A tariff number is a six-digit code assigned to imports or exports based on the item’s category. The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) assigns these codes and is regulated by the United States International Trade Commission (ITC). The HTS is divided into 99 chapters, and each asset is assigned a rate number based on its classification. Tariffs are taxes levied on goods during international trade, and more than 17,000 tariff codes can be assigned to an import.
A tariff number is the six-digit code assigned to an import or export from the United States. These codes are based on the general category that describes the shipped item. Assigning a tariff number is an important part of the responsibilities of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS). A tariff number may also be known as a Harmonized System number.
Trade is almost as old as human civilization itself, and international trade is a crucial part of the economy of almost every country. As technology progressively shrinks our world, international trade has increasingly become a part of every nation’s economic revenue. Often, a country’s international trade comes with a large set of regulations based on the political and economic relationship between the two trading countries.
The United States International Trade Commission (ITC) is an independent federal agency that advises the executive and legislative branches of the United States federal government on all aspects of international economic relations. Congress created the ITC in 1916 and gave it broad investigative power on all trade matters. In 1989, the ITC created the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, basing it on the World Customs Organization’s International Harmonized Commodity Classification and Coding System. In fact, almost all countries have a tariff based on the Harmonized System. This has made international trade much more efficient.
The United States Harmonized Tariff Schedule is a two-volume government publication that is also available in several electronic formats. It is divided into 99 chapters, each with a number of titles and subtitles. While there are no hard and fast rules, in general, raw or very basic materials appear in the early chapters, while highly processed or manufactured goods can be found later. The Harmonized Program assigns each asset a rate number based on its classification of use and the material of which it is composed. For example, agricultural products are found in chapters one through twenty-four.
As long as there has been trade, there have been tariffs, which is a tax that is levied on a good as it moves from one country to another. The tariff number of an import classifies the goods according to several characteristics, including the use of the item or the materials of which it is made. In fact, more than 17,000 tariff codes can be assigned to an import. These codes are then used to classify goods for duties, quotas or statistical purposes.
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