If you import from a country outside the European Union, your shipment will go through customs, and customs needs to classify your shipment in the Netherlands. An HS code, also known as a commodity code, is used to identify the type of product to customs. Customs uses the HS code to calculate the amount of import duties.
You pay a standard fee of €27.50 (airfreight) or €32.50 (seafreight) for customs clearance if your shipment contains 1 HS code. For each additional HS code you import, you pay an extra €5.00. So, for example, if you have a seafreight shipment consisting of 3 different products (HS codes), you will pay €32.50 for the first HS code and an additional €10 for the 2 extra HS codes. In total, you will pay €42.50 for the customs clearance.
Please note: You will pay the customs clearance fee with the final invoice you receive from us, namely the invoice for Last Mile Delivery. On the second invoice (which still belongs to the same shipment), you will pay the import duties and VAT upon import.
The HS code provided by my supplier doesn't work.
It is common for the HS code given by your supplier not to work. This is because the code may not exist in the European database. In China, different HS codes are often used compared to those in Europe. If this is the case for you, you can find the correct HS code on this website.
If the HS code provided by your supplier doesn't work, you can search for it using the method below. HS codes always consist of 10 digits. The first 6 digits of an HS code are universal, meaning they are the same for every product worldwide. The last 4 digits of an HS code can differ per country or customs union. To check this, you can enter the 10-digit HS code using the link provided earlier. If you enter an HS code and the system doesn't find anything, you can remove the last 4 digits and press enter again (see screenshot)."
Next, you will see the screen below. Since the first 6 digits are universal, there is a good chance that an HS code will appear that matches the product you want to import.
If nothing is found or if you feel that the displayed HS codes do not match your product, you have two options. You can request a new HS code from your supplier, or you can search for the correct HS code in your own dashboard or use chatgpt. 🙂
Why doesn't the HS code I used last time work anymore?
It is possible that you have used an HS code before without any issues. However, our customs partner used to adjust the HS codes themselves to what they deemed appropriate when an incorrect HS code was provided. This mainly occurred with HS codes that did not exist in the European database.
They have stopped doing this, so you may receive an email from us asking for a new HS code. In such cases, always check the customs documents from the previous shipment where you imported the same product. You can find the customs documents in your dashboard under the respective shipment. When you open 'Document 1', you will see the declaration number and Commodity SRZ in the middle of the page. Next to Commodity SRZ, you can find the HS code that was used for customs clearance.
