Fountain pens, stylograph pens and other pens
Classified under heading 9608 — chapter 96 of the US Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
General rate applies to goods from countries with normal trade relations. Special rates require a program code (USMCA, GSP, AGOA…). Column 2 applies where normal trade relations do not.
Duty calculator
Estimate the duty owed on an import under HTS 9608.30.00.
Excludes merchandise processing fees, Section 301 duties, antidumping/countervailing duties and freight. Estimates only — not customs advice.
Where this rate sits
This heading has a single tariff line, so there is nothing to compare within it.
Classification path
- 9608Ball point pens; felt tipped and other porous-tipped pens and markers; fountain pens, stylograph pens and other pens; duplicating styli; propelling or sliding pencils (for example, mechanical pencils); pen-holders, pencil-holders and similar holders; parts (including caps and clips) of the foregoing articles, other than those of heading 9609
- 9608.30.00Fountain pens, stylograph pens and other pens
Using HTS 9608.30.00 correctly
A ten-digit HTS number has three parts: the four-digit heading, the six-digit international subheading shared by every WTO member, and the two-digit US statistical suffix. 9608.30.00 is a US national line — the same product may carry a different suffix in the EU TARIC or in another country's tariff.
Classification is determined by the General Rules of Interpretation, not by what the product is called on the invoice. If your goods could fall in two headings, GRI 1 sends you to the heading with the most specific description; GRI 3 breaks ties by essential character. A GRI 3(b) mistake is the single most common reason an entry gets reclassified and billed for unpaid duty plus interest.