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Customs code · HS subheading 8540 20

Final code reached

Image-converter, image-intensifier and other photocathode tubes

Excluding TV camera tubes and TV/video-monitor CRTs

This is a complete 8-digit customs code. Exports and Intrastat use it as it is. For an import into the EU, pick a 10-digit line below.

This code covers image-converter tubes, image-intensifier tubes and other photocathode tubes. It does not cover TV camera tubes or cathode-ray tubes for television receivers and video monitors.

For example

  • Image-converter tube
  • Image-intensifier tube
  • Other photocathode tube
See the official tariff text

Official tariff text

Image converters and intensifiers and other photo cathode tubes (excl. television camera tubes and cathode ray television picture tubes, incl. video monitor cathode ray tubes)

You are seeing what applies when you export from the EU. Switch above if you import.

You are seeing what applies when you import into the EU. Switch above if you export.

Your answer for export

The full EU export code is 8540 20 80.

You do not pick a 10-digit EU import line for an export declaration or Intrastat. The destination classifies the goods under its own tariff.

8 digits, ready

Selling to Norway, Great Britain and the United States

What they charge on arrival.

Norway, Great Britain and the United States use their own tariff lines under the 6-digit HS code. The rates below are what their customs charge on goods arriving from the EU. Match the goods against each country's own wording before you rely on a rate.

Norway

Duty free

  • Their lines1 Norwegian line

85.40.2000 Television camera tubes; image converters and intensifiers; other photo-cathode tubes

Norwegian tariff data checked Sept. 13, 2026.

Great Britain

Duty free

  • Their lines3 British lines

8540 20 80 10 For use in certain types of aircraft

Northern Ireland follows other rules.

UK tariff data checked Sept. 13, 2026.

United States

10.0%

Estimated from published US measures

  • Their lines3 US lines
  • Entry dateSept. 18, 2026

8540.20.20.40 Thermionic, cold cathode or photocathode tubes

The US importer of record files the entry.

US tariff data checked Sept. 16, 2026.

See the 1 Norwegian line

Selling to Norway

Norway splits the 6-digit category its own way, so these are Norway's own lines under it, not this EU code. Check your product against their wording; what Norwegian customs charges is shown per line.

  • 85.40.2000

    Television camera tubes; image converters and intensifiers; other photo-cathode tubes

    Ordinary duty
    Duty free

Norwegian tariff data version 1.5/1.2, last checked Sept. 13, 2026.

Contains data from Norwegian Customs (data.toll.no), licensed under CC BY 4.0, adapted for display.

See the 3 British lines

Selling to Great Britain

What UK customs charges when goods like these arrive in Great Britain.

  • All 3 UK lines under this code

    They all have the same duty rates shown here.

    Ordinary duty
    Duty free

These rates apply in Great Britain. Different rules may apply for goods entering Northern Ireland.

UK tariff data version v4.0.1599, last checked Sept. 13, 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Source: UK Department for Business and Trade (data.api.trade.gov.uk).

See the 3 US lines

Selling to the United States

What US customs charges when goods like these arrive from the EU. The US importer of record files the entry and pays the duty.

  • 8540.20.20.40

    Thermionic, cold cathode or photocathode tubes (for example, vacuum or vapor or gas filled tubes, mercury arc rectifying tubes, cathode-ray tubes, television camera tubes); parts thereof, Television camera tubes; image converters and intensifiers; other photocathode tubes, Cathode-ray tubes, Color

    General rate
    6%
    From the EU
    10.0% Estimated from published US measures US headings applied: 9903.05.39 Section 301 forced-labour action, 91 FR 47318 (memorandum 91 FR 47717), U.S. note 52 to subchapter III of chapter 99

  • 8540.20.20.80

    Thermionic, cold cathode or photocathode tubes (for example, vacuum or vapor or gas filled tubes, mercury arc rectifying tubes, cathode-ray tubes, television camera tubes); parts thereof, Television camera tubes; image converters and intensifiers; other photocathode tubes, Cathode-ray tubes, Other

    General rate
    6%
    From the EU
    10.0% Estimated from published US measures US headings applied: 9903.05.39 Section 301 forced-labour action, 91 FR 47318 (memorandum 91 FR 47717), U.S. note 52 to subchapter III of chapter 99

  • 8540.20.40.00

    Thermionic, cold cathode or photocathode tubes (for example, vacuum or vapor or gas filled tubes, mercury arc rectifying tubes, cathode-ray tubes, television camera tubes); parts thereof, Television camera tubes; image converters and intensifiers; other photocathode tubes, Other

    General rate
    3.3%
    From the EU
    10.0% Estimated from published US measures US headings applied: 9903.05.39 Section 301 forced-labour action, 91 FR 47318 (memorandum 91 FR 47717), U.S. note 52 to subchapter III of chapter 99

Worked out for an entry on Sept. 18, 2026.

