Chapter 93
Arms and ammunition; parts and accessories thereof
Section XIX — Arms and ammunition; parts and accessories thereof xix - 1 · 7 headings · 18 subheadings
Duty in chapter 93 at a glance
Counted across the 80 US national lines beneath this chapter's subheadings. It says what kind of chapter this is before you read ninety headings to find out.
- Duty-free lines
- 42 of 80 stating a rate
- Ad valorem range
- 2.6% – 5.7%
- Dutiable per unit, not on value
- 4 lines are charged per kilogram, litre or item rather than as a percentage of the customs value. A landed-cost estimate built from value alone will understate the duty on those.
- Rates stated in words
- 14 lines state the duty by reference to another part of the schedule rather than as a figure — for example "the duty provided in the applicable subheading". Those cannot be computed from the line alone.
Preference programmes appearing in this chapter
Named from General Note 3(c)(i). A programme appearing here does not mean it applies to your goods — that depends on the line, the origin and the agreement's rules of origin.
What this chapter excludes
These notes push goods out of chapter 93 even when a subheading's wording seems to fit. They are the fastest way to find out you are in the wrong chapter.
1. This chapter does not cover:
- (a) Goods of chapter 36 (for example, percussion caps, detonators, signaling flares);
- (b) Parts of general use, as defined in note 2 to section XV, of base metal (section XV), or similar goods of plastics (chapter 39);
- (c) Armored fighting vehicles (heading 8710);
- (d) Telescopic sights or other optical devices suitable for use with arms, unless mounted on a firearm or entered with the firearm on which they are designed to be mounted (chapter 90);
- (e) Bows, arrows, fencing foils or toys (chapter 95); or
- (f) Collectors' pieces or antiques (heading 9705 or 9706).
2. In heading 9306, the reference to "parts thereof" does not include radio or radar apparatus of heading 8526.
Legal notes
Reproduced from the published tariff schedule. Section and chapter notes are binding and part of the nomenclature; statistical notes are US reporting rules and are not classification law.
Chapter 93 — Notes
Legal Notes of the Harmonized System. Binding, and part of the international nomenclature.
1. This chapter does not cover:
(a) Goods of chapter 36 (for example, percussion caps, detonators, signaling flares);
(b) Parts of general use, as defined in note 2 to section XV, of base metal (section XV), or similar goods of plastics (chapter 39);
(c) Armored fighting vehicles (heading 8710);
(d) Telescopic sights or other optical devices suitable for use with arms, unless mounted on a firearm or entered with the firearm on which they are designed to be mounted (chapter 90);
(e) Bows, arrows, fencing foils or toys (chapter 95); or
(f) Collectors' pieces or antiques (heading 9705 or 9706).
2. In heading 9306, the reference to "parts thereof" does not include radio or radar apparatus of heading 8526.
Chapter 93 — Statistical Notes
US statistical reporting only. NOT classification law.
1. The calculation of duties, under subheadings 9301.90.30, 9303.30.40 and 9303.30.80, for rifles imported either with telescopic sights mounted on them or with telescopic sights designed to be mounted on them, requires that these articles be constructively separated into their component parts and each component separately valued. The individual components shall be separately reported under the appropriate statistical suffixes. In each instance, the sum of the values of the individual components shall be equal to the total value of the article.
Notes are reproduced from the published tariff schedule. They govern classification, but reading them is not the same as applying them to your goods — that is what a broker or a binding ruling is for.
Headings in chapter 93
9301 Military weapons, other than revolvers, pistols and the arms of heading 9307
9303 Other firearms and similar devices which operate by the firing of an explosive charge (for example, sporting shot- guns and rifles, muzzle-loading firearms, Very pistols and other devices designed to project only signal flares, pistols and revolvers for firing blank ammunition, captive-bolt humane killers, line-throwing guns)
9305 Parts and accessories of articles of headings 9301 to 9304
9306 Bombs, grenades, torpedoes, mines, missiles and similar munitions of war and parts thereof; cartridges and other ammunition and projectiles and parts thereof, including shot and cartridgewads
Other chapters
Common questions
What does HS chapter 93 cover?
Arms and ammunition; parts and accessories thereof. It contains 7 headings and 18 six-digit subheadings, and sits in Section XIX (arms and ammunition; parts and accessories thereof xix - 1).
What is excluded from chapter 93?
1. This chapter does not cover: (a) Goods of chapter 36 (for example, percussion caps, detonators, signaling flares); (b) Parts of general use, as defined in note 2 to section XV, of base metal (section XV), or similar goods of plastics (chapter 39); (c) Armored fighting vehicles (heading 8710); (d) Telescopic sights or other optical devices suitable for use with arms, unless mounted on a firearm or entered with the firearm on which they are designed to be mounted (chapter 90);
Are chapter 93's notes legally binding?
This chapter carries 8 binding note paragraph(s) — legal notes of the Harmonized System, plus any US-specific Additional U.S. Notes. They decide classification, and they outrank the wording of an individual subheading. A further 1 statistical note paragraph(s) govern US reporting only and are not classification law.