9903.94.61 Explained: South Korea Autos 232 Combined 15% Rate

Key Points

• HTS 9903.94.61 imposes a combined 15 percent Section 232 deal rate on passenger vehicles and light trucks of South Korean origin, effective 2025-11-01 with no announced end date.
• The 15 percent is a combined, inclusive rate, not an addition on top of the normal Column 1 (MFN) duty; the effective Section 232 increment equals 15 percent minus the applicable Column 1 rate.
• Seventeen HTS subheadings under headings 8703 and 8704 are in force under this code as of the facts date of October 7, 2026.
• The legal authority is Federal Register document FR 2025-21940, note 33(s), with a system migration timestamp of 2026-07-24 18:00.
• On a customs entry, 9903.94.61 appears as a Chapter 99 overlay line alongside the underlying Chapter 87 classification line, not as a replacement for it.

On this page

1. What 9903.94.61 is and who must care
2. Legal authority and program background
3. Covered products and HTS subheadings in force
4. How the combined 15% rate works: stacking explained
5. How 9903.94.61 appears on a customs entry
6. What importers should do
7. Key references

HTS 9903.94.61 is the Chapter 99 tariff code that applies a combined 15 percent Section 232 deal rate to passenger vehicles and light trucks originating in South Korea (KR), effective November 1, 2025. Any importer, broker, or trade attorney filing entries for Korean-origin vehicles classified under the affected Chapter 87 subheadings on or after that date must include this code on every entry summary. The links in this article go to the primary documents: the Federal Register notices, the White House proclamations, and the official tariff schedule pages themselves. Read the source.

What 9903.94.61 is and who must care

9903.94.61 is a Chapter 99 special-program overlay code created under the Section 232 Autos program. It captures South Korean passenger vehicles and light trucks that qualify for a bilateral deal rate under note 33(s) of the HTSUS. If you import vehicles or light trucks from South Korea that fall under one of the 17 active Chapter 87 subheadings listed below, this code is mandatory on your entry.

Importers who miss the Chapter 99 line, or who apply the wrong Chapter 99 code, face post-entry correction obligations. Because the rate is a combined rate, applying it incorrectly as additive on top of Column 1 duty will produce an overpayment. Confirm your classification on the official tariff schedule at hts.usitc.gov.

Legal authority and program background

The Section 232 Autos program imposes duties on passenger vehicles and parts on national-security grounds. For South Korea, the bilateral deal rate is codified in HTSUS note 33(s), established by Federal Register document FR 2025-21940. The HTS migration reflecting this code took effect at 2026-07-24 18:00.

South Korea is among a set of deal countries, including the EU, UK, and Japan, that negotiated country-specific combined rates under the Section 232 Autos framework. Each deal country has its own Chapter 99 code. For comparison, the EU autos deal rate uses 9903.94.51, and EU auto parts use 9903.94.53. Confirm the exact authority text in the current HTSUS or with a licensed customs broker.

Covered products and HTS subheadings in force

As of October 7, 2026, 17 subheadings are active under 9903.94.61, all applying to goods of South Korean origin (KR) from 2025-11-01 onward with no announced end date. One additional rule covering heading 8703 broadly ran only through 2025-11-01 and is no longer in force.

Passenger vehicles (heading 8703)

• 8703.22.01 (gasoline, cylinder capacity over 1,000 cc up to 1,500 cc)
• 8703.23.01 (gasoline, cylinder capacity over 1,500 cc up to 3,000 cc)
• 8703.24.01 (gasoline, cylinder capacity over 3,000 cc)
• 8703.31.01 (diesel, cylinder capacity not over 1,500 cc)
• 8703.32.01 (diesel, cylinder capacity over 1,500 cc up to 2,500 cc)
• 8703.33.01 (diesel, cylinder capacity over 2,500 cc)
• 8703.40.00 (other, including hybrids with spark-ignition engines)
• 8703.50.00 (other, including hybrids with compression-ignition engines)
• 8703.60.00 (other plug-in hybrid, spark-ignition)
• 8703.70.00 (other plug-in hybrid, compression-ignition)
• 8703.80.00 (electric vehicles, other than plug-in hybrids)
• 8703.90.01 (other)

Light trucks (heading 8704)

• 8704.21 (diesel, gross vehicle weight not over 5 tonnes)
• 8704.31 (gasoline, gross vehicle weight not over 5 tonnes)
• 8704.41 (electric, gross vehicle weight not over 5 tonnes)
• 8704.51 (other, gross vehicle weight not over 5 tonnes)
• 8704.60 (other)

Verify exact subheading descriptions against the live schedule at hts.usitc.gov, as product descriptions above are illustrative of the numeric subheadings drawn from the facts block.

