These duties are intended to counter dumping, of which the Chinese glass exporters are suspected by the TRA. Dumping involves the sale of goods in large quantities abroad at prices below the home market’s.

The TRA launched its investigation in March 2026 and while the investigation is still ongoing, the situation was deemed serious enough to warrant provisional duties. The investigation concludes in March 2027, at which point the TRA will decide whether to retain the current measures.

The impact on the beauty industry is significant, as glass suppliers are already passing on costs on goods such as fragrance bottles. The British Beauty Council has already heard from multiple businesses concerned about the additional cost of glass packaging being introduced in the middle of the financial year.

The additional costs are causing brands to consider changing their packaging suppliers and filling their products outside of the UK to avoid the penalty paid on imported empty containers.

The Council continues to engage with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade on the issue. If the glass duties and the cost of glass are impacting your business, please get in touch by emailing mikhail@britishbeautycouncil.com.

If you are seriously impacted, the Council encourages you to engage with the TRA’s ongoing investigation.

You can sign up as an ‘interested party’ here and submit evidence pertaining to costs, availability of UK-manufactured glass alternatives and other relevant details. Be sure to include the HS codes of the goods concerned.

You can also email the TRA about this investigation directly at AD0087@traderemedies.gov.uk.