HS Code 5301Flax, raw or processed but not spun; flax tow and waste (including yarn waste and garnetted stock)

Flax fibre in customs terms

Flax is a bast fibre. That means the fibre grows in the soft inner layer of the plant stem, under the bark. Farmers cannot use it straight from the field. It must be treated in steps before a mill can spin it into thread.

Customs sorts each of those steps into its own code. The heading sits in Section XI, which holds textiles. It is the first stop for vegetable textile fibres before they turn into yarn or cloth.

Codes 530110 to 530130: flax by processing stage

The four codes follow the path flax takes before spinning. Read them from raw fibre to scrap.

• 530110: raw or retted flax. Retted flax has been soaked so the woody part rots away from the fibre.
• 530121: broken or scutched flax. The stems are crushed and beaten to knock off the woody bits.
• Hackling combs the fibre so it lies straight and clean.
• 530130: tow and waste. Tow is the short fibre left behind after combing. The code also takes yarn waste and garnetted stock, which is old yarn or cloth torn back into loose fibre.

How to choose the right flax code

First, check whether the flax is spun. If it is, it does not belong here at all. If it is not spun, ask what was done to it last.

Work down the list in the order of the work done. Soaked only? Take the first code. Crushed and beaten? Take the second. Combed or finished further? Take the third. Short leftovers and scrap go in the last one.

A shipment can hold flax at more than one stage. Classify each lot by its own state, not by the name on the invoice. If you are unsure, try the HS code classifier, then confirm with your customs broker before you file.

5301 vs flax yarn, flax fabric and other bast fibres

The main split is how far the flax has been made into something. Unspun fibre stays in this heading. Flax yarn moves to 5306.

Other plants have their own headings. True hemp is 5302.

Follow one batch through a mill. The combed fibre is a 5301 good. The thread spun from it is a 5306 good. The cloth woven from that thread is a 5309 good.

HS code 5301 flax import export data

EximDataX shows shipment-level import and export records from official customs sources. You can search by HS code to see who imports and exports a product, and book a free demo.

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.

To study flax, search the heading, or narrow the search to one six-digit code. Start with import data or export data. Then open buyer data and supplier data to see the companies behind the shipments.