Analysis
HTS 8506.30.10 covers having an external volume not exceeding 300 cm3 under heading 8506 (primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof).
The general duty rate is 2.7% of the customs value, which is above most the rates in chapter 85 (74th percentile of 624 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $270 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.
The column 2 rate, for countries without normal trade relations, is 35%, 13.0 times the general rate.
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 2.7%. 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 33591 (Battery Manufacturing), an industry of 325 US establishments employing 39,723 people, the industry a domestic producer of these goods reports under.
All 8 neighbouring lines carry the same 2.7% rate, so a borderline choice between them changes the statistics reported, not the duty paid.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 8506.10.00 | Primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof: manganese dioxide | 2.7% |
| 8506.30.50 | Mercuric oxide: other | 2.7% |
| 8506.40.10 | Having an external volume not exceeding 300 cm3 | 2.7% |
| 8506.40.50 | Silver oxide: other | 2.7% |
| 8506.50.00 | Primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof: lithium | 2.7% |
| 8506.60.00 | Primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof: air-zinc | 2.7% |
| 8506.80.00 | Primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof: other primary cells and primary batteries | 2.7% |
| 8506.90.00 | Primary cells and primary batteries; parts thereof: parts | 2.7% |