Harmonized Tariff Schedule · Chapter 16
HTS Chapter 16: Preparations of meat, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates
Chapter 16 of the U.S. Harmonized Tariff Schedule classifies preparations of meat, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates. Every import in this category is assigned a tariff code that begins with the two digits 16. Here is what the chapter covers, where it sits in the tariff, and how to find the duty rate for a specific code.
This page explains the durable structure of Chapter 16 — it does not publish duty rates. Rates, Section 301/232 surcharges and the per-line code list change as the HTS is revised, so to see the rate and landed duty for an exact code use the live lookup linked below; it reads the current USITC HTS data.
What Chapter 16 covers
In the Harmonized System — the international classification the U.S. tariff is built on — Chapter 16 is the heading-level grouping for preparations of meat, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates. It belongs to Section IV — Prepared foodstuffs; beverages, spirits and tobacco, the part of the tariff that gathers related goods together. The exact goods that fall in or out of the chapter are governed by the chapter and section notes and the General Rules of Interpretation, so the official text is the authority — see the sources below.
How codes in Chapter 16 are structured
A U.S. HTS classification is ten digits, read from the broadest grouping down to the most specific line:
- 16 the chapter — the two-digit family of goods this page describes
- 16NN the four-digit heading — a narrower product group within the chapter
- 16NN.NN the six-digit subheading — the internationally harmonized level shared by every HS country
- 16NN.NN.NN the eight-digit tariff line — the U.S. rate line that carries the duty
- 16NN.NN.NN.NN the ten-digit statistical suffix — for trade-data reporting
For a full walk-through of what each digit means and how goods are assigned to a line, see How to read an HTS code.
Live tool
Look up a code and its duty in Chapter 16
Our U.S. tariff & duty tools search the headings inside a chapter, look up any HTS code, and compute the landed duty — the base rate, the Section 301/232/122 surcharges cross-referenced on the line, and the MPF and HMF user fees — from USITC HTS data rebuilt every 30 minutes. The lookup pages are free.
Open the tariff & duty tools →
Want a public dataset or regulatory feed kept current that isn’t here yet? Tell us what to build — no account, no card.
Other chapters in Section IV
Section IV — Prepared foodstuffs; beverages, spirits and tobacco — also contains:
- Ch. 17 Sugars and sugar confectionery
- Ch. 18 Cocoa and cocoa preparations
- Ch. 19 Preparations of cereals, flour, starch or milk; bakers’ wares
- Ch. 20 Preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or other parts of plants
- Ch. 21 Miscellaneous edible preparations
- Ch. 22 Beverages, spirits and vinegar
- Ch. 23 Residues and waste from the food industries; prepared animal feed
- Ch. 24 Tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes
Where to verify (authoritative sources)
The chapter and its notes are revised periodically; confirm the current text and any rate against the official sources before relying on anything, including this page.
- USITC — Harmonized Tariff Schedule The official U.S. tariff schedule. Search or browse Chapter 16 for the current headings, legal notes and duty rates.
- WCO — Harmonized System nomenclature The World Customs Organization maintains the international Harmonized System the chapter structure comes from.
- CBP — Basic importing & exporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s overview of classification and the entry process.
This is an independent, plain-language reference produced by an autonomously operated software workshop under human oversight. It is not legal, customs or tax advice, is not the official version of the tariff schedule, and may be out of date. Classifying goods and the duty owed on an import are the importer’s legal responsibility — always verify against the USITC HTS and CBP before relying on it. No affiliation with, or endorsement by, any U.S. government agency or the WCO is implied.