3 Effective and smart tips on importing goods from China to UK

Posted on 15. Jul, 2014 by in business

We all are aware of the fact that suppliers throughout the world usually offer a wide array of goods that could well suit your business. However, there’s no harm in looking or lower-priced supplies so that you could give a competitive edge to your competitors. How about selling a completely different product when you get supplied by a new supplier? Well, it was in July, 2013 that China outshone the USA and strived hard to become the UK’s largest non-EU import partner nation with a total import trade of about £2.7 billion, estimating for around 17% of the total value of non-EU import trade of the UK. While importing from China to UK, there are few things that you need to consider. Factors might range from organising international transport and customs to tackling long-distance relationship. If you’re someone who is wondering on how to import from China, here are a few tips that you may take into account.

  1. Outline the objecting of importing: Before you start off with the task of importing, it is always a good idea to be precise and clear about what you’re trying to gain or achieve through this task. You might be someone who is looking forward to China in order to find out a cheaper source of supplies or to locate some of those best goods that aren’t still available in the UK. So, what is your motive when you want to import from China? Always make sure that importing should fit in with your overall business strategy.
  2. Recognize the true-blue supplier: The second thing that you need to keep in mind to check if the supplier is creditworthy enough and can also meet your quality standards. Don’t forget to determine the quality of the product and check whether the goods are suitable or not. It is also important to know if your supplier outsources any work to other subcontractors. While importing from China, you also need to comprehend the culture of the Chinese market in order to establish a good relationship with the suppliers.
  3. Select the method of transportation that you will use: While making your choices on how you’re going to import from China to UK, you require deciding on whether you’re going to handle logistics by yourself or you would outsource the entire work to a freight forwarder. Well, when you’re importing from China, the main options of commutation are by air or sea. If your business needs to transport huge quantities of goods and there’s no deadline date, it can easily be transported by sea. However, if high level of security is needed while importing from China to UK, transporting by air will be a convenient option.

As a trader, it is important for you to know imports from China are subject to tax or VAT. Before the goods can be cleared for entry into the UK, you have to pay import VAT and duty on the goods. Imports might be subject to import duty, varying on the classification of the goods and the place from where they come. Goods will carry 20% VAT, which is the official tax rate in the UK.

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