72 Iron and steel
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 XV, Base Metals — iron, steel, copper, aluminium, other base metals and articles thereof.
- 72 Chapter Iron and steel
- —— Heading Pick one of the 29 headings below
- —— Subheading Six digits, the level every country shares
Chapter 72 covers iron and steel: pig iron, ingots, billets, bars, plates, sheets, wire and similar mill products, before they're worked into finished articles (chapter 73) or machinery. Classification tip: Steel is one of the most frequent targets of anti-dumping and safeguard duties worldwide, so always check for trade-remedy measures on the specific steel grade and country of origin, not just the base HS tariff.
29 headings in chapter 72
Four-digit groups. Pick the one that fits, then the six-digit code inside it.
- 72.01 Pig iron and spiegeleisen in pigs, blocks or other primary forms 3 codes
- 72.02 Ferro-alloys 15 codes
- 72.03 Ferrous products obtained by direct reduction of iron ore and other spongy ferrous products, in lumps, pellets or the like; iron having a minimum purity of 99.94%, in lumps, pellets or similar forms 2 codes
- 72.04 Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel 7 codes
- 72.05 Granules and powders, of pig iron, spiegeleisen, iron or steel 3 codes
- 72.06 Iron and non-alloy steel in ingots or other primary forms (excluding iron of heading no. 7203) 2 codes
- 72.07 Iron or non-alloy steel; semi-finished products thereof 4 codes
- 72.08 Iron or non-alloy steel; flat-rolled products of a width of 600mm or more, hot-rolled, not clad, plated or coated 14 codes
- 72.09 Iron or non-alloy steel; flat-rolled products, width 600mm or more, cold-rolled (cold-reduced), not clad, plated or coated 9 codes
- 72.10 Iron or non-alloy steel; flat-rolled products, width 600mm or more, clad, plated or coated 11 codes
- 72.11 Iron or non-alloy steel; flat-rolled products, width less than 600mm, not clad, plated or coated 6 codes
- 72.12 Iron or non-alloy steel; flat-rolled products, width less than 600mm, clad, plated or coated 6 codes
- 72.13 Iron or non-alloy steel; bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils 4 codes
- 72.14 Iron or non-alloy steel; bars and rods, not further worked than forged, hot-rolled, hot drawn or hot-extruded, but including those twisted after rolling 5 codes
- 72.15 Iron or non-alloy steel; bars and rods, n.e.c. in chapter 72 3 codes
- 72.16 Iron or non-alloy steel, angles, shapes and sections 12 codes
- 72.17 Wire of iron or non-alloy steel 4 codes
- 72.18 Stainless steel in ingots or other primary forms; semi-finished products of stainless steel 3 codes
- 72.19 Stainless steel; flat-rolled products of width of 600mm or more 14 codes
- 72.20 Stainless steel; flat-rolled products of width less than 600mm 4 codes
- 72.21 Stainless steel bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils 1 code
- 72.22 Stainless steel bars and rods, angles, shapes and sections 5 codes
- 72.23 Stainless steel wire 1 code
- 72.24 Alloy steel in ingots or other primary forms, semi-finished products of other alloy steel 2 codes
- 72.25 Alloy steel flat-rolled products, of a width 600mm or more 8 codes
- 72.26 Alloy steel flat-rolled products, of a width of less than 600mm 6 codes
- 72.27 Steel, alloy; bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils 3 codes
- 72.28 Alloy steel bars, rods, shapes and sections; hollow drill bars and rods, of alloy or non-alloy steel 8 codes
- 72.29 Wire of other alloy steel 2 codes
Other chapters in Section XV
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 72? 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 72 FAQ
Chapter 72 covers iron and steel: pig iron, ingots, billets, bars, plates, sheets, wire and similar mill products, before they're worked into finished articles (chapter 73) or machinery. Classification tip: Steel is one of the most frequent targets of anti-dumping and safeguard duties worldwide, so always check for trade-remedy measures on the specific steel grade and country of origin, not just the base HS tariff.
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 XV and to chapter 72. 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.