HTS chapter · section XVIII
Chapter 90
Instruments, clocks and musical instruments
Chapter 90 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule sits in section XVIII (instruments, clocks and musical instruments). It has 32 headings and 302 eight-digit tariff lines.
The spread of 16 percentage points between the cheapest and dearest lines makes misclassification expensive here.
217 of its 296 lines with a percentage rate are duty-free at the general rate (73%) and 79 are dutiable, from duty-free up to 16%. The median line pays duty-free.
6 of the lines carry specific or compound rates (per kilogram, per dozen and so on) rather than a percentage, so their burden depends on the unit value of the goods.
The most finely divided heading is 9018 (instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary…), with 28 lines; fine division usually means the rates or the trade statistics differ enough to be worth separating.
8 of its 32 headings are entirely duty-free at the general rate, including 9012 (microscopes other than optical microscopes…), 9014 (direction finding compasses; other…) and 9018 (instruments and appliances used in medical…).
Headings
| Heading | Description | Lines | Free | Median rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9001 | Optical fibers and optical fiber bundles; optical fiber cables other than those of heading 8544; sheets and plates of polarizing material; lenses (including… | 10 | 6 | duty-free |
| 9002 | Lenses, prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, mounted, being parts of or fittings for instruments or apparatus, other than such elements… | 11 | 9 | duty-free |
| 9003 | Frames and mountings for spectacles, goggles or the like, and parts thereof | 3 | 1 | 2.5% |
| 9004 | Spectacles, goggles and the like, corrective, protective or other | 2 | 0 | 2.25% |
| 9005 | Binoculars, monoculars, other optical telescopes, and mountings therefor; other astronomical instruments and mountings therefor, but not including instruments… | 5 | 1 | 6% |
| 9006 | Photographic (other than cinematographic) cameras; photographic flashlight apparatus and flashbulbs other than discharge lamps of heading 8539; parts and… | 19 | 12 | duty-free |
| 9007 | Cinematographic cameras and projectors, whether or not incorporating sound recording or reproducing apparatus; parts and accessories thereof | 8 | 4 | 1.75% |
| 9008 | Image projectors, other than cinematographic; photographic (other than cinematographic) enlargers and reducers; parts and accessories thereof | 7 | 3 | 2.9% |
| 9010 | Apparatus and equipment for photographic (including cinematographic) laboratories, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter; negatoscopes;… | 10 | 8 | duty-free |
| 9011 | Compound optical microscopes, including those for photomicrography, cinemicrography or microprojection; parts and accessories thereof | 6 | 4 | duty-free |
| 9012 | Microscopes other than optical microscopes; diffraction apparatus; parts and accessories thereof | 2 | 2 | duty-free |
| 9013 | Lasers, other than laser diodes; other optical appliances and instruments, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter | 11 | 3 | 4.5% |
| 9014 | Direction finding compasses; other navigational instruments and appliances; parts and accessories thereof | 16 | 16 | duty-free |
| 9015 | Surveying (including photogrammetrical surveying), hydrographic, oceanographic, hydrological, meteorological or geophysical instruments and appliances,… | 12 | 11 | duty-free |
| 9016 | Balances of a sensitivity of 5 cg or better, with or without weights; parts and accessories thereof | 3 | 0 | 3.3% |
| 9017 | Drawing, marking-out or mathematical calculating instruments (for example, drafting machines, pantographs, protractors, drawing sets, slide rules, disc… | 9 | 2 | 3.9% |
| 9018 | Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro-medical apparatus and… | 28 | 28 | duty-free |
| 9019 | Mechano-therapy appliances; massage apparatus; psychological aptitude-testing apparatus; ozone therapy, oxygen therapy, aerosol therapy, artificial respiration… | 4 | 4 | duty-free |
| 9020 | Other breathing appliances and gas masks, excluding protective masks having neither mechanical parts nor replaceable filters; parts and accessories thereof | 3 | 1 | 2.5% |
| 9021 | Orthopedic appliances, including crutches, surgical belts and trusses; splints and other fracture appliances; artificial parts of the body; hearing aids and… | 11 | 11 | duty-free |
| 9022 | Apparatus based on the use of X-rays or of alpha, beta, gamma or other ionizing radiations, whether or not for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary uses,… | 15 | 9 | duty-free |
| 9023 | Instruments, apparatus and models, designed for demonstrational purposes (for example, in education or exhibitions), unsuitable for other uses, and parts and… | 1 | 1 | duty-free |
| 9024 | Machines and appliances for testing the hardness, strength, compressibility, elasticity or other mechanical properties of materials (for example, metals, wood,… | 3 | 3 | duty-free |
| 9025 | Hydrometers and similar floating instruments, thermometers, pyrometers, barometers, hygrometers and psychrometers, recording or not, and any combination of… | 11 | 5 | 1% |
| 9026 | Instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking the flow, level, pressure or other variables of liquids or gases (for example, flow meters, level gauges,… | 11 | 11 | duty-free |
| 9027 | Instruments and apparatus for physical or chemical analysis (for example, polarimeters, refractometers, spectrometers, gas or smoke analysis apparatus);… | 23 | 22 | duty-free |
| 9028 | Gas, liquid or electricity supply or production meters, including calibrating meters thereof; parts and accessories thereof | 4 | 2 | duty-free |
| 9029 | Revolution counters, production counters, taximeters, odometers, pedometers and the like; speedometers and tachometers, other than those of heading 9014 or… | 9 | 3 | 4.25% |
| 9030 | Oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers and other instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking electrical quantities, excluding meters of heading 9028;… | 18 | 17 | duty-free |
| 9031 | Measuring or checking instruments, appliances and machines, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter; profile projectors; parts and accessories… | 15 | 14 | duty-free |
| 9032 | Automatic regulating or controlling instruments and apparatus; parts and accessories thereof | 9 | 2 | 1.7% |
| 9033 | Parts and accessories (not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter) for machines, appliances, instruments or apparatus of chapter 90 | 3 | 2 | duty-free |