Every importer eventually asks "what is the duty on this". It is the wrong first question. Duty is a consequence of classification, and classification is a determination about what your product legally is. Get that right and the rate follows; get it wrong and the rate you looked up was never the applicable one.
A note on what this page does not contain. There are no duty percentages here, and that is deliberate. Rates differ by product, by destination country, by trade agreement and by origin, and they change. A number published today would be wrong somewhere and out of date eventually, and a wrong duty figure in a costing is worse than no figure. What follows is the method, which does not go stale.
The classification system
International trade uses the Harmonized System, a shared framework maintained by the World Customs Organization. The first six digits mean the same thing in every participating country. Beyond six digits, countries extend the code for their own tariff and statistical purposes — the United States uses the HTSUS, the EU uses the Combined Nomenclature, and so on.
The practical consequence: a six-digit code from your supplier is a starting point, not an answer. The digits that determine your duty are the ones your own country added, and your supplier has no particular reason to know them.
Classification is your responsibility
In most jurisdictions the importer of record is legally responsible for the accuracy of the customs declaration, including the classification and the declared value. Not the supplier. Not the freight forwarder. Not the customs broker, who acts on the information you provide.
This surprises people, because the supplier usually puts a code on the invoice and it is natural to assume they know. They are telling you what they used for their export declaration, which is a different declaration with different consequences, and they carry none of the risk if it is wrong on your side.
Errors are typically discovered during a post-clearance audit rather than at the border. By then the consequences are cumulative across every entry made on the same wrong basis.
Why classification is harder than it looks
The system classifies by what a thing is, which sounds simple until you have a real product in front of you.
- Material versus function. Is a silicone kitchen tool classified by the material or by what it does? The framework has rules for this, and they are not intuitive.
- Composite goods. A product of several materials is generally classified by the one that gives it its essential character — a judgement rather than a measurement.
- Sets. A set put up for retail sale may classify as a single item or as its components, depending on how it is presented.
- Parts and accessories. Frequently classified differently from the thing they belong to.
- Small design changes. Adding a function, a motor, or a different closure can move a product between headings entirely.
How to actually get it right
- Start from your own country's tariff schedule, published by its customs authority, and search by what the product is rather than by what you call it commercially.
- Read the section and chapter notes. These are binding rules, not commentary, and they frequently exclude a heading that otherwise looks correct.
- Write down the reasoning. Which heading, which notes you applied, why you rejected the alternatives. If it is ever questioned, this file is what you have.
- Use a licensed customs broker for anything material. This is inexpensive relative to being wrong and it is what they do.
- Consider a binding ruling. Many customs authorities will issue a formal, binding classification decision on request. For a product you will import repeatedly, this converts an open-ended risk into a settled fact.
Value, origin and the rest of the declaration
Classification determines the rate. The rate applies to a declared value, and what must be included in that value is its own body of rules — assists, tooling paid for separately, royalties and certain freight elements can all belong in the customs value depending on the jurisdiction and the terms.
Origin is a third determination, separate from where the goods shipped from. It affects eligibility for trade agreements and any origin-specific measures. Goods that pass through a third country do not thereby acquire its origin.
These interact with your shipping terms. Under DDP, the supplier arranges import clearance — which raises the question of who is named as importer of record and whether the declaration made on your behalf is one you would stand behind. If your name is on it, the responsibility is yours regardless of who prepared it.
The practical advice
Settle classification before you commit to an order, not when the container is at the port. It belongs in the costing alongside the unit price and the freight, because a product that works at one duty rate may not work at another, and that is a decision you want to make early.
This is also why our cost pages state their duty assumption as part of the basis rather than burying it. A landed cost figure without a stated classification assumption is not a landed cost.
