How to Import Travertine from Turkey: A Guide for UK and US Buyers

Turkey is one of the world's main sources of travertine, and most of the tiles, pavers and pool coping sold in the UK and the US started there. Buying directly can save cost and widen your choice, but only if the order is specified and checked properly before it leaves the factory.

Why buy travertine from Turkey

Western Turkey, and the Denizli region in particular, has a large concentration of travertine quarries and processing plants built around export. That gives buyers three practical advantages: a wide range of colours from the same region, factories used to producing standard export formats, and the capacity to supply larger projects from a single source.

The trade-off is distance. When the factory is a flight away, the quality of the result depends on how clearly the order is written and who checks the material before it is crated.

Colours and types

Turkish travertine is usually sold under trade names rather than quarry names. The same name can describe slightly different stone from one supplier to the next, so always approve a physical sample from the lot you will receive. The main families are:

• Classic (light or ivory): warm beige, the most widely used colour for floors, bathrooms and pool decks
• Noce (walnut): rich brown with warm depth
• Silver: grey to silver tones with linear banding, popular for contemporary interiors and façades
• Multicolour (gold, red and grey mixes): stronger movement, often used tumbled or in mosaics

Each of these can be vein cut or cross cut, which changes the look completely. Cut direction belongs in the order, not left to the factory.

Grades: what Premium and Standard really mean

Suppliers often describe travertine as Premium (or Select), Standard and Commercial. These grades are not an industry standard. They are each factory's own sorting, based on colour consistency, the number and size of holes, and visible defects. One factory's Standard can look like another's Premium.

The safe approach is to define the grade yourself: agree a reference sample, or a small set of photos of accepted and rejected pieces, and make that the basis for inspection.

Formats and sizes for the UK and US markets

UK projects are usually drawn in millimetres. US projects use inch sizes, and Turkish factories produce both. Common export formats include:

Product	Typical sizes (cm)	US equivalent
Floor and wall tiles	30.5 × 30.5, 40.6 × 40.6, 45.7 × 45.7 (1.2 cm), 61 × 61 (1.5 cm)	12″, 16″, 18″, 24″ square
Pattern sets	Mixed modules, often called French or Versailles pattern	Pattern set
Tumbled tiles	10 × 10, 7.5 × 15, 15 × 15, 20 × 20 (1 cm)	4″ × 4″, 3″ × 6″, 6″ × 6″, 8″ × 8″
Pavers	15 × 15, 15 × 30.5 and larger (3 cm)	6″ × 6″, 6″ × 12″, jumbo sets
Pool coping	Bullnose or eased, to drawing	Coping
Slabs	2 or 3 cm, block-dependent sizes	3/4″ or 1 1/4″

Custom sizes and cut-to-size pieces from your own drawings are routine, but they need a cutting list and, for anything beyond simple tiles, a shop drawing.

Finish and fill

Write both into the order. The common finishes are honed, brushed, tumbled, chiselled-edge and polished. Travertine can be supplied filled, with its natural holes closed using cement or resin, or unfilled. Filled and honed is the usual choice for interiors; unfilled or tumbled is common outdoors and around pools.

Approve the fill colour on a physical sample. A fill that looks neutral in a photograph can read darker or lighter once installed, and it is very hard to correct afterwards.

Samples and test data

Ask for samples from current production, not from a showroom board that may be years old. For larger orders, ask for photos of the actual lot or of the blocks reserved for you.

For exterior use, pool decks and commercial floors, request test reports from an accredited laboratory: water absorption, flexural strength, frost resistance and slip resistance. UK projects normally reference EN test methods; US projects reference ASTM. Our guide to ASTM and EN standards for natural stone explains which tests matter.

Inspection before packing

Most problems with imported travertine are visible before the crates are closed: tone variation between batches, chipped edges, poor calibration, thickness outside tolerance, or fill that has dropped out. A pre-packing inspection should check:

• Colour and tone against the approved sample
• Thickness and calibration on a sample of pieces from every crate
• Dimensions and squareness
• Edges, corners and chips
• Fill quality and finish
• Quantity per size, and crate labelling against the packing list

Our slab inspection checklist covers the same principles for slabs.

Crating, shipping and documents

Stone is shipped by weight, not volume. A container is usually full by weight long before it is full by space, so travertine normally travels in 20-foot containers. Pieces are packed in wooden crates, which must be heat-treated and stamped to the ISPM 15 standard for both the UK and the US.

Agree the Incoterm at the quotation stage. FOB (free on board, Turkish port) is common when the buyer uses their own forwarder; CIF or CFR when the supplier books the freight. The usual export documents are the commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading and, where needed, a certificate or declaration of origin.

Import duty in the UK and the US

United Kingdom: since 2021 the UK–Turkey trade agreement has allowed preferential tariff rates for goods that meet its rules of origin. Origin is shown with a declaration on origin on the invoice or another commercial document. Your customs broker will confirm the rate for your commodity code.

United States: duty depends on the HTS code (worked travertine and marble usually fall under heading 6802) and on current tariff policy, which has changed several times since 2025. Check the rate with your customs broker before you price the job, not after the container has sailed.

Freight, customs clearance and import are handled by your forwarder and importer. A good partner in Turkey works directly with them so documents, crate marks and loading dates line up.

A short buying checklist

1. Name the colour and approve a current production sample.
2. State cut direction, finish, fill and fill colour.
3. List sizes, thicknesses and quantities, adding a waste allowance.
4. Define the grade with reference photos, not a word.
5. Ask for test data if the stone goes outside, around a pool or into a commercial floor.
6. Agree the Incoterm, crate type and labelling.
7. Arrange an independent inspection before packing.
8. Confirm duty with your customs broker.

Marble Technic supports UK and US companies with exactly this process: sourcing, sample approval, pre-packing inspection and shipment coordination from Turkey. You can also browse our catalogue for the travertine range we supply.

Frequently asked questions

Is Turkish travertine good quality?

Turkey produces travertine across the full quality range. Quality depends on the quarry, the bench and the factory's sorting, so approve a current sample and inspect the order before packing rather than relying on a grade name.

What sizes of travertine tiles are available for the US market?

Turkish factories produce standard inch formats such as 12″ × 12″, 16″ × 16″, 18″ × 18″ and 24″ × 24″, tumbled 4″ × 4″ and 6″ × 6″ tiles, pavers, pattern sets and pool coping, as well as custom sizes cut to drawings.

Do I pay import duty on travertine from Turkey in the UK?

Under the UK–Turkey trade agreement, goods that meet the rules of origin can qualify for preferential tariff rates, shown with a declaration on origin. Your customs broker confirms the rate for your commodity code.

How is travertine shipped from Turkey?

In heat-treated wooden crates (ISPM 15), usually in 20-foot containers because stone reaches the weight limit before the space limit. FOB and CIF are the most common Incoterms.