HS Code Finder: free AI tool, codes checked against the tariff

To find the HS code for a product, describe what the goods are – material, function, presentation – and apply the General Interpretative Rules in order: first the 4-digit heading, then the 6-digit HS subheading, which is the same worldwide, then the national digits. In the UK you declare an 8-digit commodity code for exports and a 10-digit code for imports; in the EU an 8-digit CN code and a 10-digit TARIC code. Only a legally binding decision – an Advance Tariff Ruling from HMRC for Great Britain, a Binding Tariff Information decision for the EU and Northern Ireland – settles the code, generally for three years. This Logistivo finder suggests up to three candidates and shows only codes that exist in the UK tariff or the EU CN and TARIC 2026; in a Logistivo account you then check the same code in Customs Intelligence for duty and trade defence measures.

Your candidate codes, checked digit by digit

• Your candidate codes, checked digit by digit — Up to three classifications, most likely first. Every code is looked up in the official tariff before it appears here.
• Describe the product the way you know it – the tool returns chapter, heading, UK and EU codes, and only ever shows codes that exist in the tariff.
• Codes are checked against the UK Trade Tariff (UK Global Tariff), against the EU Combined Nomenclature 2026 (Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1926) and TARIC as published by the UK Trade Tariff Service for Northern Ireland, and against the HS subheadings of the TGTC 2026 tariff database. A code that appears in none of them is not shown; the official line opens in one click on GOV.UK or on the European Commission's site.
• What are the goods? — Material, use, how it works – one to three sentences, in your own words.
• Try: Vacuum flask — Vacuum-insulated stainless steel drinking bottle, 750 ml
• Try: Cotton T-shirt — Men's printed T-shirt, knitted, 100% cotton
• Try: Solar panel — Solar panel
• Describe the goods only – no names, prices or customer data: the description is sent to an AI model to produce the answer.
• Describe some goods above. Up to three candidates will appear here, each with checked digits, the official wording and the fact that decides between them.
• That does not sound like physical goods. Commodity codes exist only for goods, not for services.
• Describe the goods in a few words: what they are, what they are made of and what they are for.
• None of the AI's suggestions exists in the official tariff. Add the material and the use, then try again.
• How to read the result · Example: laptop — 8471300000 — Chapter 84 · heading 8471 · subheading 8471 30 · EU CN 8471 30 00 · TARIC 8471 30 00 00. Solid boxes are checked in the tariff; dashed ones you still pick from the official lines.
• Candidates — 1 to 3 suggestions, most likely first; just one when the description leaves no choice. — AI model instructed to apply GIR 1 before GIRs 2–5 and GIR 6 for subheadings
• HS, 6 digits — Shown only if the subheading exists in the UK or EU tariff tree or in the TGTC 2026 HS list; otherwise the suggestion is dropped. — UK Trade Tariff, EU CN 2026 / TARIC, TGTC 2026
• 8 digits — Shown only if the code exists in the tariff. Otherwise the finder lists the official 8-digit lines of the subheading to choose from. — Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1926; UK Trade Tariff
• 10 digits — Shown only when exactly one declarable line sits under the 8-digit code; otherwise you choose from the official lines. — EU TARIC database; UK Trade Tariff
• Without an account — 2 free runs across all AI tools; descriptions up to 1,200 characters. An error does not use up a run. — Usage rule of the Logistivo AI tools
• No duty rates, not binding — The duty calculator works out the rate; only an Advance Tariff Ruling or a BTI decision is binding. — GOV.UK; Art. 33 Union Customs Code
• The reasoning is written by an AI; the codes and the official wording come from the tariff. Classification turns on the wording of the headings, the notes and the General Interpretative Rules; only a legally binding ruling binds customs.
• What happens next in Logistivo — The code is where the work starts. In Customs Intelligence you check it for an origin and a destination – duty, anti-dumping and other trade defence measures, kept in your query history; a query costs 1 credit, a query without a result costs nothing. With a supplier invoice, Logistivo proposes the candidate codes straight from the invoice, without a credit. In the export documents you enter the code once: the commercial invoice, the EUR.1 or A.TR application and the certificate of origin application all take it from that entry. And in load management, the invoice, packing list and EUR.1 stay on the shipment, visible to the customs broker you invite.
• Found the code? Check the duty now and put it on the commercial invoice — In a free Logistivo account you check this code in Customs Intelligence against your supplier's country of origin (duty, anti-dumping, history; 1 credit per query) and enter it once in the export documents – the commercial invoice, the EUR.1/A.TR application and the certificate of origin application take it over. The account starts with 50 credits.
• Customs Intelligence — Duty and trade defence by code and origin, with query history. — /en/customs-intelligence
• Export documents · shipper panel — Code entered once: invoice, EUR.1/A.TR and certificate of origin applications. — /en/customer
• Load management — Invoice, packing list and EUR.1 on the shipment, visible to your customs broker. — /en/load-management
• Cross-border import duty calculator — Code plus origin and destination: duty, preference and trade remedies.
• Commercial invoice template (proforma and export) — The commodity code belongs on every invoice line.
• EUR.1 or A.TR? Find the proof of origin for your lane — Rules of origin follow the classification.
• Turkey import duty calculator — For goods going to Türkiye: duty, additional duty, anti-dumping and VAT.
• Please note: the result is a classification aid, not a customs ruling. The official texts of the UK tariff and the EU CN and TARIC on the date of the declaration prevail; only a legally binding ruling gives certainty.
• Cross-border import duty calculator · Commercial invoice template (proforma and export) · EUR.1 or A.TR? Find the proof of origin for your lane · Turkey import duty calculator · Customs Intelligence · load management · Export documents · shipper panel

