Analysis
HTS 0402.99.03 covers in airtight containers under heading 0402 (milk and cream, concentrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matter).
The general rate is 3.9¢/kg, a specific or compound duty rather than a simple percentage, so the effective burden depends on the unit value of the goods: cheap goods pay proportionally more than expensive ones. Importers usually convert it to an ad valorem equivalent to compare it with other lines.
Goods that qualify under GSP, the Australia FTA, the Bahrain FTA, the Chile FTA, the Colombia TPA, and 12 others can enter duty-free instead of paying 3.9¢/kg. It is also eligible under GSP, the developing-country programme, which Congress has to renew; check whether GSP is in force on the entry date.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 311514 (Dry, Condensed, and Evaporated Dairy Product Manufacturing), an industry of 174 US establishments employing 17,210 people. That concordance is how imports of this line are compared with US output.
The general rate of 3.9¢/kg has not changed in any edition of the schedule since Jan 2023.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0402.99.06 | Described in general note 15 of the tariff schedule and entered pursuant to its provisions: other | 3.3¢/kg |
| 0402.99.10 | In airtight containers | 3.9¢/kg |
| 0402.99.30 | Described in additional U.S. note 11 to this chapter and entered pursuant to its provisions: other | 3.3¢/kg |
| 0402.99.45 | In airtight containers | 49.6¢/kg |
| 0402.99.55 | Other: other | 49.6¢/kg |
| 0402.99.68 | Described in general note 15 of the tariff schedule and entered pursuant to its provisions | 17.5% |
| 0402.99.70 | Described in additional U.S. note 10 to this chapter and entered pursuant to its provisions | 17.5% |
| 0402.99.90 | Other: other | 46.3¢/kg + 14.9% |