Interesting Tarrif information on flashlights

The tarrif for imporing flashlights and flashlight parts into the USA is 12.5 percent. That is higher than the average item by a good margin.

Here are some tarrifs on other items.

Cameras 0 percent

musical instruments at a glance looks like 0-4.7

guns 0-4.2

swords 2.7

In looking at the import tax code I didn't see any finished goods as high as flashlights but I am sure things are out there.

I wonder why the import duty is higher of flashlights than Guns, Cameras, mucical instrumants???

Does anyone have a guess?

browse this link to official us tarrifs, it is an eye opener.

tarrif rates

My guess; a domestic flashlight manufacturer lobbied for the tariff.

Hmmmm... That domestic flashlight manufacturer wouldn't be known by a three letter name, would it?

Also, never forget: The Government Is Your Friend!!!

If you want to see it with your own eyes, check pg 21 of chapter 85 from the link above.

I understand it is a protective tarrif, I am just wondering how they got is so much higher then others. I would have thought the other industries would have had people lobbying for higher tarrifs as well.

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JonSidneyB said:
I understand it is a protective tarrif, I am just wondering how they got is so much higher then others. I would have thought the other industries would have had people lobbying for higher tarrifs as well.

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Know the right people, and have enough money, politicians will bend over backwards, to please. Unfortunately, "We the people", end up bending over and touching our toes. You know what comes next! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Prime example: the new energy bill!

I wonder if there is a way to find out why the different tarrifs are what they are.

But notice that Austria, Australia, Canada, England, Japan. Mexico, Chile, Israel, Jordan are exempt...now when is last time you saw a Chilean made flashlight around? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crackup.gif

Edit: E does not stand for England, which should be GB

But hey, at 3 in he morning it SEEMED logical enough... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Keep in mind that many products can be classified into more than one schedule B number. For example last year for the Barbolight HID buy from Spain, I pointed out that by calling the units portable HID lighting, they qualified for a much lower duty. I defy anyone to claim that a HID flashlight isn't portable HID lighting.
It always pays to look carefully at the available schedule B numbers. You can almost always find a lower duty category than the obvious one(and the customs brokers for FEDEX,DHL and UPS always stop at the obvious one).

The reason the products from countries listed above are duty free are simple. Canada and Mexico are covered under NAFTA, similar free trade agreements exist with the other countries. IT cuts both way. US made goods into Canada (and the other countries listed) are duty free (but may still be subject to GST and/or PST).On exports there is some paperwork you have to fill out to certify the goods are of USA origin.

Everything else fell into one of 3 categories IIRC.
Most Favored Nation, Category 2 (Communist regimes generally), and General Category 1 (everybody not covered elsewhere). Generally the duty on the old Eastern Block stuff was the highest because it was often absurdly underpriced as a way to buy hard currency. In addition, there are certain countries you simply cannot import from. When I moved back to the USA from Kuwait, I probably spent about 10 minutes beating around bush with a customs guy over the container with my belongings before I finally realized what he was after. I told him I had nothing that came from Iran, and that was that. Why he couldn't have just asked the question straight up, I will never know.

I think since I am a Dealer with Tax ID, I would get hung if I misclassified. I have been digging through case rulings.

In the ruling if it is held like a flashlight rather than lantern, it usually is ruled a flashlight.

I did some checking, England gets no special consideration. The (E) on the tariff schedual stands for carrabian islands rather then England.

You actually have to do something pretty blatant to get hung out to dry. I did much of my exporting while I was sat on an advisory committee on export matters for the US Department of Commerce. The very nature of the beast is such that it is like any other tax. There are various interpretations. They fact that yours doesn't agree with the IRS doesn't make it criminal (or even subject to a civil penalty), and if and when you ever get to Tax court, the IRS wins a whole lot less than 100% of the cases, and occaisonally gets slapped really hard by the court.

Sending in pickup trucks without the tail gate attached and calling them truck parts was definitely pushing the envelope, but when I used to import HDD's, there were often several classifications that the product fit within. I'd always pick the one with the lowest duty. I think any customs broker will tell you that is what they are paid to do. If the customs service wishes to disagree, they are welcome to do so, that's why we have administrative and judicial appeals.

Do you know if its the leislature that sets Tariff rates?
What I am wanting to bring in are flashlights that I had created coming in from England.

Setting tariff rates is a long and convoluted story. The answer is the Congress passes legislation that passes the authority elsewhere. Some resides with the President (Most Favored Nation status), but most resides with an Agency, the US International Trade Commission, which also has the authority to levy special duties in circumstances they consider 'unfair', usually as a result of industry complaints. Some of those complaints have touched off hornet's nests. There are still people who will not buy a Micron memory product because of the case Micron filed over Japanese RAM pricing.

As for bringing them in from England, you might look at bringing them into the USA as parts rather than completed product. It might also turn out to be attractive to ship them to a nation with a FTA such as Canada for assembly, and final export to the USA. If 51% of the value is from a FTA nation, that is considered the country of origin.

I wonder what the duty on "Battery Testers" is. See the little LED light goes on when the battery is good!

Try Australia, it is unbelievable