63 Textiles, made up articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles; rags
The broadest level of the Harmonized System. Pick the heading below that fits your goods, then the six-digit code under it — that last one is what you declare.
Section XI, Textiles & Apparel — silk, wool, cotton, man-made fibres, fabrics, carpets and clothing.
- 63 Chapter Textiles, made up articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles; rags
- —— Heading Pick one of the 10 headings below
- —— Subheading Six digits, the level every country shares
Chapter 63 covers textiles, made up articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles; rags: bed linen, curtains, towels, and used-clothing exports, rounding out the textile section after fibre (50-56), fabric (58-60) and finished apparel (61-62). Classification tip: Worn/used clothing exports often face separate import bans or restrictions in destination countries (common in parts of East Africa) that go beyond the standard HS duty rate, so check destination-specific policy before shipping bulk used apparel.
10 headings in chapter 63
Four-digit groups. Pick the one that fits, then the six-digit code inside it.
- 63.01 Blankets and travelling rugs 5 codes
- 63.02 Bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen 15 codes
- 63.03 Curtains (including drapes) and interior blinds; curtain or bed valances 5 codes
- 63.04 Furnishing articles; excluding those of heading no. 9404 7 codes
- 63.05 Sacks and bags, of a kind used for the packing of goods 6 codes
- 63.06 Tarpaulins, awnings and sunblinds; tents (including temporary canopies and similar articles); sails for boats, sailboards or landcraft; camping goods 7 codes
- 63.07 Textiles; made up articles n.e.c. in chapter 63, including dress patterns 3 codes
- 63.08 Textiles; sets of woven fabric and yarn, with or without accessories, for making into rugs, tapestries, embroidered tablecloths, serviettes and similar textile articles, in packings for retail sale 1 code
- 63.09 Textiles; worn clothing and other worn articles 1 code
- 63.10 Rags; used or new, scrap twine, cordage, rope and cables and worn out articles of twine, cordage, rope or cables, of textile materials 2 codes
Other chapters in Section XI
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 from chapter 63? A customs hold shows up as a milestone that stops moving — follow the container or the air waybill from departure to delivery.
Track a shipmentChapter 63 FAQ
Chapter 63 covers textiles, made up articles; sets; worn clothing and worn textile articles; rags: bed linen, curtains, towels, and used-clothing exports, rounding out the textile section after fibre (50-56), fabric (58-60) and finished apparel (61-62). Classification tip: Worn/used clothing exports often face separate import bans or restrictions in destination countries (common in parts of East Africa) that go beyond the standard HS duty rate, so check destination-specific policy before shipping bulk used apparel.
Pick the heading below that describes the goods, then the six-digit subheading under it. Six digits is the level the Harmonized System defines and the level customs everywhere recognises; anything beyond that is added by the importing country.
The General Rules of Interpretation, read together with the notes to Section XI and to chapter 63. 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.