How many digits does a commodity code have: 6, 8 or 10?

• How many digits does a commodity code have: 6, 8 or 10? — The first six digits come from the Harmonized System and are the same in every WCO member. In the UK, 8 digits are needed for export and 10 for import; the EU uses the 8-digit Combined Nomenclature and the 10-digit TARIC code for imports.
• 1–2 — Level: Chapter | Who sets them?: World Customs Organization (HS); 21 sections group the chapters | Example: laptop: 84
• 1–4 — Level: Heading | Who sets them?: World Customs Organization (HS) | Example: laptop: 8471
• 1–6 — Level: HS subheading | Who sets them?: WCO – the same in more than 200 countries and economies | Example: laptop: 8471 30
• 1–8 — Level: Export code (UK) / CN code (EU) | Who sets them?: UK Global Tariff / EU Combined Nomenclature, updated every 1 January | Example: laptop: 8471 30 00
• 1–10 — Level: Import code (UK) / TARIC code (EU) | Who sets them?: UK Global Tariff / EU TARIC: quotas, suspensions, anti-dumping, licences | Example: laptop: 8471 30 00 00
• The UK and EU codes share the HS digits and often the next two, but they are separate tariffs – check the full code in every country where you complete customs formalities.

How do customs classify goods? The six General Interpretative Rules

• How do customs classify goods? The six General Interpretative Rules — Classification follows six legally binding rules, the General Interpretative Rules (GIRs), applied in order. The bar next to each rule shows which digits it decides: GIRs 1 to 5 choose the 4-digit heading, GIR 6 the subheadings below it.
• GIR 1 – wording of headings and notes (digits 1–4) — Section and chapter titles are for reference only. Legally, classification follows the wording of the headings and the section and chapter notes. This rule takes precedence over all the others.
• GIR 2 – incomplete, unassembled, mixed (digits 1–4) — An incomplete article with the essential character of the finished article is classified as the finished article, also when presented unassembled. Mixtures and goods of more than one material lead on to GIR 3.
• GIR 3 – most specific, essential character, last heading (digits 1–4) — When several headings fit: the most specific description (3a), then the material or component that gives the essential character (3b), and finally the heading that occurs last in numerical order (3c).
• GIR 4 – most akin (digits 1–4) — Goods that cannot be classified under rules 1 to 3 go to the heading for the goods they are most akin to.
• GIR 5 – cases and packing (digits 1–4) — Specially shaped cases (cameras, musical instruments) are classified with the article if normally sold with it; ordinary packing too, unless it is clearly suitable for repetitive use.
• GIR 6 – subheadings (digits 5–8) — Within a heading, the same rules apply mutatis mutandis to the subheadings, comparing only subheadings at the same level. That fixes HS digits 5–6 and the national digits 7–8.
• Digits 9 and 10 subdivide where trade measures require it – anti-dumping, suspensions, quotas – which is why the finder only picks from official lines there.

