Analysis
HTS 9001.20.00 covers sheets and plates of polarizing material under heading 9001 (optical fibers and optical fiber bundles; optical fiber cables other than those of…).
Neighbouring lines carry rates from duty-free to 6.7%, so the exact line matters. The widest gap is with 9001.10.00 (optical fibers, optical fiber bundles and cables), at 6.7%: a product that belongs there but is entered here, or the reverse, changes the duty by 6.7 percentage points.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 50% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 50% duty.
Goods classified here enter the United States duty-free at the general (normal trade relations) rate, as do about 73% of the 296 tariff lines in chapter 90. Duty-free at the general rate does not rule out additional duties under Chapter 99, such as Section 301 or Section 232 measures, which depend on the country of origin.
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 339114 (Dental Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing), an industry of 503 US establishments employing 16,518 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 9001.10.00 | Optical fibers, optical fiber bundles and cables | 6.7% |
| 9001.30.00 | Optical fibers and optical fiber bundles; optical fiber cables other than those of heading 8544; sheets and plates of polarizing material; lenses (including contact lenses), prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, unmounted, other than such elements of glass not optically worked: contact lenses | 2% |
| 9001.40.00 | Spectacle lenses of glass | 2% |
| 9001.50.00 | Spectacle lenses of other materials | 2% |
| 9001.90.40 | Other: lenses | Free |
| 9001.90.50 | Other: prisms | Free |
| 9001.90.60 | Other: mirrors | Free |
| 9001.90.80 | Halftone screens designed for use in engraving or photographic processes | Free |
| 9001.90.90 | Other: other | Free |