Analysis
HTS 8544.49.10 covers of a kind used for telecommunications under heading 8544 (insulated (including enameled or anodized) wire, cable (including coaxial cable) and…).
Neighbouring lines carry rates from 3.5% to 5.3%, so the exact line matters. The widest gap is with 8544.49.30 (other: of copper), at 5.3%: a product that belongs there but is entered here, or the reverse, changes the duty by 5.3 percentage points.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 40% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 40% duty.
Goods classified here enter the United States duty-free at the general (normal trade relations) rate, as do about 58% of the 624 tariff lines in chapter 85. Free here means free of the base duty only: origin-specific Chapter 99 duties such as Section 301 can still be owed.
The other lines in the same group are 8544.49.20 (for a voltage not exceeding 80 V: other, 3.5%), 8544.49.30 (other: of copper, 5.3%) and 8544.49.90 (other: other, 3.9%).
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 335929 (Other Communication and Energy Wire Manufacturing), an industry of 212 US establishments employing 15,936 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 8544.49.20 | For a voltage not exceeding 80 V: other | 3.5% |
| 8544.49.30 | Other: of copper | 5.3% |
| 8544.49.90 | Other: other | 3.9% |