Insight
How is tea classified under the Harmonized System?
Heading 09.02 covers tea, whether or not flavoured. It splits on two axes: whether the tea is fermented, and whether it is in immediate packings of 3 kg or less. That produces four subheadings — 0902.10, 0902.20, 0902.30 and 0902.40 — and the packing axis is the one exporters most often get wrong.
Partly fermented tea — oolong — sits with black tea, not with green. White tea, which is neither rolled nor fixed but is also not fermented, is classified as green tea for tariff purposes.
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| Subheading | Description | Typical product |
|---|---|---|
| 0902.10 | Green tea (not fermented), immediate packings ≤ 3 kg | Retail gunpowder, packed jasmine, tea bags |
| 0902.20 | Green tea (not fermented), other | Bulk gunpowder, bulk Chunmee, bulk white tea |
| 0902.30 | Black tea (fermented) and partly fermented tea, immediate packings ≤ 3 kg | Retail oolong, packed black tea |
| 0902.40 | Black tea (fermented) and partly fermented tea, other | Bulk oolong, bulk black tea |
Why does the 3 kg rule matter commercially?
The 3 kg threshold changes the HS subheading for tea in immediate packings and can change the tariff rate. It does not, by itself, switch food-labelling law on or off. A 200 g private-label pack needs its own destination-market label review because of how it will be sold. Morocco requires mandatory food-label information in Arabic, with other languages permitted; EAEU food labels must meet the applicable Russian-language rules.
That is not a reason to avoid packing. It is a reason to price and document packed goods as a separate programme rather than as bulk with a box around it. Packed goods are also where the margin is.