HTS codes
HS code for cardboard boxes and paper packaging
Independent site, not a government agency or a customs broker. General information, not legal advice or customs advice.
Enter a packaging line, its origin and a value: what a duty-free box costs after the other layers.
What will these boxes cost to import?
Landed cost
$13,797
4819.10.00: duties $3,750, 37.5% of value, $14 per unit before rounding
| Ordinary duty (Free) Column 1 General | $0 |
| Section 301, 60 economies (12.5%) Heading 9903.05.31 | $1,250 |
| Section 301 on China, List 3 (25%) U.S. note 20. USTR exclusions are not applied here | $2,500 |
| Merchandise processing fee 0.3464% of value, min $34.58, max $670.86 | $35 |
| Harbor maintenance fee 0.125% of value, ocean cargo at covered ports | $13 |
USTR exclusions under headings 9903.88.69 and .70 run through November 9, 2026, and are not applied here. If yours covers your goods, this list duty does not apply until that date.
Rates of 2026 HTS Revision 22, read on 2026-11-02. Antidumping and countervailing duties, state taxes and USTR exclusions are not included. Estimate, not a customs ruling. Everything you enter stays in this browser: nothing is sent or stored.
Cartons, boxes, sacks and bags of paper or paperboard take heading 4819 of the US tariff. Corrugated boxes take 4819.10, folding cartons of non-corrugated board take 4819.20, sacks and bags take 4819.30 and 4819.40, and other containers take 4819.50. All of them print a general rate of Free. All show List 3: +25% for China in our extract, so $10,000 of corrugated boxes comes to $3,750 (37.5%) from China, and $1,000 (10%) from Mexico before a USMCA claim, which can remove it. This page covers packaging imported as goods. Packaging that holds your product at entry is treated differently: usual retail or shipping containers normally follow the goods inside, and the cost of packing them can be part of customs value. Rates from 2026 HTS Revision 22, read on November 2, 2026.
Cardboard boxes: the same goods from other countries
| Origin | Duty | Share of value | Layers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any other country | $0 | 0% | none |
| Mexico | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| India | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| European Union | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| United Kingdom | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| Taiwan | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| Canada | $1,000 | 10% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| Vietnam | $1,250 | 12.5% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| Japan | $1,250 | 12.5% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| South Korea | $1,250 | 12.5% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| Thailand | $1,250 | 12.5% | Section 301, 60 economies |
| China | $3,750 | 37.5% | Section 301, 60 economies + Section 301 on China, List 3 |
| Brazil | $3,750 | 37.5% | Section 301, 60 economies + Section 301, Brazil |
Without a trade agreement claim or USTR exclusion, and before fees. Everything you enter stays in this browser: nothing is sent or stored.
Rates read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
Is it the goods or just the container?
If you import empty boxes, they are the goods and take the lines above. If a box arrives holding a product, the tariff rule on packing generally treats it as part of that product, as long as it is the usual kind for those goods. A reusable case that clearly outlasts the contents, such as a metal tin made for reuse, can be treated separately. The plastic page covers the plastic equivalents, on which China lists differ.
Paper packaging lines
| HTS code | Line | General | China, Section 301 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4819.10.00 | Cartons, boxes, cases, bags and other packing containers, of paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose f | Free | List 3: +25% |
| 4819.20.00 | Cartons, boxes, cases, bags and other packing containers, of paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose f | Free | List 3: +25% |
| 4819.30.00 | Cartons, boxes, cases, bags and other packing containers, of paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose f | Free | List 3: +25% |
| 4819.40.00 | Cartons, boxes, cases, bags and other packing containers, of paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose f | Free | List 3: +25% |
| 4819.50.40 | Other packing containers, including record sleeves: Other | Free | List 3: +25% |