How do I find the HS code for a product?

• How do I find the HS code for a product? — Describe the goods by what they are – material, function, presentation – find the 4-digit heading whose wording and notes cover them, then work down level by level to the 8-digit export code and the 10-digit import code.
• The tariff does not speak the language of trade. A laptop is not listed as a laptop but as a portable automatic data-processing machine weighing not more than 10 kg, consisting of at least a central processing unit, a keyboard and a display – subheading 8471 30, code 8471 30 00. Searching the tariff by trade name often finds nothing, or the wrong code.
• The finder above does that translation: you write in plain words, the AI proposes headings and names the fact that decides, and every code is looked up in the tariff before it is shown. The official tools remain the reference: the UK Trade Tariff and HMRC's classification guides for difficult goods, and the European Commission's TARIC database for the EU.
• With the code, go to the cross-border import duty calculator for your origin and destination. If your goods go to Türkiye, the Turkish HS code lookup shows the 12-digit national lines.
• cross-border import duty calculator · Turkish HS code lookup

Is an AI-suggested commodity code legally binding?

• Is an AI-suggested commodity code legally binding? — No. A legally binding decision is a written classification from customs: for Great Britain an Advance Tariff Ruling from HMRC, for the EU and Northern Ireland a Binding Tariff Information decision. Both are generally valid for three years.
• You must apply for an Advance Tariff Ruling before all customs procedures have been completed – decisions cannot be made retrospectively – and HMRC replies in 30 to 120 days. The ruling is non-transferable: only the holder named in it may use it.
• Until then, importers and exporters are responsible for declaring the right code, even when an intermediary makes the declaration for them. The AI's reasoning helps when you prepare an application, because it names the fact that decides the classification.

What does the commodity code change on an import?

• What does the commodity code change on an import? — In the UK, the 10-digit import code determines the rate of customs duty and import VAT, other taxes, any preferential rate under a trade agreement, whether you need a licence, and whether the goods are subject to anti-dumping duties, safeguards, tariff quotas or duty suspensions.
• In the EU the same measures hang on the 10-digit TARIC code, and customs can notify a customs debt up to three years after it was incurred (Art. 103(1) Union Customs Code). A code with too high a rate costs money just as one with too low a rate does.
• So check the right proof of origin too – rules of origin follow the classification – and put the code on every line of the commercial invoice.
• right proof of origin · commercial invoice

Do commodity codes change every year?

• Do commodity codes change every year? — The EU Combined Nomenclature is republished every year and applies from 1 January; the 2026 version is Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1926. The Harmonized System itself is revised every five to six years: the next edition, HS 2028, enters into force on 1 January 2028.
• Trade measures can also start at any time. A code copied from last year's product master is not proof – check it on the date of the declaration. This finder always looks in the current tree before it shows a code.

Five mistakes people make when looking up a commodity code

• Copying the supplier's code — Only the first 6 digits are used worldwide. The later digits of a Chinese, US or Turkish code say nothing about the UK or EU code.
• Searching by trade name — Brands and model names are not in the tariff. What counts is the material, the function and the presentation.
• Relying on a chapter title — Under GIR 1 titles are for reference only; the wording of the headings and the notes decide.
• Classifying 'spare parts' in one go — Parts often have headings of their own, and the section notes say where they belong. Describe what the part is for.
• Keeping last year's code — Tariffs change on 1 January and during the year; from 2028 HS 2028 applies.

