Guidance

Rules of origin under the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) are improving: July 2025

Published 15 August 2025

Overview

The DCTS supports developing countries to create jobs, income, and grow their economies, through exporting to the UK with zeroed or reduced tariffs. The Scheme also provides greater scope for UK businesses to diversify and build resilient supply chains with potential knock-on impact on consumer prices, particularly on clothing and basic food items.

As announced in the UK Trade Strategy, the UK Government has committed to making it easier for developing countries to source from other countries in their regions, then process or manufacture goods and export duty-free to the UK.

We are also making it easier for garments manufacturers in 16 low and lower-middle income countries to export more clothes and accessories duty-free to the UK. This will help smooth the transition of Least Developed Countries as they graduate through the preference tiers of the DCTS (from Comprehensive Preferences to Enhanced Preferences or Standard Preferences) and is intended to increase the development impact of the Scheme. These changes are the result of collaboration with businesses in the UK and governments and businesses in DCTS countries.

The improvements are intended to enter into force in early 2026. Check back to the DCTS Trading with Developing Nations main page for more information and updated guidance nearer the time.

Updates to rules of origin on cumulation

Cumulation in the DCTS relates to the ability to source materials from specific countries within a region, process these materials, and export the final product to the UK, without losing DCTS preferences. The UK Government is improving the rules around cumulation by:

• creating a new regional cumulation group of 50 countries in Africa

• merging and expanding existing regional cumulation groups in Asia to create one, new group of 18 countries. This will now include countries in Central Asia, as well as Mongolia and Timor Leste

Any input sourced from another country in a regional group will be considered as originating in the DCTS country where the final processing or manufacturing takes place.

The regional cumulation groups in Africa and Asia have been designed to benefit DCTS countries. Increasing cumulation provisions and adding value to exports in this way supports countries to be competitive by allowing more products to qualify for preferential tariffs.

The DCTS only permits the cumulation of goods that are duty-free, quota-free under the UK’s trade agreements, or in the UK Global Tariff. All goods must be processed for final export to the UK in a DCTS country to be eligible for preferences under the Scheme.

Africa Regional Cumulation Group

 The UK Government is introducing a new Africa Regional Cumulation Group under the DCTS, comprising the following 50 countries:

• Angola

• Algeria

• Benin
• Botswana
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cape Verde
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Comoros*
• Republic of the Congo
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Côte d’Ivoire
• Djibouti
• Egypt
• Eritrea
• Eswatini
• Ethiopia
• Gambia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Kenya
• Lesotho*
• Liberia
• Madagascar*
• Malawi
• Mali
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Morocco
• Mozambique*
• Namibia
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Rwanda
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Senegal
• Seychelles
• Sierra Leone
• Somalia
• South Africa
• South Sudan
• Sudan
• Tanzania
• Togo
• Tunisia
• Uganda
• Zambia

• Zimbabwe

  *Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar and Mozambique are part of the DCTS and have also entered into an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the UK. Please note, cumulation arrangements in the EPAs can differ from the DCTS.

Not all countries listed in the African Regional Cumulation Group are part of the DCTS. Only DCTS countries can benefit from DCTS tariff preferences and cumulation rules.

How new cumulation provisions impact African DCTS countries

This section outlines the new and additional cumulation provisions for DCTS countries in the Africa Regional Cumulation Group.  The offer varies depending on the country’s classification within the scheme. To understand existing cumulation provisions please refer to Understanding Cumulation

African countries eligible for Comprehensive Preference (Least Developed Countries)

Least Developed Countries (LDCs) can now more easily source input from three Association Agreement (AA) countries Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, with the removal of the case-by-case application or notification requirement. Please note, preferential tariffs apply only to cumulated materials that are duty-free, quota-free under the relevant UK-Association Agreement.

African countries eligible for Enhanced Preferences

Enhanced Preference countries in Africa can benefit from a wider range of cumulation options. This includes:

• two-way cumulation with all DCTS countries in Africa Regional Cumulation Group
• one-way cumulation with Economic Parentship Agreement (EPA) countries, provided the sourced inputs are duty-free, quota-free under the relevant EPA
• one-way cumulation with Association Agreement countries (Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia), provided the sourced inputs are duty free, quota free under the relevant agreement. This is made easier with the removal of case-by-case application or notification requirements
• ability to apply to cumulate on a case-by-case basis with countries in other regional groups. This is referred to as inter-regional cumulation

Asia Regional Cumulation Group

The UK Government is merging and expanding existing regional cumulation groups in Asia to create a new Asia Regional Cumulation Group under the DCTS. This group includes the following 18 countries:

• Afghanistan*
• Bangladesh
• Bhutan
• Cambodia
• India
• Indonesia
• Kyrgyzstan*
• Laos
• Mongolia*
• Myanmar
• Nepal
• Pakistan
• Philippines
• Sri Lanka
• Tajikistan*
• Timor Leste*
• Uzbekistan*

• Vietnam**

  *This is the first time these countries are part of a DCTS Asia Regional Cumulation Group.

