1302.39 Mucilages and thickeners; whether or not modified, derived from vegetable products, n.e.c. in item no. 1302.3
A full HS code. These six digits are what goes on a customs declaration, and they mean the same thing in every country that uses the Harmonized System.
Section II, Vegetable Products — plants, vegetables, fruit, nuts, coffee, tea, cereals, seeds and flours.
- 13 Chapter Lac; gums, resins and other vegetable saps and extracts
- 02 Heading Vegetable saps and extracts; pectic substances, pectinates and pectates; agar-agar and other mucilages and thickeners, whether or not modified, derived from vegetable products
- 39 Subheading Mucilages and thickeners; whether or not modified, derived from vegetable products, n.e.c. in item no. 1302.3
Chapter 13 covers lac (a resinous secretion used in dyes and shellac), plus gums, resins and other vegetable saps and extracts such as opium, quinine base and vegetable extracts used in pharmaceuticals, food and industrial processes. Classification tip: Extracts used in pharmaceuticals (opium alkaloids, quinine) typically require controlled-substance import licensing in addition to the customs code, so check narcotics/precursor rules before shipping.
All of chapter 13Other codes under 13.02
The wording above is the Harmonized System nomenclature as published by the World Customs Organization, HS 2022 edition. It is a classification reference, not a tariff: it carries no duty rates, and it stops at six digits — the importing country adds its own beyond that.
Classification is decided by the General Rules of Interpretation and the section and chapter notes, and it is the importing country’s customs authority that makes it binding.
Shipping goods under 1302.39? A customs hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving — follow the container or the air waybill from departure to delivery.
Track a shipment1302.39 FAQ
1302.39 covers mucilages and thickeners; whether or not modified, derived from vegetable products, n.e.c. in item no. 1302.3. It sits under heading 13.02 (vegetable saps and extracts; pectic substances, pectinates and pectates; agar-agar and other mucilages and thickeners, whether or not modified, derived from vegetable products) in chapter 13, Section II of the Harmonized System.
It is the international part of it. Six digits are the same in every country that applies the Harmonized System; the importing country then extends them to eight or ten for its own tariff and statistics. Declare 1302.39 plus whatever national digits the destination’s tariff schedule adds to it.
The General Rules of Interpretation, read together with the notes to Section II and to chapter 13. A description that reads right is not enough on its own — the notes routinely pull goods out of the chapter they obviously belong to and put them somewhere else. Where duty or licensing turns on the answer, ask the importing country’s customs authority for a binding ruling.
A wrong or missing code is one of the common reasons customs holds a container, and a hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving. Watch for it in the container tracking app, on the air waybill in the air cargo tracker, or through the tracking API.