The import duty rates China applies, and the complexity around them, deter people who would otherwise trade with China. Three things happen at the border. Goods are assessed for taxes and duties, which vary by product and by country of origin. Certifications are checked against the destination country’s requirements. And authenticity is examined, including proof of intellectual property rights. This article covers the first: the import duty rates China applies, and the fees and taxes that go with them at customs.
One principle covers most of it. Nearly all of these taxes apply to imports into China. Exports of ordinary goods leave China without duty, and with VAT partly or fully refunded, which is why China is easy to buy from and harder to sell into. What a foreign buyer pays is decided at their own border, not China’s. Research the rules for your product in both countries before the first shipment.
Fees, Taxes and Import Duty Rates China Applies
The import duty rates China charges are one of three taxes that apply to goods entering the country, and almost only to imports: value-added tax, consumption tax, and customs duty. Duty- and tax-free treatment is the exception in international trade, not the rule.
Duties and taxes are the price of moving goods across a border.
Value-Added Tax (VAT)
Most goods imported into China pay VAT at customs clearance, on top of any duty. China’s standard VAT rate is 13%, with a reduced rate of 9% for a defined list including agricultural products, utilities, books, and some transport services, and 6% for most services. The rates were cut from 17% and 11% in 2018 and 2019 and have not changed since. VAT is calculated on the customs value plus duty plus any consumption tax, so it compounds on the other charges.
The same logic applies at the other end. Goods imported into the United Kingdom pay VAT at 20%, into most EU countries at 19% to 25%, and the importer pays it before the goods are released. For goods leaving China, exporters can reclaim some or all of the VAT paid on inputs, at a rebate rate set per product category. Manufacturers build the rebate into their export price, which is why a factory’s domestic and export prices differ and why a change in the rebate rate for your product moves your quote.
Consumption Tax on Top of Import Duty Rates China Charges
Consumption tax is levied on a defined list of goods, mainly luxury, harmful, or resource-intensive products, and is applied in addition to VAT. It is charged either as a percentage of value, per unit of quantity, or both, and it is paid at import or, for domestic producers, monthly. The categories are:
- Goods that harm health, the environment, or social order: tobacco, alcohol, fireworks
- Luxury goods: high-end jewellery, precious stones, high-end watches, golf equipment, yachts, high-end cosmetics
- High energy-consuming goods: passenger cars, motorcycles
- Non-renewable resource products: refined oil, petrol, diesel
- Other designated goods: batteries, coatings, disposable wooden chopsticks, solid wood flooring
Rates vary widely by product: from 1% on some cars to 36% on cigars, 20% on high-end cosmetics, and 10% on high-end watches and precious jewellery. There is no flat rate, so the rate for your specific product has to be checked.
Import Duty Rates China Publishes Each Year
The import duty rates China applies range from zero to over 100% of the customs value, with the highest rates on cars, luxury goods, and some agricultural products. China’s average applied MFN tariff is around 7.5% by simple average, and lower still on a trade-weighted basis. Duty is the main subject of trade agreements: most-favoured-nation status, which China extends to all WTO members, means a country is treated no worse than any other MFN partner, and free trade agreements go further by cutting or removing duty on qualifying goods.
The import duty rates China applies are published annually. The 2026 Tariff Adjustment Plan (Customs Tariff Commission Announcement 2025 No. 11), in force from 1 January 2026, runs to 8,972 tariff lines and applies provisional rates below MFN on 935 of them. The import duty rates China charges on a given import depend on the product and its origin:
- MFN duty rates: the default for goods from WTO members and countries with a bilateral MFN agreement, which is nearly everyone
- Conventional duty rates: the reduced rates under China’s free trade agreements, which in 2026 cover 24 agreements with 34 partners, including RCEP, ASEAN, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland, and others
- Special preferential duty rates: zero tariffs on 100% of tariff lines for 43 least-developed countries with diplomatic relations with China
- General duty rates: the high default for goods from countries with no MFN arrangement, rarely applied in practice
- Tariff-rate quota duty: the low in-quota rate, now zero, on wheat, corn, rice, cotton, sugar, wool, and fertiliser, with the full rate above the quota
- Provisional duty rates: temporary rates below MFN set each year on goods China wants to encourage, mainly advanced components, materials, and medical products
Since 2018, additional tariffs on goods from specific countries, notably the United States and Canada, have been layered on top of these rates and changed several times. Check the current additional-tariff notices, alongside the standard import duty rates China lists, for the origin country before quoting a landed cost.
Alongside the import duty rates China applies, export duties apply to a short list of resource-based and semi-manufactured goods: 107 tariff lines under the 2026 plan, 68 of them at provisional rates, mainly ferroalloys, certain metals and ores, and other raw materials, to keep domestic resources at home. They rarely affect finished goods.
Some goods are prohibited from import or export altogether, and others are allowed only with a licence, a declaration, or supporting documentation. Rare earths, certain metals, and specified technologies have required export licences since 2025. Check the controlled and prohibited lists for your product category before shipping.
Getting the classification and the paperwork right is what makes customs a formality rather than a problem.
The World Customs Organization (WCO)
The World Customs Organization has 186 member customs administrations and is the global centre of customs expertise, responsible for the Harmonized System of product classification that every country’s tariff schedule, including China’s, is built on. China is a member and applies the HS; Chinese tariff lines add national digits to the six-digit HS code. WCO membership gives China standard procedures for imports and exports, technical assistance, and a seat in setting the rules.
For a buyer working out the import duty rates China or any other country will charge, the practical point is that the first six digits of a product’s tariff code are the same in China, the EU, and the United States, and getting that classification right is the first step in knowing what a shipment will cost at either border. Where classification is unclear, a binding ruling from the destination customs authority settles it before the goods move. Working out the landed cost of a product, including classification, duty, VAT, and any additional tariffs, is part of our product sourcing service.
