HS codes

Why one HS code for bed linen can mean 3.8% or 20.9% US duty

Cotton bed linen shares one six-digit HS code, but the US tariff splits it by weave and finish. How to find the line your product actually falls on.

Updated 27 September 2026, with every figure linked to its source below

Cotton bed linen that isn't printed shares one international code, HS 6302.31, but the US tariff splits it into four lines with base duties from 3.8% to 20.9%^[1]. Two facts decide the line: whether the fabric is napped, and whether the article has any embroidery, lace, braid, edging, trimming, piping or appliqué. Goods from India then pay a further 10% under Section 301^[2]. A plain percale sheet set and the same set with a piped border can land 14 points apart.

Every US line under 6302.31

The US schedule groups 6302.31 ("other bed linen, of cotton") into two branches, then splits each by napping^[1]:

Base rates are the HTS general column^[1]. The last column adds the 10% India Section 301 duty under heading 9903.05.44^[2]. None of these lines is on a Section 232 list, so that's the whole estimate. It is charged on the FOB value and doesn't include anti-dumping duties, the merchandise processing and harbor maintenance fees, or product exclusions.

Most woven cotton sheeting isn't napped, and for unnapped goods the range is 6.7% to 20.9%: 6302.31.90 for plain items, 6302.31.50 for the same items with decorative trim. Napped cotton, such as brushed flannel, has its own pair of lines, and the plain napped line at 3.8% is the lowest of the four.

What moves a product between lines

Decoration: embroidery, lace, braid, edging, trimming, piping or appliqué

This is the biggest lever. On unnapped cotton it is the difference between 6.7% and 20.9%^[1]. The line description says "any" such work, so read it literally when you design:

• A contrast piped edge on a pillowcase or duvet cover counts as piping.
• An embroidered monogram or hem motif counts as embroidery.
• A lace or crochet trim, a decorative braid, or an appliqué patch counts.

A plain hem, a flange sewn from the body fabric or hemstitching may or may not count, depending on how it is made. If a design detail is borderline, ask your customs broker before you finalise the sample, not after the goods ship. Dropping one trim can save 14 points of duty.

Napping

Napped means the fabric surface has been brushed or raised so the fibre ends stand up, as in flannel. Within each branch, napped goods pay less: 3.8% against 6.7% for plain goods, 11.9% against 20.9% for decorated goods^[1]. Whether a fabric is napped is a question of how it was finished, so get it from the mill specification, not from how the fabric feels.

What doesn't change the rate

The article type doesn't change the duty. Under each of the four lines, the schedule has the same statistical suffixes: pillowcases, sheets, bolster cases, pillowcovers and other^[1]. A sheet and a pillowcase in the same fabric and finish pay the same rate. You still need the right ten-digit suffix on the entry, because it feeds US textile statistics.

Printing isn't in any of the 6302.31 line descriptions either. In the international nomenclature, printed bed linen has its own subheading next to this one, so a printed cotton sheet may not be 6302.31 at all. Check that first if your range is printed.

Fibre

All of the above assumes cotton. India's tariff has separate lines for bed linen of man-made fibres (6302.32) and of other textile materials (6302.39)^[3], and the US schedule has separate lines, with their own rates, for each^[1]. For blends, confirm with your broker which fibre the code follows.

How this compares with China

All four 6302.31 lines are on the Section 301 list at heading 9903.88.15 (+7.5%), and Chinese goods also pay 12.5% under heading 9903.05.31^[2]. On our method that puts China at 26.7% on the plain line and 40.9% on the decorated unnapped line, against 16.7% and 30.9% from India. US duty on goods from India vs China explains how these layers stack.

EU duty

The EU doesn't split cotton bed linen by napping or trim. Its MFN rate for 6302.31 is 12% on a single line^[4]. That is a 2021 snapshot and doesn't include India's GSP preference, so the rate on Indian-origin goods may be lower.

The export incentive in India

Bed linen is a chapter 63 made-up, so Indian exporters claim RoSCTL, the rebate of state and central taxes and levies, not RoDTEP. We don't carry RoSCTL rates yet, so ask your supplier what they will claim and on which eight-digit line. If RoDTEP comes up for other products in your order, it was notified until 30 September 2026 under Notification No. 74/2025-26; check DGFT for an extension^[5].

Related cases

Cushion covers have the same problem one level up, where construction and fibre choose the six-digit code itself: see cushion covers: HS 6304.91, 6304.92 or 6304.93. To compare your own range, see the US duty table.