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EU import duty on furniture 2026: rates, HS codes — and the plywood trap

Rates as of October 2026 · based on the EU Combined Nomenclature · indicative, confirm per consignment with your customs broker

The EU is the low-duty market for furniture — most finished furniture lands at 0%. But two classification traps can turn a duty-free container into a 60%+ liability. This page lists every rate that matters and how the traps work.

The rate table that matters

ProductHS codeEU MFN duty
Metal furniture (chairs, tables, shelving)9403 10 / 20 / 300%
Metal-frame upholstered seats (modular sofas, foam chairs)9401 710%
Other upholstered seats with non-wood frames9401 790%
Wood-frame upholstered seats9401 61 / 696.5%
Wooden furniture (incl. parts)9403 40–890%
Mattresses and mattress supports94043.7%
Plywood panels (components, not finished furniture)4412up to ~62.4% with anti-dumping

Key structural point: the EU currently imposes no anti-dumping or countervailing duties on finished furniture from China. The trade-defence measures target upstream products — plywood above all. Duty-wise, finished furniture into the EU remains among the most open lanes in the world. Run your own landed-cost comparison →

Trap 1: flat-pack declared as panels

The trap: a consignment of knock-down furniture arrives as stacked panels and boards. If the declaration (or the paperwork) reads as panels/boards rather than finished furniture, customs can classify it under HS 4412 — plywood — and apply anti-dumping duties of up to roughly 62.4%, retroactively if the pattern repeats across shipments.

The defence: ship complete furniture with all fittings and hardware included, edge banding finished, backed by production documentation (BOM, assembly instructions, factory invoice describing finished goods). Declare under 9403 from day one, consistently, with the same broker.

Trap 2: "parts" descriptions that cost 6.5%

What happens: upholstered seats invoiced loosely ("sofa parts", "foam components") invite misclassification between 9401 71 (metal frame, 0%) and 9401 61/69 (wood frame, 6.5%) — or worse, out of furniture chapters entirely. What to do: the commercial invoice and packing list should state frame material explicitly per SKU ("metal-frame upholstered modular seat"), consistent with the EUDR species documentation when wood is present. One supplier, one description standard, across all origins.

Import VAT: the cost that isn't a cost

Germany applies 19% import VAT on the CIF value plus duty; the Netherlands 21%, Austria and France 20%. For VAT-registered businesses this is recoverable input tax — a cash-flow item, not a margin item. Two cash-flow levers matter:

Article 23 deferment (Netherlands): VAT is declared in the periodic return without paying at the border — the clearance itself is cash-neutral. This is why Rotterdam is the natural logistics gateway for Germany-bound furniture, with Germany as the market entry point.

Timing: recoverable or not, VAT at the border still ties up capital for weeks without deferment. First-year programs should budget working capital for 1–2 containers of VAT float — or route through an Art. 23 licence.

Comparison buyers actually care about: EU vs US

For the same metal-frame upholstered sofa: EU landed duty exposure 0% vs US effective 37.5% on Chinese-origin goods (Section 301 plus 2026 measures), 12.5% Vietnamese-origin. For wood-frame upholstery add the US Section 232 lumber duty (~25%), pushing combined Chinese-origin rates to roughly 62.5%. If your program spans both regions, origin strategy — not price negotiation — is where the margin lives. That is exactly why our quotes always show China and Vietnam side by side.

See the real numbers on your SKUs

Our free calculator runs China vs Vietnam landed cost per unit into any North-European port — duty, VAT, freight included. Or send an RFQ and get the firm dual-origin sheet within 72 hours.

Open the calculator →