HS Code for Wires

Wire is classified by two questions: what base metal it is made of, and whether it is electrically insulated. Bare (uninsulated) wire points toward its base-metal chapter: carbon steel toward heading 7217, copper (including stranded copper cable) toward heading 7413, and non-alloyed aluminum toward heading 7605. Once wire carries electrical insulation, it moves out of the base-metal chapters and points toward heading 8544 in chapter 85, which covers insulated wire, cable and winding wire. General rates run from Free for bare steel wire up to a few percent for copper, aluminum and insulated winding wire. Identifying the metal and whether the wire is insulated is the first step in exploring the most appropriate heading.

Wire is one of those products where the classification is driven first by material and then by whether the wire is electrically insulated. For bare wire, the base metal points toward its own chapter within the metals section. Wire of iron or nonalloy (carbon) steel points toward heading 7217, with breakouts by whether it is plated or coated. Copper wire and stranded copper cable that is not electrically insulated points toward heading 7413. Wire of aluminum points toward heading 7605, where the non-alloyed lines split by cross-sectional dimension; the line shown covers non-alloyed aluminum wire whose maximum cross-section is over 7 mm.

The decisive branch is insulation. Once a wire is fitted with electrical insulation, it leaves the base-metal chapters entirely and points toward heading 8544 in chapter 85, the provision for insulated wire, cable and other insulated electric conductors, including insulated winding wire. Insulated copper winding wire, for example, points toward 8544.11, regardless of the fact that the conductor inside is copper. So the same copper strand can point toward heading 7413 when bare and heading 8544 when insulated, which is why the insulation question comes early.

Form and construction refine the choice within each material. Copper heading 7413 covers stranded wire, cables and the like where the conductor is bare; the aluminum wire lines in 7605 separate alloyed from non-alloyed and split by cross-section; and the steel wire lines in 7217 turn on coating. Confirming whether the article is a single drawn strand, a stranded cable, or an insulated conductor helps point toward the right heading within the metal.

A practical approach is to identify the base metal first, then confirm whether the wire is electrically insulated, and only then look at construction and dimension. That sequence points toward a single most-appropriate heading to explore. It is generally better to use these material-specific wire provisions than to reach for finished-article headings; cables made up into a set with connectors, or wire fashioned into an article, can point elsewhere.

Duty treatment for wire depends on the material and on whether it is insulated. Bare carbon-steel wire under heading 7217 shown here carries a general rate of Free. Bare stranded copper wire and cable under heading 7413 carries a rate around 3%, and non-alloyed aluminum wire over 7 mm under heading 7605 around 2.6%. Insulated copper winding wire under heading 8544 carries a rate around 3.5%. Because the rates span from Free to a few percent, identifying the material and the insulation status affects the estimated duty as well as the heading. Preferential rates under free trade agreements or programs such as the Generalized System of Preferences may reduce or eliminate duties for qualifying origins. These figures are estimates for general planning purposes only.