Analysis
HTS 4421.91.80 covers clothespins: spring-type under heading 4421 (other articles of wood). US Customs collects import statistics for it under 4 ten-digit suffixes, reported in gross.
The general rate is 6.5¢/gross, 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 Bahrain FTA, the Chile FTA, the Colombia TPA, AGOA, and 11 others can enter duty-free instead of paying 6.5¢/gross. 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 321999 (All Other Miscellaneous Wood Product Manufacturing), an industry of 2,327 US establishments employing 31,381 people. That concordance is how imports of this line are compared with US output.
The ten-digit suffixes separate valued not over 80¢/gross, valued over 80¢ but not over $1.35/gross, valued over $1.35 but not over… and valued over $1.70/gross. The duty is the same across them; the suffix matters for statistics, licensing and some quotas, and an entry needs all ten digits.
Statistical suffixes
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 4421.91.10 | Wood dowel pins: plain | Free |
| 4421.91.20 | Sanded, grooved or otherwise advanced in condition | 4.9% |
| 4421.91.30 | Consisting of wooden frames in the center of which are fixed louver boards or slats, with or without their hardware | 10.7% |
| 4421.91.40 | Wood blinds, shutters, screens and shades, all the foregoing with or without their hardware: other | 5.1% |
| 4421.91.50 | Toothpicks, skewers, candy sticks, ice cream sticks, tongue depressors, drink mixers and similar small wares: toothpicks | Free |
| 4421.91.60 | Toothpicks, skewers, candy sticks, ice cream sticks, tongue depressors, drink mixers and similar small wares: other | 5.1% |
| 4421.91.70 | Pickets, palings, posts and rails, the foregoing which are sawn; assembled fence sections | Free |
| 4421.91.85 | Clothespins: other | 4.8% |
| 4421.91.88 | Of bamboo: canoe paddles | Free |
| 4421.91.93 | Theatrical, ballet, and operatic scenery and properties, including sets | Free |
| 4421.91.94 | Other: edge-glued lumber | Free |
| 4421.91.98 | Other: other | 3.3% |