Analysis
HTS 2804.21.00 covers rare gases: argon under heading 2804 (hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals).
Rates on the nearby lines range from duty-free to 5.5%. The costliest confusion would be with 2804.90.00 (hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: selenium) at duty-free, a difference of 3.7 points on the customs value.
The general duty rate is 3.7% of the customs value, which is in the middle of the rates in chapter 28 (67th percentile of 274 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $370 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.
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 3.7%. 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.
The column 2 rate, for countries without normal trade relations, is 25%, 6.8 times the general rate.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 325120 (Industrial Gas Manufacturing), an industry of 546 US establishments employing 13,842 people, the industry a domestic producer of these goods reports under.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2804.10.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: hydrogen | 3.7% |
| 2804.29.00 | Rare gases: other | 3.7% |
| 2804.30.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: nitrogen | 3.7% |
| 2804.40.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: oxygen | 3.7% |
| 2804.50.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: boron; tellurium | Free |
| 2804.61.00 | Containing by weight not less than 99.99 percent of silicon | Free |
| 2804.69.10 | Containing by weight less than 99.99 percent but not less than 99 percent of silicon | 5.3% |
| 2804.69.50 | Other: other | 5.5% |
| 2804.70.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: phosphorus | Free |
| 2804.80.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: arsenic | Free |
| 2804.90.00 | Hydrogen, rare gases and other nonmetals: selenium | Free |