86 Railway, tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds
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 XVII, Vehicles & Transport — railway stock, road vehicles, aircraft, ships and transport equipment.
- 86 Chapter Railway, tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds
- —— Heading Pick one of the 9 headings below
- —— Subheading Six digits, the level every country shares
Chapter 86 covers railway, tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds: rail-specific transport equipment, distinct from road vehicles (chapter 87). Classification tip: Signalling equipment sits in this chapter specifically when it's for rail/tramway use: comparable road-traffic signalling equipment is classified elsewhere, so confirm the intended transport mode before filing.
9 headings in chapter 86
Four-digit groups. Pick the one that fits, then the six-digit code inside it.
- 86.01 Rail locomotives; powered from an external source of electricity or by electric accumulators 2 codes
- 86.02 Rail locomotives; (other than those of heading no. 8601), locomotive tenders 2 codes
- 86.03 Railway or tramway coaches, vans and trucks; self-propelled tenders, other than those of heading no. 8604 2 codes
- 86.04 Railway or tramway maintenance or service vehicles; whether or not self-propelled (e.g. workshops, cranes, ballast tampers, trackliners, testing coaches and track inspection vehicles) 1 code
- 86.05 Railway or tramway coaches; passenger coaches, luggage vans, post office coaches and other special purpose railway or tramway coaches, not self-propelled (excluding those of heading no. 8604) 1 code
- 86.06 Railway or tramway goods vans and wagons; not self-propelled 5 codes
- 86.07 Railway or tramway locomotives or rolling stock; parts thereof 8 codes
- 86.08 Railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) signalling, safety or traffic control equipment for railways, tramways, roads, inland waterways, parking facilities, port installations or airfields; parts thereof 1 code
- 86.09 Containers; (including containers for transport of fluids) specially designed and equipped for carriage by one or more modes of transport 1 code
Other chapters in Section XVII
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 86? 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 86 FAQ
Chapter 86 covers railway, tramway locomotives, rolling-stock and parts thereof; railway or tramway track fixtures and fittings and parts thereof; mechanical (including electro-mechanical) traffic signalling equipment of all kinds: rail-specific transport equipment, distinct from road vehicles (chapter 87). Classification tip: Signalling equipment sits in this chapter specifically when it's for rail/tramway use: comparable road-traffic signalling equipment is classified elsewhere, so confirm the intended transport mode before filing.
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 XVII and to chapter 86. 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.