Analysis
HTS 0406.40.44 covers in original loaves under heading 0406 (cheese and curd).
Neighbouring lines carry rates from 2.7% to 20%, so the exact line matters. The widest gap is with 0406.40.20 (in original loaves), at 2.7%: a product that belongs there but is entered here, or the reverse, changes the duty by 10.1 percentage points.
Goods that qualify under the Colombia TPA, the Jordan FTA, KORUS, the Oman FTA, the Panama TPA, and 2 others can enter duty-free instead of paying 12.8%.
The general duty rate is 12.8% of the customs value, which is in the middle of the rates in chapter 04 (60th percentile of 126 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $1,280 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.
The column 2 rate, for countries without normal trade relations, is 35%, 2.7 times the general rate.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 311513 (Cheese Manufacturing), an industry of 568 US establishments employing 60,731 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0406.40.20 | In original loaves | 2.7% |
| 0406.40.40 | Roquefort: other | 4.5% |
| 0406.40.48 | Stilton cheese described in additional U.S. note 24 to this chapter and entered pursuant to its provisions: other | 17% |
| 0406.40.51 | In original loaves | 15% |
| 0406.40.52 | Described in general note 15 of the tariff schedule and entered pursuant to its provisions: other | 20% |
| 0406.40.54 | In original loaves | 15% |
| 0406.40.58 | Described in additional U.S. note 17 to this chapter and entered pursuant to its provisions: other | 20% |
| 0406.40.70 | Other: other | $2.269/kg |