73 Iron or steel articles
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.
- 73 Chapter Iron or steel articles
- —— Heading Pick one of the 26 headings below
- —— Subheading Six digits, the level every country shares
Chapter 73 covers iron or steel articles: pipes, tubes, structural components, fasteners, tanks and household steel goods, downstream of the primary steel forms in chapter 72. Classification tip: Like chapter 72, finished steel articles (pipe, tube, fasteners) are frequent anti-dumping targets: check the current trade-remedy list for the specific product and origin country before quoting a landed cost.
26 headings in chapter 73
Four-digit groups. Pick the one that fits, then the six-digit code inside it.
- 73.01 Iron or steel sheet piling, whether or not drilled, punched or made from assembled elements; welded angles, shapes and sections, of iron or steel 2 codes
- 73.02 Railway or tramway track constructions of iron or steel; rails, check and track rails, switch blades, crossing frogs, point rods, sleepers, fish-plates, chair wedges, sole plates, bedplates, ties and the like 4 codes
- 73.03 Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, of cast iron 1 code
- 73.04 Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, seamless, of iron (other than cast iron) or steel 13 codes
- 73.05 Iron or steel (excluding cast iron); tubes and pipes (e.g. welded, riveted or similarly closed), having circular cross-sections, external diameter of which exceeds 406.4mm, not seamless 7 codes
- 73.06 Iron or steel (excluding cast iron); tubes, pipes and hollow profiles (not seamless), n.e.c. in chapter 73 10 codes
- 73.07 Tube or pipe fittings (e.g. couplings, elbows, sleeves), of iron or steel 10 codes
- 73.08 Structures of iron or steel and parts thereof; plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures 5 codes
- 73.09 Reservoirs, tanks, vats and similar containers; for any material (excluding compressed or liquefied gas), of iron or steel, capacity exceeding 300l, whether or not lined or heat insulated 1 code
- 73.10 Tanks, casks, drums, cans, boxes and similar containers, for any material (excluding compressed or liquefied gas), of iron or steel, capacity not exceeding 300l, whether or not lined or heat-insulated 3 codes
- 73.11 Containers for compressed or liquefied gas, of iron or steel 1 code
- 73.12 Stranded wire, ropes, cables, plaited bands, slings and the like, of iron or steel, not electrically insulated 2 codes
- 73.13 Barbed wire of iron or steel; twisted hoop or single flat wire, barbed or not and loosely twisted double wire, of a kind used for fencing, of iron or steel 1 code
- 73.14 Cloth (including endless bands), grill, netting and fencing, of iron or steel wire; expanded metal of iron or steel 10 codes
- 73.15 Chain and parts thereof, of iron or steel 8 codes
- 73.16 Anchors, grapnels and parts thereof, of iron or steel 1 code
- 73.17 Nails, tacks, drawing pins, corrugated nails, staples (not those of heading no. 8305) and the like, of iron or steel, with heads of other material or not, but excluding articles with heads of copper 1 code
- 73.18 Screws, bolts, nuts, coach screws, screw hooks, rivets, cotters, cotter-pins, washers (including spring washers) and similar articles, of iron or steel 12 codes
- 73.19 Sewing and knitting needles, bodkins, crochet hooks, embroidery stilettos and similar articles, for use in the hand, of iron or steel; safety pins and other pins of iron or steel, not elsewhere specified or included 2 codes
- 73.20 Springs and leaves for springs, of iron or steel 3 codes
- 73.21 Stoves, ranges, grates, cookers (those with subsidiary boilers for central heating), barbecues, braziers, gas-rings, plate warmers and similar non-electric domestic appliances and parts, of iron or steel 7 codes
- 73.22 Radiators for central heating, not electrically heated and parts thereof, of iron or steel; air heaters, hot air distributors not electrically heated, with motor fan or blower 3 codes
- 73.23 Table, kitchen, other household articles and parts, of iron or steel; iron or steel wool; pot scourers and scouring or polishing pads, gloves and the like, of iron or steel 6 codes
- 73.24 Sanitary ware and parts thereof, of iron or steel 4 codes
- 73.25 Iron or steel; cast articles 3 codes
- 73.26 Iron or steel; articles, n.e.c. in chapter 73 4 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 73? 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 73 FAQ
Chapter 73 covers iron or steel articles: pipes, tubes, structural components, fasteners, tanks and household steel goods, downstream of the primary steel forms in chapter 72. Classification tip: Like chapter 72, finished steel articles (pipe, tube, fasteners) are frequent anti-dumping targets: check the current trade-remedy list for the specific product and origin country before quoting a landed cost.
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 73. 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.