Analysis
HTS 4820.50.00 covers albums for samples or for collections under heading 4820 (registers, account books, notebooks, order books, receipt books, letter pads, memorandum…).
Goods classified here enter the United States duty-free at the general (normal trade relations) rate, as do about 100% of the 225 tariff lines in chapter 48. Chapter 99 measures such as Section 301 or 232 can still apply on top, depending on where the goods come from.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 30% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 30% duty.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 323111 (Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books)), an industry of 15,140 US establishments employing 280,276 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
All 6 neighbouring lines carry the same duty-free rate, so a borderline choice between them changes the statistics reported, not the duty paid.
The general rate of Free has not changed in any edition of the schedule since Jan 2023.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 4820.10.20 | Diaries, notebooks and address books, bound; memorandum pads, letter pads and similar articles | Free |
| 4820.10.40 | Registers, account books, notebooks, order books, receipt books, letter pads, memorandum pads, diaries and similar articles: other | Free |
| 4820.20.00 | Registers, account books, notebooks, order books, receipt books, letter pads, memorandum pads, diaries and similar articles, exercise books, blotting pads, binders (looseleaf or other), folders, file covers, manifold business forms, interleaved carbon sets and other articles of stationery, of paper or paperboard; albums for samples or for collections and book covers (including cover boards and book jackets) of paper or paperboard: exercise books | Free |
| 4820.30.00 | Binders (other than book covers), folders and file covers | Free |
| 4820.40.00 | Manifold business forms and interleaved carbon sets | Free |
| 4820.90.00 | Registers, account books, notebooks, order books, receipt books, letter pads, memorandum pads, diaries and similar articles, exercise books, blotting pads, binders (looseleaf or other), folders, file covers, manifold business forms, interleaved carbon sets and other articles of stationery, of paper or paperboard; albums for samples or for collections and book covers (including cover boards and book jackets) of paper or paperboard: other | Free |