Buying from United Kingdom
UK designer & streetwear sites mostly ship to China directly with the 20% VAT removed on export — often beating EU and US landed prices for British brands.
Brands worth buying
Where to buy
- END. ↗ — Major streetwear/sneaker retailer; ships to China with UK VAT removed.
- Browns Fashion ↗ — Luxury/designer; ships internationally, VAT deducted on export.
- Dover Street Market ↗ — CdG-run concept store e-shop; ships internationally, UK VAT removed overseas.
- Mr Porter ↗ — Global designer e-tailer (UK ops); ships to China DDP with duties included.
Tax · payment · proxy or direct
UK VAT is 20%. The tourist in-store refund was abolished in 2021; instead, shipping directly overseas ('Shop & Ship') removes the 20% VAT at checkout. You may still owe Chinese import VAT/duty unless DDP.
UK retailers broadly accept international Visa/Mastercard/Amex and usually PayPal; some checkouts add Alipay/WeChat for China customers.
Most UK designer/streetwear sites ship to China directly with VAT removed — proxy rarely needed; use a UK forwarder only for the occasional UK-only seller.
Step by step
- 1
Select 'ship to China'
The 20% VAT is deducted automatically at checkout instead of buying tax-included.
- 2
Prefer DDP sellers
Farfetch / Mr Porter prepay China duty — no surprise customs charge on arrival.
- 3
Forward only when UK-only
Use a UK forwarder only for the occasional UK-only seller.
Forwarding / proxy-buy services
Third-party services; fees per their own terms.
Many country lines, no volumetric weight, multiple tax-inclusive lines
Widest line coverage, big warehouses, frequent coupons
Many countries, transparent fees, pickup chain (HK, est. 2014)
US/UK forwarding for frequent shoppers
UK & European (and tax-free Guernsey) forwarding
Multi-country (esp. Korea) forwarding & proxy
Tips
- ·For British brands, VAT-free UK export pricing often beats EU and US.