13 data-driven guides·Newest update October 12, 2026·Sourced from the official USITC HTS
Plain-language, reproducible walkthroughs of the parts of US trade compliance that cost importers money: classifying goods into the right HS code, valuing shipments for customs, stacking trade-remedy duties on top of base rates, and knowing when a binding ruling is worth the wait. Every number in every guide is recomputed from our own copy of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule at publication time.
We mined 2,350 US CBP CROSS rulings and traced every reversal we could pair: what changed, how much duty moved, and what importers should monitor. Real before-and-after HS codes and rates, recomputed from our October 2026 extract.
Last updated October 12, 2026
US footwear duty rates rise as the price falls: within one HTS heading, sub-$3 shoes face 48% while over-$12 pairs face 20%, and a 90-cent-per-pair component pushes some cheap pairs near 68%. Full ladders and worked math, recomputed from the official USITC export.
Last updated October 12, 2026
Every letter in the HTS Special subcolumn mapped to its trade program, with schedule-wide coverage counts recomputed from the official USITC export: how many tariff lines are duty-free for FTA partners vs GSP, and how to claim the rate.
Last updated October 12, 2026
US Merchandise Processing Fee and Harbor Maintenance Fee explained with FY2027 rates straight from the Federal Register: the $34.58 minimum that dominates small shipments, the $670.86 ceiling, and why a zero-duty product still pays fees.
Last updated October 12, 2026
Base HTS rates plus Chapter 99 additional duties: how tariff stacking really works, with worked examples recomputed from the official USITC export -- including one line whose true total rate exceeds 100%.
Last updated October 12, 2026
1171 of 3362 eight-digit US tariff lines enter the country at a 0% general rate (35%). See which HS chapters are entirely duty-free, where duties concentrate, and what still applies.
Last updated October 12, 2026
Average US import duty rates for all 21 Harmonized System product sections, ranked from Prepared foodstuffs; beverages; tobacco (38.9%) down to Mineral products (2.9). Computed from the official USITC HTS.
Last updated October 12, 2026
637 active Chapter 99 trade-remedy lines across 30 measure groups, mapped to the HS product categories they hit. Rate uplifts, affected chapters, country exposure and upcoming effective dates -- recomputed from the official USITC HTS export.
Last updated October 12, 2026
Antidumping and countervailing duties are the fastest-moving tariff layer US importers face -- 211 Federal Register actions in our October 2026 extract, with rates up to 541.75%. Here is how to check exposure before you confirm an order.
Last updated October 11, 2026
52.2% of US tariff lines charge a straight percentage, 6.8% a fixed cents-per-unit amount and 2.5% both combined — computed live from all 23,193 HTS lines. What each rate type means for your landed cost.
Last updated October 11, 2026
US customs duty is computed on transaction value that excludes international freight and insurance. What that means for FOB and CIF invoices, straight from 19 U.S.C. §1401a.
Last updated October 9, 2026
A practical method to classify any product in the US Harmonized Tariff Schedule: chapter notes, GRI logic, official lookup tools, and when a CBP binding ruling is worth requesting.
Last updated October 9, 2026
Which China-origin goods carry Section 301 duties, how they stack on normal MFN duty, the Federal Register milestones through October 2026, and how to check your HTS code.
Last updated October 9, 2026
Yes. Every ExportSonar guide is fully readable without an account, and the underlying lookup tools — the HS-code browser and the duty calculator — are free as well. Paid plans add monitoring alerts, bulk export and API access rather than locking the educational content away.
Each guide states its last-updated date at the top, and every rate quoted in it is recomputed from our own copy of the official US Harmonized Tariff Schedule (23,193 active HTS lines across 96 chapters) at publication time. When CBP changes rates or trade-remedy actions mid-cycle, the affected guide is updated and the date moves with it.
Start with the classification guide on finding the right HS code, then read the FOB vs CIF valuation explainer, and finish with the stacked-tariffs guide showing how base duties, Section 301 and reciprocal actions combine into one total landed rate. Every guide links to the free calculator so you can test the logic on your own product.
Sources: USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule