UK Extends Tariff-Free Imports on More Than 250 Products Until December 2028

The United Kingdom will keep more than 250 products free of import duty until December 2028 instead of 31 December 2026.

The UK government said on 23 October 2026 that tariff-free imports of more than 250 goods, due to end on 31 December, will continue until December 2028¹.

The announcement came from HM Treasury, the UK finance ministry, together with the Prime Minister, the Chancellor and the Business Secretary¹. It also gives a second group of suspensions six more months, to December 2027¹.

In short, goods that enter the UK free of import duty today will stay duty-free after New Year. Importers of these goods will not see a tariff return on 1 January 2027.

What is changing for the 250 products?

A duty suspension removes or reduces the import duty on named goods for a set period². These goods are normally used in production, such as materials and parts for UK factories².

The government said more than 250 products will keep their suspensions¹. These suspensions were due to expire on 31 December and will now run until December 2028¹.

The extension follows a public consultation¹. All suspensions in that consultation are being extended, except those that "no longer have a material effect"¹. In plain words, the government is dropping only the suspensions that make little real difference to costs.

Which suspensions were due to end in 2026?

The Department for Business and Trade guidance on duty suspensions explains which goods were in the review. Suspensions granted after the 2021 and 2023 application rounds were due to expire on 31 December 2026². The government had been considering whether to extend them to 31 December 2028².

A single suspension on sunflower-seed oil was also due to end on 31 December 2026². The government put it in place on 1 January 2023 because of supply chain problems². The guidance said the government was considering an extension to 31 December 2028².

The government’s guidance pack sets out the review process and the tests each suspension must meet². The full list of current suspensions and their end dates is in the Tariff Suspension Reference Document².

How much will businesses save?

The government puts the value of the extensions at up to £155 million a year¹. This is the import duty that businesses would otherwise pay on these goods.

The savings are spread across many industries¹. The press release names these sectors:

• Chemicals
• Plastics
• Hydrogen
• Automotive, the car and vehicle industry
• Food and drinks

The tariff savings are part of a wider package worth almost £800 million a year in paperwork and tariff costs¹. Other parts of that package cover company reporting and small-business paperwork, not trade in goods¹.

Why did the government act?

The government presented the extension as a way to cut costs for businesses¹. Chancellor John Healey said the government wants to give businesses "the breathing space they need to invest, innovate and create good jobs"¹.

The guidance gives the general purpose of suspensions. They are meant to help UK businesses, and those in Guernsey, the Isle of Man and Jersey, stay competitive in the world market². They do this by removing or reducing duties on goods used to make other products².

The release said the extensions keep import costs low for businesses across many sectors¹. For a factory that imports a chemical or a part, the main effect is that its landed cost does not jump in January.

How do the suspensions work at the border?

A duty suspension lets an importer bring in unlimited quantities of the goods at the reduced rate². This is different from an autonomous tariff quota, a limited amount of goods allowed in at a lower rate².

Any importer in the UK or the Crown Dependencies can use a suspension while it is in force². Some suspensions carry conditions that a shipment must meet².

Importers find the suspension for their goods with the Trade Tariff lookup tool². They check the commodity code, the number that classifies goods in the tariff, against the listed suspensions. Customs brokers who file entries in January 2027 will keep claiming the same reduced rate. Makers abroad who sell these goods to UK factories keep their price advantage over the full tariff.

The suspensions apply on a "most favoured nation" basis². This means the goods can come from any country or territory at the reduced rate². A shipment from China and one from Brazil get the same treatment.

What does the suspension not cover?

A suspension removes only the normal import tariff. It does not remove VAT (value added tax), the UK sales tax charged on imports².

It also does not remove trade remedy duties². These include anti-dumping duty, an extra import tax on goods sold abroad below their normal price². Goods covered by such a duty still pay it, even when the normal tariff is suspended.

Goods entering Northern Ireland need extra care. The guidance points importers to separate rules on declaring goods "not at risk" of moving on to the European Union².

What happens to the suspensions ending in June 2027?

A second group of suspensions came from the 2024 application round². They are in force until 30 June 2027².

The government will now extend these suspensions by six months, to December 2027¹. The release says this gives businesses continuity while a formal review of a longer extension takes place¹.

So these goods stay duty-free for the rest of 2027. Whether they stay duty-free after that depends on the new review.

How does this fit with other UK suspensions?

The 250-product extension sits alongside several other groups of suspensions. The guidance lists them²:

• New suspensions from the 2025 to 2026 round were expected to take effect on 5 August 2026 and run until 31 December 2028². That round received 111 applications covering 176 products².
• Food suspensions on some fruits, fruit juices, pasta, couscous and tuna started on 21 June 2026 and expire on 31 December 2028².
• Medical goods suspensions, first set for COVID-19 items, are due to expire on 31 December 2028².
• Suspensions carried over from the EU in 2021 remain in place until 31 December 2028².

With this week’s decision, many UK suspensions now share an end date of December 2028. The 2024 group is the main exception, with its new end in December 2027.

When can businesses ask for more suspensions?

The government will open a new window from 11 November to 3 February¹. Businesses can use it to give views on extending existing suspensions beyond 2027¹. They can also suggest new suspensions to bring down costs¹.

In the last round, the government judged applications against its core tests and the objections it received². Details of the review and the tests are in the guidance pack².

Key points on the UK tariff suspension extension

The table sums up the main facts from the announcement and the guidance.

The next date for importers is 11 November, when the window opens to request new suspensions or longer extensions¹. Until then, the goods in the 250-product group stay duty-free at the border into 2028.

Sources

1. ↩ Government slashes red tape and tariffs to give businesses breathing space – GOV.UK https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-slashes-red-tape-and-tariffs-to-give-businesses-breathing-space
2. ↩ UK Trade Tariff: duty suspensions and autonomous tariff quotas – GOV.UK https://www.gov.uk/guidance/duty-suspensions-and-tariff-quotas