The Product
- Each kit is one stoneware ceramic incense burner packed for retail sale with 10 scented incense cones.
- Three shapes: a black witch's cauldron, a purple half moon with 7 cut-out stars, and a white skull.
- The cones are made of coco shell powder, guar gum, laham bark and fragrance, each about 1.18 inches high.
- Each burner weighs about 2.2 to 4.2 ounces and each cone about 0.3 ounces. The kits are sold during the Halloween season.
CBP's Ruling
| Item | HTS code | CBP's description of the line |
|---|---|---|
| Witch Cauldron, Mystical Moon and Spooky Skull incense burner kits, Style #9136032 | HTS 6912.00.5000 | Ceramic tableware, kitchenware, other household articles and toilet articles, other than of porcelain or china: Tableware and kitchenware: Other: Other: Other: Other |
| Witch Cauldron and Spooky Skull kits, Style #9136032 (reported with the line above) | HTS 9817.95.05 | articles classifiable in subheadings 6912.00.…the foregoing meeting the descriptions set forth below: utilitarian articles in the form of a three-dimensional representation of a symbol or motif clearly associated with a specific holiday in the United States |
Explanation
Each kit is packed for retail sale, so CBP classified it as a set under General Rule of Interpretation 3(b), by the component that gives it its essential character. The stoneware burner accounts for the vast majority of the bulk, weight and value, so the set is classified as the burner: heading 6912, ceramic tableware, kitchenware and other household articles not of porcelain or china, on the line for other tableware and kitchenware.
CBP then found that the witch's cauldron and the skull carry a Halloween motif, a recognized holiday, so those two kits also meet subheading 9817.95.05 for utilitarian articles shaped as a holiday symbol. U.S. Note 1 to Chapter 98 places them there, and both codes are reported under Statistical Note 1(a) of Chapter 98 Subchapter XVII.
What would change the answer
- The letter distinguishes ruling N333898, where the tabletop decoration depicted a full moon together with a silhouette of a witch riding a broomstick; a moon by itself is not a recognized festive motif.
Headings CBP ruled out
- subheading 9817.95.05, holiday-symbol articles, for the Mystical Moon kit: CBP found that a generic half moon with stars is not a recognized festive motif or symbol associated with Halloween or any holiday, so the Mystical Moon kit does not qualify.
Does this apply to your product?
It likely does if you can answer yes to each of these:
- Is it a stoneware ceramic incense burner sold together with incense cones?
- Does the ceramic burner make up most of the set's bulk, weight and value?
- Is the burner shaped as a Halloween symbol like a cauldron or skull (also 9817.95.05), or not (6912.00.5000 only)?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6912.00.5000 | ✓ Still in the schedule | Heading 6912 | Today's duty from China |
Checked against today's tariff schedule. The duty calculator opens with the code and country filled in.
Related rulings
The other rulings listed on heading 6912 cover ceramic tableware: handled cups and stoneware cups (N324393, N326579, N327015), a platter (N329918), ceramic tableware (N325260, N349927), cookie cutters (N334016) and a ginger jar (N334230). N349927 also cites 9817.95.05.
- N329918January 6, 2023Ceramic platter from China6912.00.4500
- N325260April 11, 2022Ceramic tableware from China6912.00.4810
- N349927June 12, 2025Ceramic tableware articles from China6912.00.4810, 9817.95.05
- N324393February 23, 2022Handled ceramic cups from China6912.00.4500
- N326579June 10, 2022Ceramic stoneware cup from China6912.00.4500
- N327015July 15, 2022Ceramic stoneware cup from China6912.00.4500
- N334016July 18, 2023Ceramic cookie cutters from China6912.00.4810
- N334230August 22, 2023Ceramic ginger jar from China6912.00.4890
Borderless, a licensed U.S. customs brokerage, summarized CBP ruling N341526 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