Analysis
HTS 7114.11.10 covers knives with silver handles under heading 7114 (articles of goldsmiths' or silversmiths' wares and parts thereof, of precious metal or of…).
Within this group the rate runs from 2.7% to 3.5%. Compared with 7114.11.40 (spoons and ladles: other), which pays 3.5%, a misclassification either way moves the duty by 0.7 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 2.8%. 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 2.8% of the customs value, which is in the middle of the rates in chapter 71 (48th percentile of 108 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $280 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 339910 (Jewelry and Silverware Manufacturing), an industry of 1,844 US establishments employing 19,188 people. That concordance is how imports of this line are compared with US output.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 7114.11.20 | Forks with silver handles | 2.7% |
| 7114.11.30 | With sterling silver handles | 3.3% |
| 7114.11.40 | Spoons and ladles: other | 3.5% |
| 7114.11.45 | Sets of the foregoing which include two or more knives, forks, spoons or ladles | 3% |
| 7114.11.50 | Sterling silver tableware | 3.3% |
| 7114.11.60 | Articles not elsewhere specified or included of a type used for household, table or kitchen use; toilet and sanitary wares; all the foregoing and parts thereof, of silver: other | 3% |
| 7114.11.70 | Of silver, whether or not plated or clad with other precious metal: other | 3% |