  **Vietnam signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the UK and is no longer eligible for the DCTS. It can export inputs to DCTS countries in the group for onward processing. This is one-way cumulation, and preferential tariffs apply only to the DCTS country and only to materials that are duty-free and quota-free under the UK–Vietnam FTA.

How new Cumulation Provisions impact Asian DCTS countries

This section outlines the new and additional cumulation provisions for DCTS countries in the Asia Regional Cumulation Group. The offer varies depending on the country’s classification within the scheme. To understand existing cumulation provisions please refer to Understanding rules of origin under the Developing Countries Trading Scheme - GOV.UK

Asian countries eligible for Comprehensive Preference (Least Developed Countries)

All LDCs in the Asia Regional Cumulation Group can now benefit from one-way cumulation with Vietnam. Previously, this was limited to countries in the Southeast Asia or Regional ‘Group 1’. The expanded Asia group now allows all LDCs to benefit. Preferential tariffs apply only to inputs that are duty-free and quota-free under the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement.

Asian countries eligible for Enhanced Preference and Standard Preference

Enhanced and Standard Preference countries in Asia can benefit from a wider range of cumulation options. This includes:

• two-way cumulation with all DCTS countries in the Asia Regional Cumulation Group
• one-way cumulation with Vietnam, provided the sourced inputs are duty-free, quota-free under the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA)

All countries in the Asia Regional Cumulation Group can now apply on a case-by-case basis to cumulate with a country in another regional group. This is referred to as inter-regional cumulation. 

Two-way : materials can be sourced and supplied in both directions between DCTS countries in the group. For example, Nigeria and Ethiopia can source from each other and both can claim DCTS tariff preferences.

One-way: materials can only travel to a DCTS country to qualify for tariff preferences. Goods exported from a DCTS country to an AA country, EPA country or UK FTA partner would be subject to the terms of the bilateral trading arrangement. For example, Sri Lanka could source from Vietnam and claim DCTS tariff preferences, but UK-Vietnam FTA rules of origin would apply were Vietnam to source from Sri Lanka. Similarly, AA rules of origin would apply if Tunisia were to source from Nigeria.

Graduation

DCTS countries that reach Upper Middle-Income status (UMIC) are graduated out of their regional groups after a three-year transition period, with the exception of EPA countries which can remain in a regional cumulation group indefinitely regardless of economic status. This is to maintain consistency in accessibility across the EPAs. However, preferential tariffs are only applied to cumulated materials that are duty-free, quota-free in the relevant EPA.

There are currently no UK EPA countries in the Asia regional cumulation group. FTA and AA partners that graduate to Upper Middle-Income status would remain in their regional group for a three-year transition period, after which they would graduate from the regional cumulation group. 

Liberalisation of rules of origin for garments

Product-Specific Rules are specific processing, change of chapter or value addition rules that a good must meet to be considered as originating from a DCTS country and qualify for tariff reductions.

DCTS utilisation rates on some garments imported from existing Enhanced Preference countries are low. At the same time, there is a high-risk that countries graduating from LDC status (and therefore the Comprehensive Preference tier) will be impacted by stricter Enhanced Preference rules when they graduate in the coming years. Many of the countries due to graduate have significant garments sectors and a significant proportion of clothing imports to the UK come from these countries. We are concerned about the impact of graduation on jobs and livelihoods, particularly for women in these countries.

The UK Government is therefore liberalising the rules to offer Enhanced Preferences countries the same product-specific rules for apparel (chapters 61 and 62) as Comprehensive Preference countries.

This allows Comprehensive Preference countries, and now Enhanced Preference countries, the ability to source between 47.5% and 100% of inputs for garments from another country for further manufacture, as well as applying fewer processing requirements. This will result in the removal of the rule that two significant manufacturing processes (e.g. manufacturing of the fabric as well as the garment) must take place in an Enhanced Preference country.

Check back for updates to the DCTS trading with developing nations main page and to the product-specific rules schedule for further detail on the changes.

Key benefits to Enhanced Preference tier countries:

• removal of double transformation rule
• ability to source between 47.5% and 100% of inputs (dependent on the item of clothing) from any country for final manufacture in the DCTS country

Key benefits to graduating LDCs:

• upon graduation from Comprehensive to Enhanced Preferences, the rules of origin for apparel (chapters 61 and 62) will remain the same. This allows for a smooth transition
• the DCTS already offers a three-year transition period for LDCs that have graduated at the United Nations. For example, if a country graduates at the UN in 2026, it will remain in the Comprehensive Preferences tier until 2029