Importing Hotel Linen to Italy From Bangladesh: A Step-by-Step Guide

A hotel linen order for Italy is decided at the Genoa border before it is decided at the mill. This guide covers how to import hotel linen from Bangladesh to Italy in that order: Genoa entry, room set and par stock, suppliers, samples, classification, and pricing at both duty outcomes.

Settle the Genoa entry before you shortlist suppliers

Who needs an EORI number for a Genoa entry?

An EORI number is mandatory for the clearance of all types of customs operations in the customs territory of the European Union, such as import, export, and transit.¹ EORI numbers uniquely identify economic operators and other persons, and at any point in time a person can be assigned only one valid EORI number.¹ Hold the number before the first shipment, validate it, and give it to your Genoa broker in writing. Appoint the broker now, and ask for one written note confirming the full tariff code for each piece, the duty line on the entry date, the customs value definition, the import VAT base, and the document set it expects. Price any unconfirmed line at both outcomes.

Build the room set and the par stock for Italian rooms

What is a room set, and what goes into one?

A room set is every linen piece that must work together in one room type: flat sheet, fitted sheet, pillowcases, duvet cover, bath towel, hand towel, and table linen where the property uses it. Write one room-set sheet per room type, with one row per piece, and send the identical sheet to every supplier. For each piece, fix the finished size in centimeters measured after washing, the fiber composition in the words you want on the label, the weave or terry construction, the color or white shade, and the construction details: hem width and stitching, fitted-sheet pocket depth including any mattress topper, elastic coverage, closures, and towel hems. Size names do not travel safely between markets, so a size name alone never carries an order. Add the property mark at this stage, piece by piece.

How do you set the par stock for a property?

Par stock is the standard quantity of each linen item a hotel keeps in circulation to meet daily demand without running short.² A common industry guideline is a 3-par system: one set on the bed, one in the laundry cycle, and one in storage as a buffer, though luxury properties may run higher pars of 4 to 5 for extra buffer against delays.² Set the par multiple property by property and item by item, from average occupancy, laundry turnaround time, and loss and damage rates, because calculating par stock too low causes shortages that stop room turnover, while too high ties up cash in linen that sits in storage and ages.² Record the par multiple on the room-set sheet. Sheets and towels are washed separately, because towels need higher heat and stronger extraction to handle lint and heavier soiling.² Name the laundry route on the order plan, and test the samples through that route.

Find hotel-experienced suppliers and check them in three layers

Where do Italian hotel buyers start the search?

Start with mills and exporters whose current range already includes hotel or institutional linen across the bed, bath, and table groups. A factory that makes only retail sheet sets or only garments is not a close substitute: a hotel program needs wide sheeting fabric, terry capacity, shade control across repeat orders, and packing by room set. Browse suppliers on Exportain and read each profile against your room-set sheet. Shortlist three or four suppliers, and send each one the identical room-set sheet with the identical delivery term. Ask four Italy questions early: has it shipped hotel linen to Italy or another European Union member state, can it supply labels with Italian fiber wording, can it provide a statement on origin with its REX number, and can it show a finished room set from current production in your weave, size, and shade?

How do you check a supplier before you pay?

Check in three layers, each before payment: company documents, capability, and payment discipline. First, company documents: trade license, export registration, and association membership, checked so that the name, address, and bank account name agree across every document. Second, capability: the weaving, dyeing, and finishing route, the cutting and hemming line, capacity for the room set, and a finished set from current production. Third, payment discipline: keep payments to the company account named in the documents, never to a personal account, and verify any change of bank details through a separate channel. On Exportain, supplier profiles carry document and photo review badges where the checks have been completed. Exportain states that verification is a document and photo review, not a factory inspection, and that a badge is not a guarantee of capacity, quality, or delivery.³ Exportain is not a party to a contract for goods, and it does not inspect goods, book freight, or clear customs.³

MOQ, pricing, and samples: judge the set after repeated washes

What is the typical MOQ for hotel linen from Bangladesh?

There is no single typical minimum order quantity for hotel linen from Bangladesh. The minimum is set per item and usually per color, because fabric is woven, bleached, or dyed in batches. A white flat sheet, a dyed fitted sheet, and a bath towel with a woven logo will not carry the same minimum. Ask how the minimum splits by item, size, color, and logo treatment, and get the answer in writing before you compare quotes. Ask whether it is counted in pieces, sets, dozens, or cartons, and work the quantity from the par stock calculation for each property. Fabric is usually the main cost element, so compare quotes only on the same item list, sizes, fiber, towel weights, logo treatment, delivery term, and packing, with exclusions stated in writing.

Which samples do you need, and how do you approve them?

Work in stages, and approve in writing at each stage. A development sample shows whether the mill can construct each item and complete a full room set. A pre-production sample, made in the actual production fabric, color or white shade, and finish, is the sample you approve for bulk. Wash each item repeatedly through the laundry program the property actually uses, then measure finished sizes, check shrinkage, and check the shade across the room set under the same light. A sheet, duvet cover, and pillowcase can pass item by item and still fail as a set if one piece comes from a different white or dye batch. Approve only after the wash test, and keep one sealed counter-sample of each item.

