Chapter 03 Fish and crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates

How to choose the right Chapter 3 code

Start with the animal. Fish sit in headings 0301 to 0305. Crustaceans sit in 0306 and molluscs in 0307. Other aquatic invertebrates, such as sea cucumbers, sit in 0308. Heading 0309 holds flours, meals and pellets made from these animals that are fit for human consumption.

Next, check the state of the goods. For whole fish, 0301 is live, 0302 is fresh or chilled and 0303 is frozen. Cut or minced meat goes to 0304 instead, whether it is fresh, chilled or frozen. This is the key tariff classification fish rule: decide whole fish or cut first, then look at fresh or frozen.

Heading 0305 is about processing. Use it for dried, salted, brined or smoked fish. It also covers the livers, roes and edible offal of such fish.

Shellfish follow the same logic. Pick the animal type, then the state: live, fresh, chilled, frozen, dried, salted or smoked. Each heading page lists its own codes with the full official wording.

• 0301: live fish
• 0302: fish, fresh or chilled, not cut
• 0303: fish, frozen, not cut
• 0304: fish fillets and fish meat
• 0305: dried, salted, in brine or smoked fish
• 0306: crustaceans
• 0307: molluscs
• 0308: other aquatic invertebrates
• 0309: flours, meals and pellets

HS codes for shrimp, crab, salmon, tuna and squid

Buyers often search by product name, so here are eight common examples. Each one is a six-digit subheading inside the headings above.

Shrimps and prawns, crabs and lobsters all live in 0306. Squid and cuttle fish live in 0307, together with octopus, oysters and mussels. Salmon and tuna sit with other whole fish in 0302 and 0303. Frozen catfish fillets sit in 0304.

• 030617: frozen shrimps and prawns, other than cold-water
• 030636: live, fresh or chilled shrimps and prawns, other than cold-water
• 030614: frozen crabs
• 030313: frozen Atlantic salmon and Danube salmon
• 030342: frozen yellowfin tunas
• 030743: frozen cuttle fish and squid
• 030752: frozen octopus
• 030462: frozen catfish fillets

HS code 03 import and export data

Once you know your code, you can look at real trade. EximDataX shows shipment-level import and export records from official customs sources. Coverage: 43 direct customs feeds plus 184 mirror-derived countries. Named buyers and named suppliers are available in 38 of the 43 direct markets. Most markets refresh weekly and some refresh daily. You can search by HS code to see who imports and exports a product, and book a free demo.

Not sure which code fits your product? Try the HS code classifier first. Then use import data, export data, buyer data and supplier data to follow the code into live records.

Chapters next to HS code 03

Some goods sit close to the edge of this chapter. Chapter 01 covers live animals, but live fish have their own heading, 0301. Chapter 02 covers meat and edible meat offal. Chapter 04 covers dairy produce, birds' eggs and natural honey. Chapter 05 covers animal originated products not elsewhere specified.

If a product is not a fish, crustacean, mollusc or other water invertebrate, check these chapters. You can also browse every chapter from the main HS code index.