4202.31 Cases and containers; of a kind normally carried in the pocket or in the handbag, with outer surface of leather or of composition leather
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 VIII, Hides, Skins & Leather — raw hides, leather, furskins, saddlery, handbags and travel goods.
- 42 Chapter Articles of leather; saddlery and harness; travel goods, handbags and similar containers; articles of animal gut (other than silk-worm gut)
- 02 Heading Trunks; suit, camera, jewellery, cutlery cases; travel, tool, similar bags; wholly or mainly covered by leather, composition leather, plastic sheeting, textile materials, vulcanised fibre, paperboard
- 31 Subheading Cases and containers; of a kind normally carried in the pocket or in the handbag, with outer surface of leather or of composition leather
Chapter 42 covers articles of leather; saddlery and harness; travel goods, handbags and similar containers; articles of animal gut (other than silk-worm gut): the finished-goods chapter downstream of the raw and tanned leather in chapter 41. Classification tip: A handbag or travel good made mostly of leather but trimmed with textile or plastic is classified by whichever material gives the item its essential character, usually the outer surface area, not by weight.
All of chapter 42Other codes under 42.02
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 4202.31? A customs hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving — follow the container or the air waybill from departure to delivery.
Track a shipment4202.31 FAQ
4202.31 covers cases and containers; of a kind normally carried in the pocket or in the handbag, with outer surface of leather or of composition leather. It sits under heading 42.02 (trunks; suit, camera, jewellery, cutlery cases; travel, tool, similar bags; wholly or mainly covered by leather, composition leather, plastic sheeting, textile materials, vulcanised fibre, paperboard) in chapter 42, Section VIII 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 4202.31 plus whatever national digits the destination’s tariff schedule adds to it.
The General Rules of Interpretation, read together with the notes to Section VIII and to chapter 42. 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.