Quality checks, labels, and care symbols for hotel use in Italy

Which quality checks are specific to hotel linen?

Check fabric composition and finished weight, finished sizes within your tolerances after washing, and consistency across the size range. Then check construction item by item: hems, fitted-sheet corners and elastic, closures, and towel and table linen hems. Check shade across the program and check the label after the laundry test. Agree the inspection method and defect limits before production. ISO 2859-1:2026 defines a system of acceptance sampling plans for inspection by attributes, indexed by acceptance quality limit (AQL).⁴ AQL is the maximum average percentage of defective items considered acceptable during random sampling, used to determine sample sizes and acceptance and rejection thresholds.⁴ Inspect in stages: an inline check during cutting and sewing, and a final random inspection on packed goods, drawn across items, sizes, colors, and cartons.

What must the Italian label say?

Settle the label set at sampling stage, with the Italian wording checked by a reader who works in Italian. For a multi-fiber piece, Article 9 of Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 states that a textile product shall be labelled or marked with the name and percentage by weight of all constituent fibers in descending order.⁵ Article 16 requires fiber composition descriptions to be easily legible, visible, and clear, and clearly visible to the consumer before purchase, including where the purchase is made by electronic means.⁶ Labelling must use the official language of the member state where the products are made available.⁶ For linen sold in Italy, that means Italian fiber wording on the label and in the online listing. Care symbols follow ISO 3758:2023, which establishes a system of graphic symbols for marking textile articles with information on the most severe treatments that do not cause irreversible damage, in a sequence of five main treatments: washing, bleaching, drying, ironing, and professional textile care.⁷ The same standard excludes industrial laundering from its scope, so agree the commercial laundry treatment with the laundry operator in writing, separately from the domestic care symbols.⁷

Which certifications and test evidence do you actually need?

No single certificate covers every order: name any test or scheme your customer requires in the specification, and check the report for scope, product, issuing body, and date. OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 is the certification hotel linen buyers ask about most often. Hohenstein states that the criteria and limit values depend above all on intended use, and that the more direct the skin contact, the stricter the requirements.⁸ Bed linen and towels fall in Product Class II, for textiles whose surface comes into direct contact with the skin, while table linen falls in Product Class IV, for furnishing materials for decorative purposes.⁸ A STANDARD 100 certificate is valid for 12 months and can be renewed annually.⁸ Check the certificate number, class, and expiry date against the exact construction and colors ordered.

Classify each piece, confirm the duty, and claim the preference

How are hotel linen pieces classified for Italian duty?

Duty follows the classification of each piece in the European Union tariff, not the supplier product name or the word hotel on the invoice. The Harmonised System is an international commodity classification system developed by the World Customs Organization, with approximately 5,000 six-digit product categories organized in a hierarchy of sections, chapters, headings, and subheadings.⁹ The Combined Nomenclature of the European Union uses eight-digit codes built on that structure.⁹ The United Nations classification detail for heading 6302 lists bed linen at 6302.10, 6302.21 to 6302.29, and 6302.31 to 6302.39; table linen at 6302.40, 6302.51, 6302.53, and 6302.59; and toilet and kitchen linen at 6302.60, 6302.91, 6302.93, and 6302.99.¹⁰ These lines are indicative until your broker confirms the full code. A bathrobe is a garment, not linen: the chapter notes state that the made-up articles subchapter does not cover goods of Chapters 56 to 62, so confirm any bathrobe on its garment line separately.¹¹ Read the classification method in the HS code guide for hotel linen before you file.

What import duty applies in Italy, and what must you confirm with your broker?

Confirm every duty line with your broker before you commit to a selling price. The tariff heading page opened for this guide shows third-country duty of 12.00 percent for most 6302 lines, with 6.90 percent for certain nonwoven lines.¹¹ The table condenses that page; confirm every line with a broker. Price at both rates until the broker confirms the preference in writing. For the method, read how to import from Bangladesh.

How does the Everything But Arms preference work for a hotel linen shipment?

The Everything But Arms scheme is a special arrangement for least developed countries, granting full duty-free and quota-free access to the EU Single Market for all products except arms and ammunition.¹² The updated Generalised Scheme of Preferences continues the Everything But Arms initiative, which grants full duty-free access for all goods except arms and ammunition from the least developed countries, and the initiative will now continue indefinitely.¹³ Price without the preference until your broker confirms it in writing. Origin proof runs through the Registered Exporter system: the REX system is based on self-certification, and a statement on origin is a declaration of origin added by the registered exporter to the invoice or any other commercial document.¹⁴ For shipments with a value of less than 6,000 euro, the statement of origin can be made out without the obligation to register.¹⁴ Confirm REX registration before the first shipment.

