Rice · guide
Rice has its own heading, 1006, and a short list of subheadings that depend on how far the grain has been processed. Getting the choice right affects duty, paperwork and whether you can find the trade data you are looking for.
| Market | Imports | Year |
|---|---|---|
| China | $14.8B | 2024 |
| Mexico | $8.0B | 2024 |
| Egypt | $6.8B | 2024 |
| Indonesia | $6.8B | 2024 |
| Japan | $6.7B | 2024 |
| Vietnam | $5.5B | 2023 |
| Market | Exports | Year |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $24.4B | 2024 |
| India | $11.9B | 2024 |
| Argentina | $10.1B | 2024 |
| Ukraine | $9.4B | 2024 |
| Brazil | $9.4B | 2024 |
| Canada | $9.4B | 2024 |
Figures are for the whole of HS chapter 10 (cereals). Source: UN Comtrade.
The Harmonized System organises goods into chapters, headings and subheadings. Rice belongs to chapter 10, which covers cereals, and within it to heading 1006 titled simply Rice. The first two digits identify the chapter, the first four identify the heading, and six digits identify the subheading that is shared by most countries that use the system.
One point of scope matters when you read trade statistics. The figures on this site are compiled at chapter level, so chapter 10 includes wheat, maize, barley, oats and other grains as well as rice. A chapter total is a useful indicator of how large a market is for cereals, but it will overstate rice. When you need rice specifically, work down to heading 1006 in shipment records.
Heading 1006 splits by degree of processing, starting from the raw grain and moving toward the milled product. Read the descriptions in order and stop at the first one that describes your goods.
The test is a physical one: what is the state of the grain when it crosses the border? Paddy with the husk intact goes to 100610 even if it is destined for milling next door. Rice with the husk removed and the bran left on goes to 100620. Rice that has been milled to remove bran and germ goes to 100630, and polishing or glazing does not change that.
Broken rice needs care because the tariff treats it as its own subheading. A milled lot that contains some broken grains is not automatically broken rice. Milled rice normally carries a certain proportion of broken kernels, and the classification question is whether the goods are presented as the whole-grain product or as the fractured fraction. If your lot is sold as broken rice, for processing, brewing or feed, use 100640. If it is sold as milled rice with a stated maximum of broken grains, it stays in 100630. Check the wording of the subheading and the explanatory notes rather than judging by the percentage alone.
Rice flour, rice starch, puffed rice, rice noodles, cooked rice and rice bran oil belong elsewhere in the tariff, in chapters that cover milled products, starches, prepared cereals and oils. Once rice has been ground, cooked, flaked or otherwise transformed, the classification usually moves out of heading 1006 into the chapter that fits the new product.
Parboiled rice is a borderline case that surprises new exporters. Parboiling is a hydrothermal treatment applied before milling, and the classification of parboiled rice normally follows the degree of milling, so parboiled milled rice sits with milled rice. Do not assume a variety name such as basmati or a fragrance claim changes the subheading, since the international structure here separates rice by processing and not by variety. Some national tariffs add their own splits at the longer digit level, so verify the national extension for your market.
Six digits are common across countries that use the system, but customs authorities extend the code to eight, ten or more digits for their own tariff. That is where they may distinguish, for example, aromatic from non-aromatic rice, or set a different duty for parboiled goods. The extra digits can therefore change the duty rate, the import licence category and the statistics that are collected.
Never copy the code from a competitor’s invoice. Ask the buyer’s customs broker for the code they will declare on import, compare it with the code your own customs uses on the export declaration, and resolve any difference before shipment. A mismatch between exporting and importing declarations is a typical trigger for queries, delays and reclassification disputes. Where the classification is genuinely uncertain, many customs authorities offer an advance ruling that gives you a written answer, and it is worth requesting one before you build a contract around a duty assumption.
Once you know your subheading, you can search shipment records for it. Records typically show the declared HS code, the quantity, the declared value, the consignee and the origin. Filtering on 100630 gives you buyers of milled rice. Filtering on 100640 gives you the buyers who take broken rice, who are a different group with different specifications.
Keep the scope note in mind. Our ranking tables cover the whole of chapter 10, where the United States leads exporters at $24.4B, India follows at $11.9B and ranks 2 of 96, and Argentina is at $10.1B. Those numbers describe cereals as a group. On the import side, China at $14.8B tops the table, with Mexico at $8.0B and Egypt at $6.8B behind it. To turn this into rice leads, move from the chapter table to heading 1006 records for the same country, then list the importing companies and contact the ones whose product form matches yours.
Rice is classified under heading 1006 in chapter 10. The subheadings are 100610 for paddy, 100620 for husked rice, 100630 for semi-milled or wholly milled rice and 100640 for broken rice. Choose by the state of the grain.
White rice that has been milled, whether or not polished or glazed, goes under 100630. Confirm the longer national code with your customs authority, because the extra digits may separate types or set different duties.
At the six-digit level the international structure classifies rice by processing, not by variety, so aromatic rice follows the same subheadings. Some national tariffs add finer splits, so check the national code used by the destination.
No. Rice flour, starch, noodles and cooked or puffed rice belong to other chapters, because they have been processed beyond the grain. Heading 1006 covers the grain itself, from paddy through to broken rice.
It drives the duty rate, the documents needed, and how the shipment appears in customs statistics. A wrong code can cause delay or a penalty, and it also means buyers and analysts cannot find your trade in shipment data.
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