HTS Chapter 90: Optical, photographic, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus
HTS Chapter 90 covers Optical, photographic, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus. Browse 28 published headings, then narrow to the active product line that matches the goods.
2026 HTS Rev 19 Synced Rules verified Operational
Written to help non-specialists understand this page. Rates, dates, and legal facts come from the official records above and on the linked source.
HTSUS Chapter 90 generally covers precision optical, photographic, measuring, surveying, navigational, medical, scientific, and related instruments and apparatus. The representative headings listed include optical elements and fiber products, eyewear, binoculars, cameras, microscopes, lasers, and surveying or navigation equipment. Classification can depend on the product’s design, function, components, and whether it is a complete article, a part, or an accessory.
The HTS is organized from broad to specific: chapter, heading, subheading, and the complete 10-digit HTSUS code. Start with the heading that best describes the article, then read the subheadings and legal notes in sequence, applying the heading text, section and chapter notes, and the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). Do not assume that an optical or electronic product belongs in Chapter 90; exclusions and more specific provisions elsewhere in the HTSUS may control. The final classification and any applicable trade measures should be verified against current official HTSUS information or with a qualified customs broker.
What to check
- Identify the product’s principal function, physical construction, and intended use; compare these facts with the heading and subheading descriptions rather than relying only on marketing names.
- Check whether the item is a complete instrument, a dedicated part or accessory, an unmounted optical element, or a mounted element used with a particular instrument.
- Review Chapter 90 notes and relevant notes in other chapters for exclusions, especially where the product may instead be classified as electrical equipment, a general part, medical equipment, or another specifically described article.
- Confirm the material and degree of optical working for lenses, prisms, mirrors, fiber products, and similar goods; these details can change the classification.
- After selecting the 10-digit code, check current official HTSUS entries for Chapter 99 provisions, additional duties, exclusions, and other trade measures that may apply based on origin, product facts, or the import program.
How to use this chapter
A chapter is the first classification level, not a duty rate. Choose the heading that describes the product, narrow by material, construction, use, or other legal distinctions, and verify the final line against the official HTS notes.
Heading list
| HTS code | Description | Linked 8-digit entries |
|---|---|---|
| 9001 | Optical fibers and optical fiber bundles; optical fiber cables other than those of heading 8544; sheets and plates of polarizing material; lenses (including contact lenses), prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, unmounted, other than such elements of glass not optically worked: | 1 |
| 9002 | Lenses, prisms, mirrors and other optical elements, of any material, mounted, being parts of or fittings for instruments or apparatus, other than such elements of glass not optically worked; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9003 | Frames and mountings for spectacles, goggles or the like, and parts thereof: | 0 |
| 9004 | Spectacles, goggles and the like, corrective, protective or other: | 1 |
| 9005 | Binoculars, monoculars, other optical telescopes, and mountings therefor; other astronomical instruments and mountings therefor, but not including instruments for radio-astronomy; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9006 | Photographic (other than cinematographic) cameras; photographic flashlight apparatus and flashbulbs other than discharge lamps of heading 8539; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9007 | Cinematographic cameras and projectors, whether or not incorporating sound recording or reproducing apparatus; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9008 | Image projectors, other than cinematographic; photographic (other than cinematographic) enlargers and reducers; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9010 | Apparatus and equipment for photographic (including cinematographic) laboratories, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter; negatoscopes; projection screens; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9011 | Compound optical microscopes, including those for photomicrography, cinemicrography or microprojection; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9012 | Microscopes other than optical microscopes; diffraction apparatus; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9013 | Lasers, other than laser diodes; other optical appliances and instruments, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter: | 0 |
| 9014 | Direction finding compasses; other navigational instruments and appliances; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9015 | Surveying (including photogrammetrical surveying), hydrographic, oceanographic, hydrological, meteorological or geophysical instruments and appliances, excluding compasses; rangefinders; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9017 | Drawing, marking-out or mathematical calculating instruments (for example, drafting machines, pantographs, protractors, drawing sets, slide rules, disc calculators); instruments for measuring length, for use in the hand (for example, measuring rods and tapes, micrometers, calipers), not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9018 | Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro-medical apparatus and sight-testing instruments; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9019 | Mechano-therapy appliances; massage apparatus; psychological aptitude-testing apparatus; ozone therapy, oxygen therapy, aerosol therapy, artificial respiration or other therapeutic respiration apparatus; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9021 | Orthopedic appliances, including crutches, surgical belts and trusses; splints and other fracture appliances; artificial parts of the body; hearing aids and other appliances which are worn or carried, or implanted in the body, to compensate for a defect or disability; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9022 | Apparatus based on the use of X-rays or of alpha, beta, gamma or other ionizing radiations, whether or not for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary uses, including radiography or radiotherapy apparatus, X-ray tubes and other X-ray generators, high tension generators, control panels and desks, screens, examination or treatment tables, chairs and the like; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9024 | Machines and appliances for testing the hardness, strength, compressibility, elasticity or other mechanical properties of materials (for example, metals, wood, textiles, paper, plastics), and parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9025 | Hydrometers and similar floating instruments, thermometers, pyrometers, barometers, hygrometers and psychrometers, recording or not, and any combination of these instruments; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9026 | Instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking the flow, level, pressure or other variables of liquids or gases (for example, flow meters, level gauges, manometers, heat meters), excluding instruments and apparatus of heading 9014, 9015, 9028 or 9032; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9027 | Instruments and apparatus for physical or chemical analysis (for example, polarimeters, refractometers, spectrometers, gas or smoke analysis apparatus); instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking viscosity, porosity, expansion, surface tension or the like; instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking quantities of heat, sound or light (including exposure meters); microtomes; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9028 | Gas, liquid or electricity supply or production meters, including calibrating meters thereof; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
| 9029 | Revolution counters, production counters, taximeters, odometers, pedometers and the like; speedometers and tachometers, other than those of heading 9014 or 9015; stroboscopes; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9030 | Oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers and other instruments and apparatus for measuring or checking electrical quantities, excluding meters of heading 9028; instruments and apparatus for measuring or detecting alpha, beta, gamma, X-ray, cosmic or other ionizing radiations; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9031 | Measuring or checking instruments, appliances and machines, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter; profile projectors; parts and accessories thereof: | 0 |
| 9032 | Automatic regulating or controlling instruments and apparatus; parts and accessories thereof: | 1 |
Linked measures
0 linked measure entries in the current snapshot.
Questions about HTS Chapter 90
What does HTS Chapter 90 cover?
HTS Chapter 90 covers Optical, photographic, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus. This page groups the chapter’s 4-digit headings; a shipment still needs the most specific active 8- or 10-digit line supported by the product facts.
Is HTS Chapter 90 a final product classification?
No. A chapter is a broad 2-digit category. Narrow it to the applicable heading and the most specific active statistical line before estimating duty or filing an entry.