HS Code for Bamboo Furniture: Classification Guide for Importers

A container holding bamboo dining chairs and a bamboo shelving unit is not one product for customs, even when one supplier packs both together. The chairs are seats, the shelving unit is other furniture, and the Harmonized System puts those ideas in different headings. This guide works through that fork: seats against other furniture, bamboo against rattan and cane, and the national extensions after the shared six digits. For the general meaning of an HS code, read the HS code hub; for the step-by-step method, read how to classify your product.

Quick answer: indicative HS heading (with verify note)

Indicative only — verify before filing. Every heading here is indicative. Confirm the full national code in the destination tariff for your exact piece, entry date and origin before you declare it.

Ask first whether the piece is a seat. If it is, start in heading 9401; if it is not, start in heading 9403. Only then ask whether the material is bamboo, rattan or another cane-like material.

How HS codes are structured (2-4-6 digits)

The Harmonized System is a multipurpose international nomenclature developed by the World Customs Organization (WCO), comprising more than 5,000 commodity groups, each identified by a six-digit code, and used by more than 200 countries and economies as a basis for their customs tariffs.² The European Commission describes the same hierarchy: chapters at two digits, headings at four and subheadings at six, supported by general rules and explanatory notes.³ The current version is HS 2022.³

Read a bamboo code from left to right. 94 is the chapter, covering furniture, bedding, cushions, luminaires, illuminated signs and prefabricated buildings.¹ 9401 or 9403 is the heading: 9401 is seats, other than those of heading 9402, and parts thereof; 9403 is other furniture and parts thereof.¹ 9401.52 or 9403.82 is the six-digit subheading, the shared level. The UK lists bamboo seats as 9401 5200 00,⁴ and bamboo other furniture as 9403 8200, split nationally into handmade and other.⁵ National digits follow: eight digits in the EU Combined Nomenclature,³ and ten digits in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Factors that decide the code for bamboo furniture

Seat or not: the decisive fork. A bamboo chair, stool or bench is tested as a seat first, even when sold with a matching table. A bamboo table, shelf unit or wardrobe is tested as other furniture. List each piece separately with its own code.

Bamboo, rattan or cane: three different lines. In the US schedule, bamboo seats sit at 9401.52.00, rattan seats at 9401.53.00 and other cane or osier seats at 9401.59.00.¹ Other furniture follows the same split: 9403.82.00 for bamboo, 9403.83.00 for rattan and 9403.89 for other materials.¹ Get the material from the supplier specification, not a photograph: the three can look alike and sit on different lines.

Floor placement, with two exceptions. Chapter 94 note 2 provides that articles, other than parts, in headings 9401 to 9403 are classified there only if designed for placing on the floor or ground, except cupboards, bookcases, other shelved furniture including wall-fixed single shelves, and unit furniture, plus seats and beds, which stay in those headings even if hung, wall-fixed or stacked.¹ A wall-fixed bamboo shelf unit therefore stays in heading 9403. A small bamboo wall ornament that is none of those things needs a different test.

Mixed materials: essential character decides. A bamboo seat with metal legs or a bamboo top on a wooden frame must be tested by what gives the piece its essential character. The General Rules provide that mixtures and composite goods that cannot be classified by the most specific description are classified as if they consisted of the material or component that gives them their essential character.⁴ Record that reasoning: a broker will ask for it.

Flat-pack pieces: the complete article test. The General Rules provide that a reference to an article includes the article presented unassembled, provided it has the essential character of the complete article.⁴ A flat-pack bamboo shelving unit with all parts, fixings and instructions is normally tested as the finished unit, not as boards. Loose boards with no fixings or plan are a different question.

Parts, cushions and bedding: keep them apart. Parts have their own lines inside headings 9401 and 9403, with bamboo detail below six digits.¹ Chapter 94 note 3 adds that goods described in heading 9404, presented separately, are not classified in headings 9401, 9402 or 9403 as parts.¹ A loose cushion, mattress or pouffe is therefore tested under heading 9404, covering mattress supports and bedding fitted with springs or stuffed or internally fitted with material.¹ Invoice them on their own lines.

What Chapter 94 does not cover. Chapter 94 note 1 excludes, among other things, furniture for refrigerating or freezing equipment, lamps and light sources of Chapter 85, dentists' chairs with dental appliances, toy furniture of heading 9503, billiard and games furniture of heading 9504, and conjuring or decoration furniture of heading 9505.¹ Heading 9402, covering medical, surgical, dental or veterinary furniture and barbers' chairs with rotating, reclining and elevating movements, sits outside the ordinary seat heading.¹ Test a specialised function before the material.

National codes: US HTS, EU CN/TARIC, UK commodity code

United States: HTS, ten digits at full national level. Start from 9401.52.00 for a bamboo seat and 9403.82.00 for other bamboo furniture in the 2026 Revision 18 schedule,¹ then read the statistical suffixes for your piece type, for example the separate suffixes under 9403.82.00 for cribs, toddler beds, play yards, other household pieces and other pieces.¹ Do not stop at six digits.

