1. The authoritative sources
WCO HS Database
The official database of the Harmonized System. Heading text, notes, and classification opinions.
China Customs
The annual tariff schedule, published by the General Administration of Customs.
US HTSUS
Maintained by the US International Trade Commission, with a searchable database and published rulings.
EU TARIC
Maintained by the European Commission. Rates, regulatory conditions and quotas.
2. Three ways to search
By code, when you know it and want the description and rate.
By product name. Chinese names work better in Chinese systems; English names in the WCO or US systems.
By classification ruling, where a comparable product has already been ruled on.
3. What to check
Version
Tariffs are revised annually. Confirm you are reading the current edition.
Level
Six digits are international. Eight and ten are national.
Notes
Section notes, chapter notes and subheading notes define the scope of a heading. Reading the heading alone is how most classification errors start.
Regulatory conditions
Many systems display rate, preferential rate and regulatory conditions together.
4. The traps
Search engines return results that may be outdated, wrong, or unofficial.
Third-party lookup tools often lag.
Searching only in Chinese misses the internationally used English description.
5. A workable sequence
Define the product precisely: material, use, method of processing, technical parameters.
Find the six-digit code in the WCO database.
Extend to the destination code in the destination system.
Read the notes.
Check regulatory conditions and rates.
6. On third-party tools
They are convenient and sometimes wrong.
Use them for orientation, not for decisions.
For high-value or heavily regulated goods, the official source should be the only source.
7. Closing view
Searching is easy. Deciding is not.
The tool produces candidates. Judging whether a candidate applies to your product is the work.
*This article is based on the WCO HS database and national tariff lookup systems. Exporters should confirm codes with the relevant customs authority.*