The Korea Customs Service announced on the 18th that it will disclose the 'Korea-US Harmonized System Code Correlation Table' for automobiles and automobile parts.
The US administration, following automobiles on the 3rd of this month, announced that it will impose a 25% tariff on automobile parts starting from the 3rd of next month, revealing the tariff-imposed HS codes for 17 automobile items and 130 automobile parts.
However, the HS codes announced by the US administration are based on their own national standards, making it difficult for domestic exporters to accurately identify which items are subject to tariffs.
The international standard HS codes managed by the World Customs Organization (WCO) are commonly applied worldwide up to the 6-digit level, but from the 7-digit level onward, each country operates differently according to its own circumstances.
This means that even for the same product, there is a possibility that the Korean HS code used by domestic companies on export declarations and the US HS code used by importers on import declarations do not match.
Accordingly, the Korea Customs Service linked the US HS codes disclosed by the US to the 10-digit Korean HS codes and made them available on the Customs Service website starting on the 18th, enabling exporters to the US to accurately verify tariff-imposed items based on the HS codes used in export declarations.
Additionally, the Customs Service plans to disclose further correlation tables for tariff measures on items such as semiconductors and pharmaceuticals that the US administration will announce in the future.
A Korea Customs Service official stated, "Apart from disclosing the Korea-US HS code correlation table, we will continue to provide tangible support to exporters to the US by establishing the 'US Customs Classification Consultation Center' and operating a fast-track system for prior classification reviews."
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