70 Glass and glassware
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 XIII, Stone, Ceramics & Glass — articles of stone, plaster, cement, ceramics and glass.
- 70 Chapter Glass and glassware
- —— Heading Pick one of the 19 headings below
- —— Subheading Six digits, the level every country shares
Chapter 70 covers glass and glassware: flat glass, glass containers, tableware, fibreglass and optical-grade glass, spanning both industrial glass and finished consumer glassware. Classification tip: Flat glass classification depends on processing (float, toughened, laminated, coated), and safety-glass certification is frequently required for automotive or architectural glass on top of the HS code.
19 headings in chapter 70
Four-digit groups. Pick the one that fits, then the six-digit code inside it.
- 70.01 Glass; cullet and other waste and scrap of glass, excluding glass from cathode ray tubes or other activated glass of heading 85.49, glass in the mass 1 code
- 70.02 Glass in balls (other than microspheres of heading no. 7018), rods or tubes, unworked 5 codes
- 70.03 Glass; cast glass and rolled glass in sheets or profiles, whether or not having an absorbent, reflecting or non-reflecting layer, but not otherwise worked 4 codes
- 70.04 Glass; drawn glass and blown glass, in sheets, whether or not having an absorbent, reflecting or non-reflecting layer, but not otherwise worked 2 codes
- 70.05 Glass; float glass and surface ground or polished glass, in sheets, whether or not having an absorbent, reflecting or non-reflecting layer, but not otherwise worked 4 codes
- 70.06 Glass of heading no. 7003, 7004 or 7005, bent, edge-worked, engraved, drilled, enamelled or otherwise worked, not framed or fitted with other materials 1 code
- 70.07 Safety glass, consisting of toughened (tempered) or laminated glass 4 codes
- 70.08 Glass; multiple-walled insulating units of glass 1 code
- 70.09 Glass mirrors; whether or not framed, including rear-view mirrors 3 codes
- 70.10 Carboys, bottles, flasks, jars, pots, phials, ampoules, containers of glass of a kind used for the conveyance or packing of goods; preserving jars of glass; stoppers, lids and other closures of glass 3 codes
- 70.11 Glass envelopes (including bulbs and tubes), open and glass parts thereof, without fittings, for electric lamps and light sources, cathode-ray tubes or the like 3 codes
- 70.13 Glassware of a kind used for table, kitchen, toilet, office, indoor decoration or similar purposes (other than of heading no. 7010 or 7018) 10 codes
- 70.14 Signalling glassware and optical elements of glass (other than those of heading no. 7015), not optically worked 1 code
- 70.15 Clock, watch and similar glasses, glasses for non-corrective or corrective spectacles, curved, bent, hallowed etc, not optically worked; hollow glass spheres and their segments for manufacture 2 codes
- 70.16 Glass; paving blocks, slabs, bricks, tiles etc, of pressed, moulded glass, whether or not wired, glass smallwares for decorative purposes leaded lights and the like; multicellular or foam glass 2 codes
- 70.17 Laboratory, hygienic or pharmaceutical glassware, whether or not graduated or calibrated 3 codes
- 70.18 Glass beads, imitation pearls, precious or semi-precious stones and similar glass smallwares, statuettes and other ornaments of worked glass; glass microspheres not exceeding 1mm in diameter 3 codes
- 70.19 Glass fibres (including glass wool) and articles thereof (e.g. yarn, rovings, woven fabrics) 18 codes
- 70.20 Glass; articles n.e.c. in chapter 70 1 code
Other chapters in Section XIII
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 70? 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 70 FAQ
Chapter 70 covers glass and glassware: flat glass, glass containers, tableware, fibreglass and optical-grade glass, spanning both industrial glass and finished consumer glassware. Classification tip: Flat glass classification depends on processing (float, toughened, laminated, coated), and safety-glass certification is frequently required for automotive or architectural glass on top of the HS code.
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 XIII and to chapter 70. 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.