8539.29.20

Analysis

HTS 8539.29.20 covers lamps having glass envelopes not over 6.35 mm in maximum diameter and suitable for use in cystoscopes and other surgical instruments under heading 8539 (electrical filament or discharge lamps, including sealed beam lamp units and ultraviolet…).

Neighbouring lines carry rates from duty-free to 5.8%, so the exact line matters. The widest gap is with 8539.29.30 (designed for a voltage not exceeding 100 V: other), at duty-free: a product that belongs there but is entered here, or the reverse, changes the duty by 5.2 percentage points.

The general duty rate is 5.2% of the customs value, which is among the highest the rates in chapter 85 (97th percentile of 624 lines with an ad valorem rate). On a shipment valued at $10,000 that is $520 in duty before any Chapter 99 additions or preference claims.

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 5.2%. 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. Reduced but not zero rates apply under some agreements: 2.6% for JP.

The column 2 rate, for countries without normal trade relations, is 55%, 10.6 times the general rate.