How the combined 15% rate works: stacking explained

This is the point most likely to cause entry errors. The 15 percent under 9903.94.61 is a combined, inclusive rate, not an additional layer on top of the Column 1 MFN rate.

The structure works as follows:

• The deal rate replaces the separate Section 232 component for qualifying Korean-origin vehicles.
• The effective Section 232 increment is 15 percent minus the applicable Column 1 rate. For example, if a subheading carries a 2.5 percent Column 1 rate, the Section 232 increment is 12.5 percent, bringing the total to 15 percent.
• You do not add 15 percent on top of Column 1. The total duty paid equals 15 percent, period, for goods within scope.

This is different from non-deal-country Section 232 treatment, where the Section 232 rate may stack additively on top of existing duties. For South Korea under note 33(s), the combined structure caps total liability at 15 percent for the vehicle itself. Check whether any separate Section 301 or other Chapter 99 codes apply to your specific goods, and confirm stacking interactions with a broker or the current HTSUS notes.

For a related discussion of how entry dates affect which duty rate applies, see Why Does the Entry Date Change the Duty on a U.S. Import?

How 9903.94.61 appears on a customs entry

Chapter 99 codes are overlays. On CBP Form 7501 (the entry summary), you will carry two classification lines for each affected vehicle line:

1. The underlying Chapter 87 subheading (for example 8703.23.01) with its normal Column 1 rate.
2. 9903.94.61 as a second line, reflecting the combined 15 percent deal rate.

CBP systems compute the combined rate; the Chapter 99 line does not independently collect duty on top of the Chapter 87 line. If you are uncertain how your entry-filing software handles this, test against a sample entry and confirm with CBP at cbp.gov or through a CSMS message search. Misfiling the Chapter 99 code, or omitting it, can trigger a CF-28 request for information or a post-entry amendment obligation.

Because origin determines which Chapter 99 code applies, ensure your certificates of origin and supplier declarations clearly establish South Korean origin before entry. Goods with mixed or uncertain origin should be reviewed carefully before using this code.

For an overview of tariff codes relevant to the current filing year, see the 2026 tariff code overview.

What importers should do

• Audit open and pending entries for Korean-origin passenger vehicles and light trucks filed on or after 2025-11-01, and confirm 9903.94.61 appears on every applicable entry summary line.
• Verify the combined-rate math: your total duty should equal 15 percent of the customs value, not Column 1 plus 15 percent; correct any overpayments through a post-entry amendment or protest as appropriate.
• Check origin documentation for every shipment, since the combined deal rate under note 33(s) applies only to South Korean-origin goods; goods of other origin use different Chapter 99 codes.
• Monitor the Federal Register and HTSUS for any announced end date or modification to note 33(s), as none exists as of October 7, 2026, but deal-country arrangements can change.

Key references

• Federal Register FR 2025-21940: the notice establishing HTSUS note 33(s) and the Section 232 deal rates for South Korea and other deal countries.
• HTSUS Online (hts.usitc.gov): the authoritative harmonized tariff schedule, including Chapter 99 notes and current subheading descriptions.
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (cbp.gov): CBP guidance, CSMS messages, and entry-filing instructions.
• 9903.94.51 Explained: EU Autos 232 Combined 15% Rate: companion article on the EU deal-country combined rate for passenger vehicles.
• 9903.94.53 Explained: EU Auto Parts Section 232 Combined 15% Rate: companion article on the EU deal-country combined rate for auto parts.
• Why Does the Entry Date Change the Duty on a U.S. Import?: practical guide to how entry date determines which rate applies.