Guides / Furniture from Poland · Updated 30 September 2026

Importing furniture from Poland to the UK: a business guide

What a UK business needs to check before importing sofas, tables and other furniture from Polish manufacturers: classification, origin, packaging, timber and fire safety rules, and the declaration.

Poland is one of Europe's big furniture producers, and many UK retailers, interior designers and online sellers buy sofas, tables, beds and kitchen units from Polish factories. Since the UK left the EU, every one of those loads is an import into Great Britain. That means a customs declaration, a commodity code, a decision about preferential origin, import VAT, and a few product rules that catch out first-time buyers: the pallets the goods travel on, the timber the furniture is made from, and, for upholstered items, fire safety. This guide walks through each in the order you will meet them.

Step 1: get the basics in place

To import goods into England, Wales or Scotland you need an EORI number that starts with GB. It goes on every declaration made for you, so apply before the first order leaves the factory. See the EORI entry in our glossary if you are unsure which number you have.

gov.uk also notes that most businesses importing goods use a transporter or customs agent to handle the declaration. You can make it yourself, but whichever route you choose, the data you supply (value, commodity code, origin) is your responsibility. If you appoint an agent as a direct representative, you as the importer remain liable for the declaration; under indirect representation the agent is jointly liable with you.

Step 2: classify the furniture in chapter 94

The commodity code sets the duty rate and tells you whether any licence or extra control applies. Furniture sits mainly in chapter 94 of the UK Trade Tariff, which covers furniture, bedding, mattresses, cushions, lighting and prefabricated buildings. The headings a furniture importer uses most are:

Within each heading the code splits further by material and use, for example upholstered or not, wooden or metal, office or domestic. Take the full ten-digit code from the tariff for each product line rather than using one code for a whole mixed load; a sofa and a coffee table on the same invoice will not share a code. HMRC also publishes tariff notices on borderline items (there is one on furniture rollers, for instance), which are worth searching if a product sits between two headings. Our guide to looking up a commodity code in the UK Trade Tariff shows how to work down the tree.

Step 3: check preferential origin before you assume zero duty

Buying from Poland does not by itself make the furniture duty-free. The UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement can reduce duty to zero, but only for goods that meet its rules of origin. Under gov.uk guidance, origin is where goods are grown, produced or manufactured: either wholly obtained in one country, or sufficiently worked or processed there using materials from elsewhere. Each product has a product-specific rule setting out the processing required.

This matters for furniture because many Polish manufacturers use imported components such as fabrics, fittings, mechanisms or timber from outside the EU. If those materials are not sufficiently processed in the EU, the goods may not qualify, and the full duty rate for the commodity code applies. Before claiming preference:

• Ask the supplier to confirm the goods meet the TCA origin rule for their specific code.
• Obtain proof of origin, usually a statement on origin on the invoice from the exporter. See our guide to the statement on origin under the TCA.
• Keep the supporting records: gov.uk lists material costs, processing locations and transport documents among the evidence to retain.
• For a product line you import repeatedly and are unsure about, gov.uk suggests considering an Advance Origin Ruling.

Step 4: make sure the pallets and crates are ISPM 15 compliant

Furniture usually travels on wooden pallets or in wooden crates, and that wood packaging material has its own plant-health rules. According to gov.uk, wood packaging must be debarked and either heat treated to 56°C for at least 30 continuous minutes throughout its profile, or fumigated with methyl bromide or sulphuryl fluoride. Compliant packaging carries a legible ISPM 15 mark including a two-letter country code, and with that mark it needs no phytosanitary or treatment certificate.

Some materials are outside ISPM 15, including processed wood such as plywood and raw wood 6mm thick or less. Note that this applies to the packaging, not the furniture itself.

Step 5: timber due diligence under the UK Timber Regulations

Wooden furniture is a timber product, and the UK Timber Regulations apply to the person who first places timber or timber products on the GB market, called the operator. When you import finished furniture from Poland into GB, that is likely to be you. gov.uk sets out three parts of the due diligence system an operator must run:

1. Information gathering: species, quantity, supplier, country of harvest and evidence of legal compliance.
2. Risk assessment against the criteria set in the regulations.
3. Risk mitigation: further verification until the risk of illegal timber is negligible.

For composite products, all species in the product must be considered separately, although recycled timber components do not need assessment. Traders further down the chain must keep records of who they bought from and sold to. The Office for Product Safety and Standards enforces the regulations in GB. In practice, build these questions into your supplier onboarding before the first order, not after the goods arrive.

Step 6: fire safety for upholstered furniture

If you sell domestic upholstered furniture such as sofas, armchairs or upholstered beds, the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 apply in the UK. The government has consulted on reforming them and published its intended approach in January 2025, so check gov.uk for the current position. Ask your manufacturer early whether their fabrics and fillings are tested to the UK requirements; do not assume that a product that is compliant for sale in Poland meets them.

Step 7: the import declaration and VAT

With the code, origin evidence and value settled, the import declaration is made on CDS by you or your agent. Our explainer on how a CDS import declaration works covers the data fields. Customs duty (if preference does not apply) and import VAT are both calculated on the declared value. VAT-registered importers can reclaim the import VAT they pay, using their import VAT certificate (C79) as evidence, as gov.uk explains. Keep commercial invoices and all customs paperwork with your records.

Many furniture importers use a single agent to handle the whole move. Easy Clearance, a UK–EU customs clearance agency handling import/export declarations, T1/T2 transit and UK–Poland removals, describes its approach on its page about customs clearance for goods imported into the UK.

Quick checklist before the first load

• GB EORI number active.
• Ten-digit chapter 94 code for every product line.
• Supplier confirmation of TCA origin and a statement on origin on the invoice.
• ISPM 15 marked pallets and crates.
• Timber due diligence file: species, harvest country, supplier evidence.
• Fire safety test evidence for upholstered items.
• Agent appointed and representation type agreed.

Related guides

• Buying used electronics in the UK to resell in Poland

• Importing coffee into the UK: commodity codes, duty and VAT

• Importing toys from Poland and the EU into Great Britain

Sources

• Import goods into the UK: step by step (GOV.UK)
• UK Trade Tariff: chapter 94 (GOV.UK)
• Check your goods meet the rules of origin (GOV.UK)
• Wood packaging material for import and export (GOV.UK)
• Regulations: timber and FLEGT licences (GOV.UK)

General information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements on gov.uk or with a registered agent before you ship.