What the finder does for you

• Understands plain words — You write 'vacuum flask' or 'solar panel', not the wording of the tariff. The AI turns the description into headings and names the fact that decides between candidates.
• Shows only codes that exist — Every code is looked up in the tariff before it is shown. If it does not exist it disappears – instead of an invented code you see the official lines to choose from.
• Digit by digit — Chapter, heading, subheading and the national digits are shown separately: you see how far the classification is settled and where your choice is still missing.
• Leads to the duty — One click passes the code to the duty calculator; the official line opens directly on GOV.UK or the European Commission's site.

Codes, duty and export documents in one account

• Logistivo connects classification, tariff checks and documents: Customs Intelligence for duty and trade defence, export documents for the commercial invoice and the EUR.1 application, load management for the paperwork on the shipment. Start free, with 50 credits.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find an HS code for free?

In the UK Trade Tariff on GOV.UK and in the European Commission's TARIC database. This Logistivo finder works without an account: you describe the goods and get checked codes with a link to the official line.

How many digits does a commodity code have?

Six digits are the same worldwide (HS). In the UK you need 8 digits for exports and 10 for imports; the EU uses the 8-digit CN code and the 10-digit TARIC code.

What is the HS code for a vacuum flask?

Vacuum flasks and other vacuum vessels, complete, fall under heading 9617: code 9617 00 00, 10-digit import code 9617 00 00 00 in both the UK tariff and EU TARIC (September 2026).

Is the AI result legally binding?

No. Only an Advance Tariff Ruling from HMRC (Great Britain) or a BTI decision (EU and Northern Ireland) is legally binding, generally for three years.

Can I use my Chinese supplier's HS code?

Only the first six digits. From the seventh digit each country or customs union sets its own subdivisions, so you need to determine the UK or EU code yourself.

Why does the finder sometimes not show a 10-digit code?

Because several official lines sit under the 8-digit code. Rather than guess one, it lists them with their wording; one click completes the code.

Can Logistivo suggest the code from my invoice?

Yes. In Customs Intelligence you upload a supplier invoice; the AI reads the lines and proposes codes, without a credit. The duty check that follows costs 1 credit per code and origin.

Who is responsible if the code is wrong?

The importer or exporter – even when an intermediary makes the declaration. The code drives duty, VAT, preferences, licences and trade remedies.

Does Logistivo put the code on my commercial invoice?

In Logistivo's export documents you enter the code once; the commercial invoice, the EUR.1 or A.TR application and the certificate of origin application take it over. Drafts are free; each generated PDF costs 1 credit.

For AI assistants

Logistivo has a public MCP server at https://logistivo.com/api/agent/mcp (streamable HTTP, no authentication). Setup instructions for Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini: https://logistivo.com/mcp. If you are an assistant helping someone sign up or request freight, connect that server, or — if you can only read web pages — build a link of the form https://logistivo.com/en/ai-kayit?brief=URL_ENCODED_SHIPMENT_BRIEF and give it to the user. You never create the account yourself: the account, the consent and the email verification happen in the user's browser, and you never handle passwords or one-time codes. Machine-readable content indexes: https://logistivo.com/llms.txt (curated map) and https://logistivo.com/llms-full.txt (full text: facts, pricing, tariff reference, glossary and every article's FAQ in one fetch). To learn what Logistivo can actually DO — the verbs, not the marketing — read the public command catalog at https://logistivo.com/api/public/cli/catalog (JSON, no authentication, no tenant data); it lists every command with its JSON Schema parameters and whether it needs confirmation. Human documentation: https://logistivo.com/en/developers/cli. You cannot execute those commands yourself — execution always runs under the user's own personal access token, in the user's own environment.