Import VAT, documents, and the Genoa declaration

What import VAT applies in Italy?

Import VAT is separate from duty, and it remains payable even where duty falls away under a preference. The standard VAT rate in Italy is 22 percent, with reduced rates of 10 percent and 5 percent and a super-reduced rate of 4 percent.¹⁵ Plan on 22 percent, and confirm the import VAT base, timing, and recovery treatment with your broker or tax adviser before the first shipment. The standard import set is the commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, and proof of origin where a preference is claimed. Name each piece on its own invoice line, with fiber content, construction, finished dimensions, quantities, unit prices, and the delivery term. Give the broker the EORI number, confirmed codes, and statement on origin before sailing.

Delivery terms and the Chattogram to Genoa leg

Which delivery term should a first hotel order use?

Under Incoterms 2020, the delivery term settles delivery, risk, cost, and customs obligations. Name the rule, the version, and the named place in the contract, for example FCA Chattogram container terminal, Incoterms 2020. Under FCA, the seller delivers the goods to the carrier or designated person named by the buyer, and FCA is suitable for any mode of transport, including multimodal shipments.¹⁶ Under FOB, the seller delivers the goods once they are loaded onto the vessel, and FOB is to be used only for maritime or inland waterway transport.¹⁶ For a container shipment from Chattogram to Genoa, FCA at the named container terminal gives a cleaner handover point than FOB, because a container is handed to the carrier before it is loaded on board. The PSA SECH terminal in the Port of Genoa basin is equipped to cater for up to 14,000 TEU vessels, with direct rail and motorway connections.¹⁷

Landed cost example: one room set at two duty outcomes

A landed cost is the full cost of one room set, ready to use from your Italian warehouse, excluding the import VAT recovery treatment. Every number below is an example figure only, not a quote. Example figures: one room set with one flat sheet, one fitted sheet, two pillowcases, one duvet cover, two bath towels, and one hand towel, FCA Chattogram, sea freight to Genoa, duty at the 12.00 percent schedule line, and the same set at zero duty under the preference.

Import VAT is shown separately. Applying 22 percent to the example customs value plus duty, EUR 70.06, gives EUR 15.41 as an example figure, for a total cash cost at import of EUR 89.17 per room set in this example.¹⁵ Under the preference, the VAT base is EUR 62.55, the example VAT is EUR 13.76, and the total cash cost is EUR 80.01. Confirm the VAT base with your broker before you use this example. See the landed cost method for the full calculation.

Step-by-step sequence from Genoa decision to repeat order

1. Confirm the Genoa entry: EORI number, broker, duty lines, customs value, and import VAT base, in writing.

2. Build the room-set sheet: one row per piece, sizes after washing, fiber, weave, mark, par multiple, and laundry route.

3. Classify every piece from heading 6302 and confirm each full code with your broker.

4. Confirm the origin position: origin rule, REX number, statement on origin, and the 6,000 euro threshold.

5. Shortlist hotel-experienced mills and request quotes on the identical room-set sheet and delivery term.

6. Check the supplier in three layers: documents, capacity and current production, and payment discipline.

7. Order samples in stages, wash them through the actual laundry program, and approve a pre-production sample of each item.

8. Confirm the order in writing: purchase order, pro forma invoice, delivery and payment terms, inspection plan, labeling, and packing.

9. Inspect during production and on packed goods against the approved samples, across items, sizes, colors, and cartons.

10. Ship to Genoa, clear customs, reconcile the landed cost, and record the shade standard.

Next steps on Exportain

Read how to import from Bangladesh, then work through the landed cost method with your broker confirmed duty line. When your room-set sheet is ready, see how to buy on Exportain.

Post a free RFQ on Exportain and get quotes from Bangladeshi suppliers → https://exportain.com/rfqs

What is the typical MOQ for hotel linen from Bangladesh?

There is no single typical minimum. The minimum is set per item and usually per color, because fabric is woven, bleached, or dyed in batches. Ask how it splits by item, size, color, and logo treatment, and work the quantity from the par stock calculation.

How long does shipping take?

Neither production time nor transit time has a single typical figure. Sea freight from Chattogram to Genoa takes weeks rather than days. Work backward from the date the linen must be in service, and confirm the shipment date only after sample approval.

What import duty applies when you import hotel linen from Bangladesh to Italy?

Confirm every duty line with your broker before you price or ship. The indicative heading is 6302, and the tariff page opened for this guide shows 12.00 percent for most 6302 lines, with 6.90 percent for certain nonwoven lines.¹¹ A preference depends on the origin rules and a statement on origin from a REX-registered exporter.^{12 14}

How do I verify a supplier?

Check company documents first, so that the name, address, and bank account agree across the trade license, export registration, and invoices. Then check capability: weaving and dyeing route, capacity, and a finished room set from current production. Keep payments to the company account named in the documents, and treat any profile badge as a document and photo review, not a factory inspection or a guarantee.³