3604.90 Pyrotechnic products; signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles (excluding fireworks)
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 VI, Chemical Products — inorganic and organic chemicals, pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, paints and cosmetics.
- 36 Chapter Explosives; pyrotechnic products; matches; pyrophoric alloys; certain combustible preparations
- 04 Heading Fireworks, signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles
- 90 Subheading Pyrotechnic products; signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles (excluding fireworks)
Chapter 36 covers explosives; pyrotechnic products; matches; pyrophoric alloys; certain combustible preparations: fireworks, safety matches, blasting compounds and similar controlled goods. Nearly every country requires special import licensing for this chapter regardless of HS code. Classification tip: Consumer fireworks and industrial/mining explosives sit on different subheadings and face very different licensing regimes: confirm which category applies before assuming a single import permit covers both.
All of chapter 36Other codes under 36.04
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 3604.90? A customs hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving — follow the container or the air waybill from departure to delivery.
Track a shipment3604.90 FAQ
3604.90 covers pyrotechnic products; signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles (excluding fireworks). It sits under heading 36.04 (fireworks, signalling flares, rain rockets, fog signals and other pyrotechnic articles) in chapter 36, Section VI 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 3604.90 plus whatever national digits the destination’s tariff schedule adds to it.
The General Rules of Interpretation, read together with the notes to Section VI and to chapter 36. 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.