Global: New Tariff Numbers for 2017

A new version of the Harmonized System (HS) of Nomenclature was introduced on January 1, 2017. This has been developed by the World Customs Organization and the revision is the sixth since the classification’s inception in 1983. The tariff system is used by more than 200 countries for the classification of goods for customs and international trade purposes.

The 2017 amendments are considered to be significant, with many more subheadings added to existing tariff categories. Businesses which rely on the system for international trade purposes should review the new tariffs against what they have used in the past. Some codes may have been allocated to a different category of goods.

All countries and customs unions which recognize the HS will update their own tariff systems to maintain consistency.