European Union: CN at eight digits, TARIC for measures. The Combined Nomenclature uses eight-digit codes, comprising the HS codes with further EU subdivisions.³ TARIC adds the measures for imports and exports. The Northern Ireland Online Tariff, sharing the EU-derived structure, lists commodity code 9401520000 for seats of bamboo.⁶ Read the confirmed CN and TARIC lines for your member state, entry date and origin.

United Kingdom: commodity code, ten digits. The UK Trade Tariff lists bamboo seats at 9401 5200 00,⁴ and bamboo other furniture at 9403 8200, split into 9403 8200 10 for handmade pieces and 9403 8200 90 for other pieces.⁵ That handmade split is UK national detail: it does not exist at six digits, and it must not be carried into a US or EU declaration. Take the full ten-digit code from the UK Trade Tariff for your piece and entry date.

How to confirm the code officially

1. Write a precise description: seat or non-seat, material, dimensions, floor-standing or wall-fixed design, secondary materials and their role, and whether the piece is complete, flat-pack or a part.

2. Start from the destination tariff — USITC HTS, TARIC or UK Trade Tariff — and read the heading, subheading and chapter notes, not just the number.

3. Check published rulings for similar pieces. For the United States, the USITC advises traders to use the Customs Rulings Online Search Service (CROSS), because the correct classification of many items can be found there.⁷

4. For a borderline piece, apply for a binding decision before you ship. In the EU, a Binding Tariff Information application needs a separate application for each type of product and a detailed description.⁸ In the United Kingdom, a legally binding decision is generally valid for 3 years, through an Advance Tariff Ruling.⁹ In the United States, if the merchandise is not described in any ruling on CROSS, you may request a binding ruling from US Customs and Border Protection.⁷

5. Give your broker the description and confirmed code per piece, and use the same codes on the entry, invoice and packing list. Re-check if the specification changes.

Common classification mistakes

Filing every bamboo piece under 9403.82. Chairs, stools and benches are seats, at 9401.52 for bamboo.¹

Filing rattan or cane as bamboo. Rattan sits at 9401.53 and 9403.83, other cane or osier at 9401.59 and 9403.89.¹ A sales name does not move a rattan chair to the bamboo line.

Copying a code from an old invoice. The current version is HS 2022, although some countries stay with a previous version for a time.³ An older HS 2012 listing combined bamboo or rattan furniture at 9403.81,¹⁰ while current US and UK schedules split them.^{1 5}

Filing a wall-fixed shelf as if it were not furniture. Chapter 94 note 2 keeps shelved furniture, including wall-fixed single shelves, in headings 9401 to 9403.¹

Filing loose cushions or mattresses as furniture parts. Goods in heading 9404, presented separately, are not parts under headings 9401 to 9403.¹

Filing parts as complete furniture, or furniture as parts. A seat frame without its seat, or a table leg alone, is a part, at 9401.99 or 9403.99.¹ A complete flat-pack unit is tested as that piece.⁴

Copying a full code from another country. The EU extends six digits to eight,³ and the US and UK use ten-digit codes with their own splits, such as the UK handmade split.⁵

Related duties and documents

This guide states no duty rates: the code decides which duty line customs applies, and a rate on a seat line does not carry to an other-furniture, rattan or parts line. Read the rate beside your confirmed code for your origin and entry date, and check what proof of origin a preference claim requires. A binding decision helps you calculate the duties and restrictions in advance.⁹

Keep the shipment file together: the piece-by-piece specification, material statement, confirmed codes with tariff edition and entry date, any binding decision, origin evidence, and an invoice listing seats, other furniture, parts, cushions and mattresses on separate lines. Photographs do not replace the specification: bamboo, rattan and cane cannot always be told apart from a picture.

FAQs

What is the HS code for bamboo furniture?

There is no single six-digit code for bamboo furniture. A bamboo seat is tested against 9401.52, and other bamboo furniture against 9403.82.¹ Both are indicative: confirm the full national code per piece.

Is the HS code the same in every country?

Only the first six digits are shared worldwide. Beyond them, the EU uses eight digits,³ and the US and UK use ten digits, including the UK handmade split.⁵

How do I confirm the correct code?

Describe each piece precisely, read the heading text and chapter notes, and check rulings such as CROSS for the US.⁷ For a borderline piece, seek a binding decision before shipping: Binding Tariff Information in the EU,⁸ an Advance Tariff Ruling in the UK,⁹ or a CBP binding ruling.⁷

What happens if I use the wrong code?

Duty, licensing and quota treatment follow the code on the declaration, so a wrong code brings the wrong treatment. A binding decision in advance helps you calculate the duties and restrictions that will apply.⁹ Tell your broker promptly if a filed code looks wrong.

Next steps on Exportain

Browse Bangladeshi suppliers on Exportain, asking each supplier for a written specification stating seat or non-seat, material and construction per item. Read the HS code hub and how to classify your product before sending a specification to your broker. Exportain does not clear customs, so keep your broker and any binding decision at the centre of the entry.