egypt, Faroe Islands, Fiji, Georgia, Ghana, Iceland, India, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Kosovo, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Melilla, Moldova, Morocco, North Macedonia, Norway, Palestinian Territories, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, San Marino, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Tunisia, Türkiye, Ukraine | 0% | -12.0pp | Relieved |
The worked example falls under the £135.00 duty relief threshold, so no duty is charged whatever the origin. These rates apply above it.
Editor's note
Have the fibre label and garment description ready. Select a listed code only when its description fits; this site does not silently classify an unknown fabric as cotton.
Then check the destination and whether VAT was collected at checkout. An origin preference requires its conditions to be met, not just a shop address in a trading-partner country. Save the invoice and any origin documentation before placing the order.
Check your own order
One goods type, ordinary tariff and destination currency. No trade-agreement relief, trade-remedy duties, excise, gifts, returns or deductions for tax paid at checkout. Enter prices before tax; we do not convert currencies.
Common questions
How much is customs duty on clothing and apparel imported into Great Britain?
Standard tariff before any preferential origin relief: 12% on every commodity code in this category, effective 1 January 2021.
Is there a threshold below which I pay nothing on a parcel to Great Britain?
Consignments at or under £135.00 are relieved of duty, but VAT treatment must be checked separately, including tax collected at checkout.
Is import VAT charged on top of the duty in Great Britain?
Where import VAT is due, the stored rates are 0% to 20%, calculated on the customs value plus the customs duty itself. Tax collected at checkout must be checked before estimating an additional payment.
What does the worked example estimate?
A £72.00 order with £10.00 shipping gives £24.40 in estimated duty, VAT and carrier fees, for a modelled total of £106.40. The model assumes import tax has not already been paid at checkout. It uses the standard tariff before preferential origin relief. This is not a prediction of the amount collected at delivery.
Classification notes
Start with the garment’s construction, purpose and fibre composition. Knitted or crocheted clothing generally falls in chapter 61; woven clothing in chapter 62. A product sold as a shirt, jacket or set still has to meet the relevant tariff description.
The same category can have different rates in different destinations. Check the displayed code and VAT treatment separately; this note does not assign a code to your garment.
91 further sanctions and trade-control notices apply to these commodity codes. They govern whether the goods may be traded, not what they cost, and are listed at the source rather than repeated here.
Sources
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
- S.I. 2020/1430 — effective
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