Analysis
HTS 2905.49.30 covers polyhydric alcohols derived from sugars: xylitol under heading 2905 (acyclic alcohols and their halogenated, sulfonated, nitrated or nitrosated derivatives).
Within this group the rate runs from 3.7% to 5.5%. Compared with 2905.49.50 (other: other), which pays 5.5%, a misclassification either way moves the duty by 5.5 percentage points.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 50% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 50% duty.
The normal trade relations rate here is zero, shared by about 26% of the 1050 tariff lines in chapter 29, a useful check when a neighbouring dutiable line is a candidate. Free here means free of the base duty only: origin-specific Chapter 99 duties such as Section 301 can still be owed.
The other lines in the same group are 2905.49.10 (triols and tetrols, 3.7%), 2905.49.20 (esters of glycerol formed with acids of heading 2904, 5.5%), 2905.49.40 (polyhydric alcohols derived from sugars: other, 5.5%) and 2905.49.50 (other: other, 5.5%).
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 325199 (All Other Basic Organic Chemical Manufacturing), an industry of 894 US establishments employing 77,304 people. That concordance is how imports of this line are compared with US output.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2905.49.10 | Triols and tetrols | 3.7% |
| 2905.49.20 | Esters of glycerol formed with acids of heading 2904 | 5.5% |
| 2905.49.40 | Polyhydric alcohols derived from sugars: other | 5.5% |
| 2905.49.50 | Other: other | 5.5% |