# Tariff Classification

> We determine the correct Mexican tariff code for your products: a written ruling with technical justification, duty rates, NOMs and applicable regulations.

Source: https://www.freightspot.com/en/solutions/additional-services/clasificacion-de-mercancias · Publisher: FreightSpot

The tariff code decides what you pay, which permits you need and which trade agreements you can claim. We determine it with technical rigor — and put the reasoning in writing.

## What we do

Tariff classification is the decision that conditions everything else in an import into Mexico: the import duty, the VAT, non-tariff regulations, applicable product standards (NOMs) and whether you can claim treaty preference. A wrong code is not a clerical error — it means overpaying shipment after shipment, or finding out at clearance that a permit nobody anticipated is missing.

Our team determines the correct code under the Harmonized System and Mexico’s tariff schedule by analyzing what legally defines your product: composition, function, use and presentation. We don’t copy the supplier’s code or “the one that’s always been used” — every classification is backed in writing by the General Rules and the legal notes of the tariff.

## When you need it

- You import with inherited classifications nobody has reviewed in years
- You’re about to import a new product and don’t know what it will pay or which permits it needs
- You’ve had observations or incidents at clearance because of inconsistent descriptions
- You pay the general rate without ever checking whether your product qualifies for treaty preference

## Benefits

- You pay exactly what you owe: no extra duty from a conservative code, no exposure from an aggressive one
- Less risk in audits: every code is backed technically and legally
- Regulations, product standards and permits identified before you ship — not at customs
- The documentary basis to claim treaty preference (USMCA and other agreements)

## How it works

1. **We build the product file** — You share the spec sheet, composition, photos, use and commercial presentation. If something is missing, we tell you exactly what we need and why it matters.
2. **Technical and legal analysis** — We apply the General Rules of the Harmonized System and the legal notes of Mexico’s tariff to determine the full code, weighing alternatives when the product admits more than one reading.
3. **A ruling with its reasoning** — You receive the code with its justification in writing: applicable rates by origin, regulations and product standards, and any treaty preference within reach.
4. **Implementation and follow-up** — We align the description on invoices and customs entries with the ruled classification, and review it when the tariff — or your product — changes.

## What you get

A classification ruling per product: the full Mexican tariff code with technical justification, rates by origin, applicable regulations and product standards, and recommendations for your operation.

## Frequently asked questions

### How is a Mexican tariff code different from the HS code I already have?

The HS code is the first 6 digits, shared by almost every country. Mexico extends it to 8 digits in its own tariff schedule (the TIGIE) — that 8-digit code sets your duty rate and the regulations your product must meet — and then adds a 2-digit commercial identifier called the NICO. Your customs entry declares all 10. Two countries can agree on the first 6 digits and still disagree on everything that matters for your landed cost.

### Can I just use the code my supplier put on the invoice?

As a starting point, yes. As your classification, no. Your supplier classified the goods to export them from their country, and only the first 6 digits carry over. The digits that decide your Mexican duty, product standards and permits come after that. And before Mexican customs, the importer answers for the classification — not whoever sold the goods.

### What happens if my goods are classified wrong?

It depends which way the error went. If you underpaid, the authority can collect the difference plus inflation adjustments, surcharges and fines — sometimes years later. If the right code required a permit or a product standard you never presented, the shipment can be held at clearance. And if you overpaid, you have been giving away margin on every entry without knowing it. That last one is the most common, and the one nobody claims back.

### Does your written ruling protect me with customs?

It is your technical support: proof that the code was determined by method — the General Rules of Interpretation, the legal notes, an analysis of the product — and not by habit. It is not an official ruling. When a product can reasonably be read more than one way and the money at stake justifies it, Mexican customs law provides a formal classification inquiry with the authority. We tell you when that is worth doing, and we prepare the file.

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