HS Code for Sandals and Slippers: Classification Guide for Importers

A sandal or slipper has no single code that can be copied from a supplier catalogue onto every entry. The starting point is usually headings 6402 or 6404, but the heading depends on the upper material and the subheading on construction.

Verify note: before using any code here on a real shipment, confirm the subheading and full national code in the destination tariff with a customs broker or the entry customs authority. A code that fits one style does not automatically fit the next.

Quick answer: indicative HS heading (with verify note)

The indicative headings are 6402 and 6404, with 6403 and 6405 as neighbours. The heading follows the upper material: rubber or plastics uppers point to 6402, leather uppers to 6403, textile uppers to 6404, and footwear fitting none of those headings to 6405.^{1 2 3} A rubber flip-flop, a leather strap sandal, a textile mule and a felt slipper therefore start in different headings.

Inside the heading, construction splits sandals from slippers. United Kingdom guidance defines sandals as footwear where the front part of the upper, the vamp, consists of straps or of material with one or more pieces cut out.² Slippers and other indoor footwear form a separate group, including mules, ballet slippers, ballroom dancing shoes and other indoor footwear.² For a sandal, ask first what its vamp is made of; for a slipper, what its sole is made of and whether it is durable enough to count as an outer sole.

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

The system narrows in three pairs: the first two digits are the chapter, the next two complete the heading, and the final two complete the subheading, the level shared internationally. Chapter 64 covers footwear and parts. Heading 6402 has 640220 for straps or thongs assembled to the sole by plugs, 640291 for other footwear covering the ankle, and 640299 for other footwear not covering the ankle.³ Heading 6404 has 640411 for sports footwear and tennis, basketball, gym and training shoes and the like, 640419 for other footwear with rubber or plastics soles and textile uppers, and 640420 for footwear with leather or composition leather soles and textile uppers.⁴ Heading 6405 has 640510, 640520 and 640590 for leather, textile and other uppers.⁵

Only the first six digits are shared internationally. Beyond them, each country adds its own digits: the United States uses a 10-digit import number, the European Union an 8-digit Combined Nomenclature code extended in TARIC, and the United Kingdom a 10-digit commodity code. Never copy trailing digits from one destination to another.

Factors that decide the code for sandals and slippers

Start with the upper: the material with the greatest external surface area, ignoring accessories and reinforcements such as ankle patches, edging, ornamentation, buckles, tabs and eyelet stays.¹ Mixed uppers are common, so ask the supplier, in writing, which material covers the greatest external surface area. Lining is not upper material.

Next, check the outer sole, judged by the material with the greatest surface area in contact with the ground, ignoring spikes, bars, nails, protectors and similar attachments.¹ For a sandal, sole material splits the heading: textile-upper sandals sit under 64041990 with rubber or plastics soles and 64042090 with leather soles.² For a slipper, the test is stricter: does the material count as an outer sole at all?

Then apply the vamp test: a shoe is a sandal where the vamp consists of straps or of material with one or more pieces cut out.² It also decides the national line: 64029910 where uppers are rubber, and 64029931 or 64029939 where uppers are plastics and the vamp is straps or cut-out material, split by whether sole and heel combined exceed 3 cm.²

Then apply the plug test to thong sandals. At six digits, footwear with outer soles and uppers of rubber or plastics, with upper straps or thongs assembled to the sole by plugs, sits under 640220.³ The United States schedule gives the same line as 6402.20.00, with zoris named in it.¹ A plugged flip-flop therefore differs from a stitched or cemented rubber sandal, considered under 640299. The fixing method decides.

Then apply the strap test to leather sandals. The United States schedule lists 6403.20.00 for footwear with outer soles of leather and uppers consisting of leather straps across the instep and around the big toe.¹ Both straps must be present; an instep strap alone, or a rubber sole, does not meet it. The United Kingdom guide lists leather-sandal lines by sole material and size: 64035911, 64035931, 64035935 and 64035939 where sole and upper are leather, and 64039911, 64039931, 64039933, 64039936 and 64039938 where the sole is rubber or plastics.²

Finally, apply the sole-durability test to slippers. United Kingdom guidance states that a slipper sole is the material that is both durable and has the most contact with the ground; a thin textile layer covering a plastics or rubber sole, if not durable, is ignored.² A slipper with a plastics or rubber sole and a textile covering falls under heading 6405 only if the textile proves durable.² One proof is a Martindale abrasion test: the textile counts as durable if it shows no worse than moderate wear after 51,000 revolutions.² The United States schedule applies the same idea: non-durable textile is ignored when deciding the outer-sole material.¹

Two checks close the list. A shoe without a quarter or counter, with a one-piece or non-stitched upper attached to the sole by stitching, and a one-piece non-waterproof shoe such as a bathing slipper, are both named under heading 6402.²

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

In the United States, the key sandal lines are 6402.20.00 for straps or thongs assembled to the sole by plugs, and 6403.20.00 for leather soles with instep and big-toe straps.¹ For slippers, the United States gives indoor footwear no six-digit subheading of its own; house slippers appear as statistical breakouts, defined by thin-sole tests, including soles not over 3.5 mm thick of cellular rubber, non-grain leather or textile material, and not over 2 mm thick of poly(vinyl chloride).¹

In the European Union, the Combined Nomenclature adds two digits to make an eight-digit code, extended further in TARIC. For textile uppers, the CN lines include 64041910 for indoor footwear with rubber or plastics soles and 64042010 with leather soles, with 64041990 and 64042090 for other such footwear.⁶ The CN also carries slipper lines in the other headings: 64029950 under 6402, 64039950 under 6403, and 64052091 for textile uppers under 6405.⁶ Confirm each line in TARIC for the entry date.

