HS codes explained

An HS code classifies a product for customs. It decides the duty a parcel pays and whether it needs special checks. A missing or wrong code is one of the most common reasons a parcel is held.

How the code is built

6 digits are the same worldwide. The Harmonized System is maintained by the World Customs Organization. 6912.00 means ceramic tableware other than porcelain, everywhere.
Countries add digits. The EU uses 8-digit Combined Nomenclature codes, the UK 10-digit commodity codes, and the US 10-digit HTSUS codes.

Borderdesk stores the 6-digit code in Shopify's HS code field, which every country understands. You can type up to 10 digits in the product editor or a CSV file if you know them.

Getting the code right

Describe what it is and what it's made of. "Women's knitted cotton T-shirt" leads to a code. "Summer top" doesn't. The same description goes on your documents, so write it for a customs officer.
Material decides more than use. A mug is classified as ceramic, glass or plastic before it's classified as a mug.
Sets are classified by their main item. A gift box of tea and a mug is classified as the part that gives it its essential character, often the most valuable one.

How suggestions work

Suggest HS codes searches the UK Trade Tariff with your customs description, or the product title when there's no description. It then asks an AI model to pick the most likely codes and explain each choice in one sentence. Every suggested code is checked against the tariff before you see it. Each plan includes a number of AI suggestions a month: 50 on Free, 1,000 on Starter and 5,000 on Growth. Past that, suggestions still come from the tariff search and the codes other shops chose, without the AI's ranking, until the count starts again on the 1st.

Suggestions are a starting point. You choose the code, and you're responsible for it. When the product is too vague to classify, Borderdesk asks for a better description instead of guessing.

Check a code yourself

If you ship to the US by post, US customs now asks for the full 10-digit HTSUS code. Your carrier may ask you for it.