4008.21 Rubber; vulcanised (other than hard rubber), in plates, sheets and strip, of non-cellular rubber
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 VII, Plastics & Rubber — plastics, rubber and articles made of them, from raw polymers to tyres.
- 40 Chapter Rubber and articles thereof
- 08 Heading Plates, sheets, strip, rods and profile shapes, of vulcanised rubber other than hard rubber
- 21 Subheading Rubber; vulcanised (other than hard rubber), in plates, sheets and strip, of non-cellular rubber
Chapter 40 covers rubber and articles thereof: natural and synthetic rubber in primary form, plus finished rubber goods like tyres, hoses, belts and gaskets. Tyres alone account for a large share of this chapter's trade volume and get their own detailed subheadings by vehicle type. Classification tip: Tyre subheadings split by vehicle type (passenger car, truck/bus, motorcycle, aircraft, off-road) and by new versus retreaded, so match the tyre's actual application rather than defaulting to a generic tyre code.
All of chapter 40Other codes under 40.08
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 4008.21? A customs hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving — follow the container or the air waybill from departure to delivery.
Track a shipment4008.21 FAQ
4008.21 covers rubber; vulcanised (other than hard rubber), in plates, sheets and strip, of non-cellular rubber. It sits under heading 40.08 (plates, sheets, strip, rods and profile shapes, of vulcanised rubber other than hard rubber) in chapter 40, Section VII 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 4008.21 plus whatever national digits the destination’s tariff schedule adds to it.
The General Rules of Interpretation, read together with the notes to Section VII and to chapter 40. 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.