In the United Kingdom, the guide maps sandals as follows: rubber uppers under 64029910, plastics uppers with a strap or cut-out vamp under 64029931 or 64029939, leather sandals under the 640359 and 640399 lines above, textile uppers under 64041990 with rubber or plastics soles and 64042090 with leather soles.² For slippers, the United Kingdom tariff lists 6402995000 for slippers and other indoor footwear under heading 6402.⁷ Read the full 10-digit line in the tariff for the entry date, not the eight-digit form from a guide.

Heading boundaries decide the heading before any national line is read. Waterproof footwear with rubber or plastics soles and uppers, where the uppers are neither fixed to the sole nor assembled by stitching, riveting, nailing, screwing, plugging or similar processes, belongs under heading 6401.² Other footwear with rubber or plastics uppers belongs under 6402, leather uppers under 6403, textile uppers under 6404, footwear fitting none of 6401 to 6404 under 6405, and separate parts under heading 6406.²

How to confirm the code officially

Start with the destination tariff, not a search result or supplier invoice. Open the current Chapter 64 section, read the heading text and chapter notes, then work down to the description matching your shoe. Classification follows the heading terms and chapter notes, applied at subheading level by comparing only subheadings at the same level. Test the shoe against the surface-area rules, the vamp test and the sole-durability test.

Where doubt remains, ask a customs broker to confirm it in writing, or seek a formal ruling before shipping: an advance ruling in the United Kingdom, binding tariff information in the European Union, or a binding ruling in the United States. A ruling on a similar shoe is background only: check its materials, vamp and sole durability match your shoe first.

Common classification mistakes

Stopping at the heading is the most common mistake: writing 6402 or 6404 on an entry leaves the subheading and national extension undecided.

Judging by trade name is the second mistake: a closed-vamp slider is not a strap-vamp sandal, a mule is a shape rather than a code, and a plugged thong sandal differs from a stitched one.

Judging the slipper by its upper is the third mistake: a textile-upper slipper with a thin textile-covered rubber sole is not a 6405 shoe unless the textile sole proves durable.

Copying a full national code from another destination is the fourth mistake: lines can share six digits and still differ after them, and the United States treats house slippers as a statistical breakout while the EU and UK give indoor footwear its own lines. Treating one code as covering a whole order is the fifth: one order can hold a plugged thong sandal, a leather strap sandal, a textile mule and a bathing slipper, each needing a different code.

Related duties and documents

The HS code does not by itself state what an importer will pay: treatment in the destination tariff depends on the full national code, origin, any preference or trade measure on the entry date, and customs value. This guide states no duty rates, because rates are national, change over time, and depend on origin.

Documents that normally travel with a shipment are the commercial invoice, the packing list, the bill of lading or airwaybill, and the certificate of origin where a preference or buyer requirement calls for one. The invoice description should match the classification: shoe type, upper and sole materials, sole durability, vamp construction and fixing method, indoor or outdoor use, and quantity.

FAQs

What is the HS code for sandals and slippers?

There is no one code for all sandals and slippers. Indicatively, rubber or plastics uppers point to 6402, leather uppers to 6403, textile uppers to 6404, and other footwear to 6405.^{1 2} A plugged thong sandal sits under 640220, a leather instep-and-big-toe strap sandal under 640320, and indoor slippers under national lines such as 64041910 and 64042010 in the EU Combined Nomenclature.^{1 6} Confirm the subheading and full national code before shipping.

Is the HS code the same in every country?

The first six digits should be the same internationally for the same product, because they come from the shared Harmonized System. The full code is not the same everywhere: countries add their own digits after the first six, and the US, EU and UK handle indoor footwear differently, as shown above.

How do I confirm the correct code?

Read the heading text and chapter notes in the destination tariff, apply the surface-area tests, run the vamp test for a sandal and the sole-durability test for a slipper, and work down to the national line. Where doubt remains, ask a broker to confirm it in writing or seek a formal ruling before shipping.

What happens if I use the wrong code?

Customs can reclassify the goods, reassess duty and taxes due, delay clearance, and impose penalties under national law. A wrong code can also mean a missed licence or control. Tell your broker promptly if you find an error.

Next steps on Exportain

For the system behind this guide, read the Exportain HS hub at https://exportain.com/blog/hs-code-harmonized-system, and for the step-by-step method, read https://exportain.com/blog/hs-codes-how-to-classify-your-product. When you are ready to source, browse suppliers at https://exportain.com/suppliers and Post a free RFQ on Exportain, giving the supplier your upper and sole materials, vamp construction and fixing method, and size run.