HTS heading 3005 · Chapter 30, Pharmaceutical products
US imports of Wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles
Wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles (for example, dressings, adhesive plasters, poultices), impregnated or coated with pharmaceutical substances or put up in forms or packings for retail sale for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary purposes
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, USA Trade Online / International Trade API, imports for consumption, March–July 2026; effective duty = calculated duty ÷ dutiable value.
US imports under HTS 3005 at a glance
Between March and July 2026, US importers entered $740 million of wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles under HTS heading 3005, from 45 of the 55 origin countries covered here and across 5 ten-digit tariff lines — roughly $148 million a month of customs value under a single four-digit heading.
Heading 3005 sits in chapter 30, pharmaceutical products, so anything classified here shares a duty structure with the rest of that chapter.
Top origin countries by share of HTS 3005
Origin countries: value, share and duty paid
| Origin | Import value | Share | Dutiable share | Effective duty | Duty per $100 | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | $267 million | 36% | 84% | 10.12% | $8.50 | Duty on 3005.10.50 China lane |
| Mexico | $106 million | 14.3% | 1.4% | 9.91% | $0.14 | |
| United Kingdom | $72.9 million | 9.8% | 97.3% | 10% | $9.73 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| Germany | $41.5 million | 5.6% | 98.9% | 10.37% | $10.26 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| South Korea | $38.9 million | 5.3% | 93.6% | 10.04% | $9.40 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| Japan | $30.0 million | 4% | 89.6% | 9.50% | $8.51 | Duty on 3005.10.10 |
| France | $25.5 million | 3.5% | 100% | 10% | $10.00 | Duty on 3005.90.50 |
| Vietnam | $23.4 million | 3.2% | 96.1% | 10.04% | $9.65 | Duty on 3005.90.50 Vietnam lane |
| Finland | $21.3 million | 2.9% | 99.9% | 10% | $9.99 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| Brazil | $20.1 million | 2.7% | 99.1% | 10.81% | $10.71 | Duty on 3005.10.50 Brazil lane |
| Dominican Republic | $16.9 million | 2.3% | 98.2% | 10.02% | $9.84 | Duty on 3005.10.10 |
| Sweden | $8.1 million | 1.1% | 98.4% | 9.55% | $9.39 | Duty on 3005.90.10 |
| Honduras | $7.4 million | 1% | 0% | 0% | $0.00 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| Hungary | $6.3 million | 0.9% | 95.8% | 10.04% | $9.63 | Duty on 3005.10.50 |
| Canada | $6.2 million | 0.8% | 2.3% | 10% | $0.23 |
Who exports wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles to the United States
China is the largest origin with $267 million, or 36% of the heading, with Mexico at 14.3% and United Kingdom at 9.8%. The top three take 60.1% between them — enough concentration to matter when one origin's duty treatment changes, but not so much that a buyer has no alternative to qualify.
Mexico sits near the top of the table, and the duty numbers reflect it: Mexico entered 98.6% of its value free of duty. Cargo that qualifies under USMCA and is claimed correctly at entry pays nothing; cargo that does not qualify, or that is never claimed, pays the ordinary rate. The certification is the whole difference.
What importers actually paid in duty
Duty treatment is split. 76.7% of the entered value was dutiable and the rest came in free, usually under a trade agreement or a duty-free provision in the tariff schedule. CBP collected $57.1 million in all, an effective 10.1% on the dutiable value and $7.72 per $100 of goods once the free entries are counted.
The spread between origins is real. Among origins with at least 2% of the heading, Brazil paid the most duty relative to value — $10.71 per $100 — while Mexico paid $0.14. On a $250,000 purchase order that gap is about $26,000 in duty alone, which is worth pricing into a sourcing decision rather than discovering on the entry summary.
10-digit tariff lines under HTS 3005
| HTS code | Description | Import value | Share | Duty per $100 | Largest origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3005.10.50.00 | — | $327 million | 44.1% | $8.11 | China |
| 3005.90.50.90 | Other | $233 million | 31.5% | $8.12 | China |
| 3005.10.10.00 | — | $85.4 million | 11.5% | $6.78 | Japan |
| 3005.90.10.00 | — | $68.9 million | 9.3% | $7.20 | United Kingdom |
| 3005.90.50.10 | Laparotomy sponges | $25.9 million | 3.5% | $3.78 | China |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, USA Trade Online / International Trade API, imports for consumption, March–July 2026; effective duty = calculated duty ÷ dutiable value.
