Wet-State Buffalo Hide Upper Leather for Dress Shoes from Japan
Wet-blue tanned buffalo skin designated as upper leather for formal dress shoes, in moist crust form without hair or further processing. Falls under HTS 4104.19.40.10 for other wet-state bovine (buffalo included) upper leather per hierarchy. Excludes chapter exclusions for hair-on or waste materials.
Duty Rate — Japan → United States
52.5%
Rate breakdown
9903.41.0540%Bovine (including buffalo) and equine leather (provided for in heading 4104 or 4107); goat, kid, sheep and lamb leather, the foregoing dyed, colored, stamped or embossed (provided for in heading 4105, 4106, 4112 or 4113)
9903.05.4912.5%Section 301 (forced labor) — Japan (col1 rate < 12.5 percent): MFN < 12.5% → total duty capped at 12.5%
Import Tips
• Confirm buffalo as 'bovine (including buffalo)' per chapter notes; equine alternatives differ
• Test moisture content to ensure wet-state classification; evaporation during transit risks reclass
• Document end-use as shoe uppers to distinguish from sole leather subheading