The same product can carry three different commodity codes depending on where it is going. That is not an error: every tariff shares the same six-digit Harmonized System root, then adds its own digits for its own duties, controls and statistics.
The shared root: six HS digits
The Harmonized System is maintained by the World Customs Organization and updated roughly every five years; the current edition is HS 2022. Its six-digit subheadings are identical in the UK, the EU, the US and every other country that uses the system. Below six digits, each tariff goes its own way.
| Tariff | Import code | Structure | Published by |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK | 10 digits | HS 6 + national subdivisions. Exports use the first 8 digits. | UK Trade Tariff (HMRC and the Department for Business and Trade) |
| EU | 10 digits | HS 6 + 2 digits of the Combined Nomenclature (CN8) + 2 TARIC digits for EU measures | European Commission |
| US | 10 digits | HS 6 + 2 digits for the duty-rate line (8 digits) + a 2-digit statistical suffix | US International Trade Commission |
The UK Trade Tariff
Since 1 January 2021 the UK has run its own tariff, the UK Global Tariff. Imports are declared with a 10-digit commodity code and exports with an 8-digit code. The structure still closely follows the EU’s, because it was inherited from it, but duty rates and lower-level lines have diverged and will continue to.
Goods moving into Northern Ireland can fall under EU customs rules under the Windsor Framework, so check which tariff applies to NI movements.
The EU: CN and TARIC
The EU’s Combined Nomenclature (CN) adds two digits to the HS to make an 8-digit code used for duties and trade statistics. It is republished every year and applies from 1 January. TARIC adds two more digits where EU measures such as anti-dumping duties, quotas or suspensions need to target goods more precisely, giving the 10-digit import code. Some measures also need a four-character TARIC additional code.
The US: HTSUS and Schedule B
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) sets the duty rate at 8 digits, and adds a two-digit statistical suffix to make the 10-digit import code. US exports use a different 10-digit schedule, Schedule B, maintained by the Census Bureau.
One product, three codes
A men’s crew-neck T-shirt, knitted, 100% cotton, is HS 6109.10 everywhere:
- UK import: 6109 10 00 10 (T-shirts).
- EU: CN 6109 10 00, then the TARIC digits in force on the day of import.
- US import: 6109.10.00.12 (men’s T-shirts other than all-white), with the 16.5% general duty set on the 8-digit line 6109.10.00.
Codes and rates change, so treat these as an illustration and check the official tariff on the day you declare.
What this means for your catalogue
- Store the HS 6 root for each product, then the national code for each market you ship to.
- Do not reuse one country’s 10-digit code in another: the last four digits mean different things.
- Review codes when tariffs change: the EU’s CN every January, and the HS every five years or so.
click2classify classifies once at the HS 6 level, then resolves the national codes for each market from official tariff data. Try it free, or read how to find a commodity code.