The 10-digit lines under heading 3005
5 ten-digit lines carried trade under this heading in the period. The largest, 3005.10.50.00, took 44.1% of the heading at $327 million. 3005.90.50.90, 3005.10.10.00 and 3005.90.10.00 follow. Rates diverge between those lines, so the classification your broker files is worth checking against the goods rather than carried over from the last entry.
What the duty stack looks like
The rate on an entry is not one number. It is a stack: the general (column 1) rate for the 10-digit line, less any trade-agreement preference the goods qualify for, plus whatever additional duties apply to that product and origin, all applied to the customs value declared. The $7.72 per $100 above is what that stack averaged across every entry in this heading — a benchmark, not a quote.
For the origins carrying the most volume, the per-country breakdowns go a level deeper: China (3005.10.50), United Kingdom (3005.10.50) and Germany (3005.10.50). To price a specific shipment, put your 10-digit code and country of origin into the tariff simulator.
What this means for your next shipment
Classify first, confirm origin second, quote freight third. A heading like 3005 rewards that order, because the duty differences between lines and between origins are usually larger than the freight differences on the same lane. Airlift USA handles the freight and coordinates classification and entry through our licensed broker network.
For the operational side rather than the tariff side, see the Pharmaceutical & Healthcare Commodities guide for how this cargo moves, the China to USA lane for transit times and ports and the heading index to compare against the rest of chapter 30.
Price a shipment under HTS 3005
Airlift USA has moved ocean and air freight into the United States since 1999 and coordinates HTS classification, ISF and entry filing through our licensed broker network.
Methodology
Figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's international trade statistics for imports for consumption — the customs value of goods entered into US commerce, not shipments in transit or goods held in bonded warehouses. The period is March–July 2026 (5 months of data), and coverage is limited to 55 major origin countries, so totals here are lower than published US-wide totals for the same heading.
Three quantities are additive and everything else is derived from them: entered customs value, dutiable value and calculated duty. Effective duty is calculated duty divided by dutiable value — the rate CBP actually applied to the part of the trade that was dutiable. Dutiable share is dutiable value divided by entered value; below 20% it means the trade entered mostly free, under a trade agreement or a duty-free provision. Duty per $100 spreads calculated duty across all entered value, which is the figure comparable between origins.
Chapter 98 and chapter 99 are excluded: those are special classification and temporary-measure provisions rather than product headings. Heading and tariff-line descriptions are the current HTS text. Values are historical and reflect duty as calculated at the time of entry; they are not a quote and not a prediction of the rate on a future shipment.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, USA Trade Online / International Trade API, imports for consumption, March–July 2026; effective duty = calculated duty ÷ dutiable value. Census data is a work of the US government and is in the public domain.
Frequently asked questions
Which countries export the most wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles to the United States?
China is the largest origin under HTS heading 3005, with $267 million entered between March and July 2026, or 36% of the heading. Mexico follows at 14.3% and United Kingdom at 9.8%. Figures cover the 55 major origin countries in this dataset. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, USA Trade Online / International Trade API, imports for consumption, March–July 2026; effective duty = calculated duty ÷ dutiable value.
How much import duty is paid on wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles under HTS 3005?
Across all origins, 76.7% of the entered value was dutiable and CBP calculated $57.1 million of duty over the five months — an effective 10.1% on dutiable value, or about $7.72 per $100 of goods across the whole heading. Your own rate depends on the exact 10-digit line and country of origin.
Which HTS codes fall under heading 3005?
Heading 3005 covers wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles (for example, dressings, adhesive plasters, poultices), impregnated or coated with pharmaceutical substances or put up in forms or packings for retail sale for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary purposes. 5 ten-digit lines recorded imports in this period; the largest by value were 3005.10.50.00, 3005.90.50.90, 3005.10.10.00 and 3005.90.10.00. Duty rates differ between those lines, so the 10-digit classification matters more than the heading.
Which origin pays the lowest duty on wadding, gauze, bandages and similar articles?
Among origins with at least 2% of the heading, Mexico paid the least duty relative to entered value — about $0.14 per $100 of goods, with 98.6% of its value entering free. Duty is only one part of landed cost, and a claim has to be substantiated at entry to be allowed.
How do I check the duty on my own shipment?
Use the Airlift USA tariff simulator with your 10-digit HTS code and country of origin to see the duty stack that applies today, then confirm the classification before you file. Airlift USA coordinates classification and entry filing through our licensed broker network and can review the code against your product specification.