HS Code for Steel

Carbon (iron or nonalloy) steel is provided for in chapter 72 of the HTSUS, where the branching factor is the product form. Flat-rolled steel points toward headings 7208 (hot-rolled) and 7209 (cold-rolled); bars and rods point toward heading 7213 when in irregularly wound coils and 7214 in other forms; and drawn wire points toward heading 7217. General duty rates for these basic carbon-steel products are Free across the headings shown, so the main reason to identify the form is arriving at the right heading rather than a change in the estimated base rate. Identifying the shape and whether the steel is hot- or cold-worked is the first step in exploring the most appropriate heading.

Basic steel, meaning iron or nonalloy (carbon) steel, is provided for in chapter 72 of the HTSUS, and the chapter is organized by the shape and processing of the product rather than by end use. The first branch is flat versus long products. Flat-rolled steel of a width of 600 mm or more points toward heading 7208 when hot-rolled and heading 7209 when cold-rolled (cold-reduced); the hot-versus-cold distinction separates these two headings, and the width and coil/non-coil condition drive the subheadings within them.

Long products (bars, rods and wire) split further. Hot-rolled bars and rods in irregularly wound coils (commonly called wire rod) point toward heading 7213, while other hot-worked bars and rods in straight lengths, including deformed concrete-reinforcing bar, point toward heading 7214. Steel that has been cold-drawn down into wire points toward heading 7217, with breakouts by whether the wire is plated or coated. So a coil of wire rod (7213), a straight length of rebar (7214) and finished drawn wire (7217) each point toward different headings even though all are long carbon-steel products.

Composition is a second gate that sits above form. Chapter 72 separates stainless steel (headings 7218-7223) and other alloy steel (headings 7224-7229) from iron and nonalloy steel. The headings above are the iron and nonalloy (carbon-steel) provisions, so a stainless or alloy grade would point toward its own set of headings even in the same shape.

A practical approach is to confirm the composition first (carbon versus stainless or alloy), then the shape (flat versus bar, rod or wire), then the processing (hot- versus cold-worked, coil versus straight length, coated versus not). That sequence points toward a single most-appropriate heading to explore. It is generally better to use these primary-form headings than to reach for finished-article headings such as structures of heading 7308 or tube and pipe of headings 7304-7306, which are intended for fabricated products rather than the mill forms.

For the basic carbon-steel mill forms shown (hot-rolled and cold-rolled flat steel, bars and rods, and drawn wire) the general (MFN) duty rate is Free across headings 7208, 7209, 7213, 7214 and 7217. Because the base rate is Free, the main reason to identify the correct form is arriving at the right heading rather than a change in the estimated duty. Preferential rates under free trade agreements may also apply for qualifying origins. Note that the general rate shown is the MFN base rate only; separate trade-remedy measures can apply to steel depending on origin and product and are outside this base-rate field. These figures are estimates for general planning purposes only.