Activewear HS codes: most of it is Chapter 61.

Because a rate is only true on a date. Base rates change with tariff schedules, and additional measures sit on top of them and change with trade policy. The classification is durable and is what this page gives you; the rate is a one-minute lookup in the destination market’s official tariff, and it should be read on the day you cost the programme.

The importer of record, which on most brand programmes is the brand rather than the supplier or the forwarder. A supplier can propose the code with the commercial documents, and a good one will, but the declaration and any retroactive bill belong to the importer.

The entry can be corrected, and duty is assessed on the correct line — which may mean paying the difference, with interest, for every shipment already made under the wrong code. That is why an edge case is worth a binding ruling before the first shipment rather than an opinion afterwards.

Often, yes. Several apparel headings split by which fibre dominates by weight, so a cotton-dominant tee and a man-made-fibre tee sit on different lines under the same family. Fibre content on the label and fibre content in the declaration have to agree.

No. The United States assesses duty on the FOB customs value, while the EU assesses on the CIF value, which includes freight and insurance. The same garment at the same price therefore carries a different duty base in the two markets, before any difference in the rate itself.

Yes. They are classified as body-supporting garments rather than as knit tops, which is one of the most common mis-classifications in an activewear range and one of the easiest to correct before the first entry.

Request a binding ruling from the customs authority of the destination market, with a sample and a full description. Rulings already issued on comparable goods are searchable and often answer the question without an application.

HS stands for Harmonized System, the international product nomenclature maintained by the World Customs Organization. Every product falls under a six-digit code arranged by chapter, heading and subheading; for apparel the chapter is decided first by construction (knitted in Chapter 61, woven in Chapter 62), then by garment type, gender and dominant fibre.

The first six digits are, which is why a supplier can quote one on the commercial documents. The digits after that are national: the US uses ten-digit HTS numbers, the EU eight-digit CN and ten-digit TARIC codes, the UK ten-digit commodity codes. The duty rate sits on the national line, so the same garment can carry different rates in different markets.

They share the same six-digit base. HTS is the US ten-digit import code that carries the duty rate; Schedule B is the US ten-digit export code maintained by the Census Bureau; commodity code and tariff number are the general terms for a national code; CN and TARIC are the EU versions.

Yes. The World Customs Organization amends the system periodically, and each country revises its national lines as well, sometimes more often. A code that was correct for last year’s shipment should be re-checked in the current tariff before this year’s, particularly after a new HS edition takes effect.

No — the code describes what the product is, not where it was made; origin is determined separately and declared separately. Many forwarders and brokers ask for the code on the commercial invoice to avoid questions at entry, and including the six-digit code there is common practice even where only the declaration strictly requires it.

Clothing sits in Chapter 61 when it is knitted or crocheted and in Chapter 62 when it is woven. Sportswear is classified like any other garment, by construction, garment type, gender and dominant fibre, so a knitted synthetic legging falls under 6104.63 and a woven windbreaker under 6202.40. Sports bras and shapewear sit in heading 6212.

Because nearly everything at the border follows from it: the duty rate, any additional measures, the origin rule that applies, whether a licence or permit is needed, and the trade statistics your shipment is counted in. A wrong code means the wrong duty, and the importer can owe the difference for every past entry made under it.

Shapewear such as girdles, body shapers and corsets is classified in heading 6212, alongside brassieres; the six-digit line depends on the exact garment. Lab dips and fabric swatches are not garments: they are classified as the fabric they are, which for activewear is usually knitted fabric in Chapter 60. Confirm the full national line in the destination tariff.