Analysis
HTS 6502.00.40 covers not bleached and not colored under heading 6502 (hat shapes, plaited or made by assembling strips of any material, neither blocked to…).
Within this group the rate runs from duty-free to 6.8%. Compared with 6502.00.60 (bleached or colored), which pays duty-free, a misclassification either way moves the duty by 4 percentage points.
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 4%. 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 general duty rate is 4% of the customs value, which is in the middle of the rates in chapter 65 (45th percentile of 19 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $400 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.
The column 2 rate, for countries without normal trade relations, is 25%, 6.2 times the general rate.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 6502.00.20 | Of vegetable fibers, of unspun fibrous vegetable materials, of paper yarn or of any combination thereof: sewed | 34¢/doz. + 3.4% |
| 6502.00.60 | Bleached or colored | Free |
| 6502.00.90 | Hat shapes, plaited or made by assembling strips of any material, neither blocked to shape, nor with made brims, not lined, nor trimmed: other | 6.8% |