Operator glossary
HTS codes & Section 301 tariffs
The ten-digit classification that sets your duty rate — plus the China-tariff layers stacked on top since 2018 — where a defensible reclassification is worth more than most price negotiations.
Every imported product carries an HTS code determining its base duty rate; China-origin goods then stack additional layers — Section 301 tariffs (7.5–25% across the lists since 2018) and the 2025 wave of further tariff actions that repriced China sourcing repeatedly within a single year. The stack, not the base rate, is your real duty line.
Classification is argument, not lookup: products straddling codes can differ by double-digit duty percentages, and a broker-reviewed, defensibly documented classification is among the highest-ROI afternoons in importing. The 2025–26 discipline: verify the current stack with your broker per order, model landed cost with tariff scenarios rather than a constant, and file duty-drawback claims where re-exports apply.
The numbers
- Duty = HTS base rate + Section 301 layer (7.5–25% by list) + subsequent tariff actions — verify the current stack per order; 2025 changed it repeatedly.
- Borderline classifications swing duties by double digits — broker-reviewed, documented positions pay for themselves.
Related terms