The Product
- Wall-mounted cabinets made of 18-gauge powder-coated sheet metal.
- Used to house and protect electrical and electronic equipment; made for security integrators and low-voltage alarm installers.
- Imported empty, with no internal or external fittings or connectors.
- Six sizes, from 8.4 by 7.66 by 3.8 inches to 18.2 by 15.28 by 4.3 inches, otherwise identical.
CBP's Ruling
| Item | HTS code | CBP's description of the line |
|---|---|---|
| Metal protective cabinets, six item numbers | HTS 9403.20.0090 | Other furniture and parts thereof: Other metal furniture: Other: Other |
Explanation
CBP classified the cabinets under General Rule of Interpretation 1, which classifies goods by the words of the headings and notes. The letter cites the Explanatory Notes to Chapter 94. Those notes describe furniture as movable articles constructed for placing on the floor or ground and used mainly for a practical purpose to equip homes, offices, laboratories, hospitals and similar places. The letter adds that the notes treat articles as movable furniture even when they are designed for bolting to the floor. CBP found the metal protective cabinets fall within that meaning of furniture.
Heading 9403 covers other furniture and parts, and CBP placed the cabinets on the line for other metal furniture; the cabinets are made of powder-coated sheet metal.
Does this apply to your product?
It likely does if you can answer yes to each of these:
- Is it a cabinet made of sheet metal?
- Is it made to house and protect electrical or electronic equipment?
- Is it imported empty, without internal or external fittings or connectors?
A no to any of them can mean a different code. A licensed broker can classify your product.
The code today
| HTS code | In today's schedule | Where it sits | Today's duty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9403.20.0090 | ✓ Still in the schedule | Heading 9403 › Other metal furniture | Today's duty from China |
Checked against today's tariff schedule. The duty calculator opens with the code and country filled in.
Related rulings
N357456, N359784, N360612, N360809, N351426, N354111, N361405 and N361764 also classify metal furniture under heading 9403, on lines other than this one.
- N357456January 29, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0086
- N359784March 18, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0086
- N360612April 14, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0050
- N360809May 1, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0050
- N351426August 1, 2025Metal furniture from China9403.20.0086
- N354111October 20, 2025Metal furniture from China9403.20.0086
- N361405May 13, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0050
- N361764June 1, 2026Metal furniture from China9403.20.0050
Borderless, a licensed U.S. customs brokerage, summarized CBP ruling N335281 in plain English and checked its codes against the letter and today's tariff schedule. A ruling applies only to goods that match its facts; our terms explain the rest. Terms