GTM Product Classification Overview

Some products (such as munitions and computer hardware for example) exported from the United States require an export license from either the U.S. Department of Commerce or another U.S. agency like the State Department. Before you can determine whether your product requires an export license, you must first investigate if your product has an Export Control Classification Number (ECCN).

In addition, before you can export or import a product, you must first identify your product’s proper Schedule B (for exports) or Harmonized Schedule (HS) (for imports) number. This number must appear on both export and import documentation that accompanies a shipment.

The World Trade Organization has classified all commodities with a number. This number is called a Harmonized Schedule code and ranges from six to 12 digits, depending on the country. However, the first six digits of this number are uniform throughout most of the world.

GTM offers several tools to handle the tasks associated with product classification, including:

• organization of data by type, category, code, hierarchy, and group
• creation of templates to simplify the task of applying multiple classifications to trade items
• translation of codes from one type to another