3204.17.20

Analysis

HTS 3204.17.20 covers copper phthalocyanine ([Phthalocyanato(2-)]- copper), not ready for use as a pigment under heading 3204 (synthetic organic coloring matter, whether or not chemically defined; preparations as…).

Within this group the rate runs from duty-free to 6.5%. Compared with 3204.17.40 (isoindolenine red pigment; Pigment red 214, 242, 254; Pigment red 149…), which pays duty-free, a misclassification either way moves the duty by 6.5 percentage points.

The general duty rate is 6.5% of the customs value, which is above most the rates in chapter 32 (77th percentile of 106 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $650 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 6.5%. 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 325130 (Synthetic Dye and Pigment Manufacturing), an industry of 125 US establishments employing 8,305 people. That concordance is how imports of this line are compared with US output.