US tariff schedule 2026HTSRev19, last checked Sept. 16, 2026.

Last change we recorded: Revision 19 (2026), Sept. 16, 2026.

Anti-dumping and countervailing duties, US import taxes and customs fees are not included.

The descriptions above are the US tariff texts, which the United States publishes in English only.

Source: the US International Trade Commission's Harmonized Tariff Schedule (hts.usitc.gov), public domain, and the measures published in the Federal Register.

This is a planning estimate from the US Harmonized Tariff Schedule (revision shown) and the published Federal Register measures as of the date shown, for a shipment of EU origin. It is not a customs entry, legal advice or a broker's opinion, and tariffs.help is not a US-licensed customs broker. The US importer of record or their broker confirms the classification, origin, value and the duty due before filing.

Before you use the code

Check the facts that sit outside the code

The code can be right while what you pay still changes, because of where the goods come from, when they arrive, or extra EU measures.

Classify your own product, free Look up the current rates and rules
  1. The product and its form Check that your product really matches this description, including what it is made of and the form it arrives in.
  2. Country of origin Trade agreements, sanctions and extra measures can change the treatment of the very same code.
  3. Current tariff measures Check today's rate, any restrictions or licences, and the quantity customs asks for, with Toldstyrelsen or TARIC.

On an EU import declaration

Pick the 10-digit line that matches the goods.

3 import lines

When these goods are imported into the EU, the declaration needs a 10-digit code. Under 8540 20 80 the EU tariff has 3 lines, each with its own wording.

You or your customs agent pick the line whose wording fits the goods; the last line, "Other", covers what none of the specific wordings describe.

Some lines depend on what the goods will be used for and need customs authorisation; matching the wording alone does not give a lower rate.

  1. Match the whole wording A line is its own wording plus the grouping text above it. Read both before you settle on one.
  2. Check the intended use On some lines the lower rate belongs to what the goods will be used for, not to the goods alone.
  3. Confirm the authorisation Where the lower rate carries conditions, customs asks for an authorisation before it can be used.

A suspension is a lower rate the EU grants for specific products; whether your goods qualify depends on the line's wording and conditions.

Exports from the EU and Intrastat normally use the 8-digit code as it is.

EU tariff data of Sept. 13, 2026.

Rates, origin and documents

Read the signals first. Open only the ones you want to check.

Besides the ordinary duty, the EU records these kinds of measure against this code. They are listed as signals only: whether one applies to your goods can depend on where they come from, who produced them, the exact product and the documents you present. No amounts are worked out here.

Data of Sept. 1, 2026

Customs also asks for the quantity in number of items

Required

The declaration asks for the actual quantity in number of items. It replaces neither the net mass nor the value: those come on top.

Example: if the quantity in number of items is 24, the declaration carries the number 24 in that field.

Lower duty for goods from some countries

Possible

Preferential rates exist for goods originating in:

  • Andorra
  • San Marino
  • Türkiye
  • European Union
  • Comoros (excluding Mayotte), Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and dependencies and Zimbabwe
  • Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique and Namibia
  • Western Sahara
  • European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway
  • +42 origins

These rates apply to Economic Partnership Agreements; CARIFORUM except Haiti; GSP-EBA (Special arrangement for the least-developed countries - Everything But Arms); GSP+ (incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance); OCTs (Overseas Countries and Territories).

Whether you can use one depends on the origin rules for the goods and on the documentation you can show.

Check this code in the official EU TARIC database

Restrictions and paperwork

Important

Import restrictions are recorded for goods originating in:

  • North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea)
  • Ukraine
  • Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • any country except Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • any country

The EU records document conditions on this code. What customs may ask for depends on where the goods come from, exactly what the product is and the customs procedure.

Proof of origin 2 conditions

If you claim a lower rate for goods from a country the EU has a trade agreement with, customs asks for proof of origin, for example a EUR.1 certificate or an origin declaration.

Show the EU's own wording for these conditions
  • Invoice declaration or origin declaration made out by any exporter on invoice or any other commercial document
  • Movement certificate EUR.1

Sanctions and restricted regions 6 conditions

Some conditions come from EU sanctions rules. They matter when the goods are linked to a country or region the EU restricts trade with.

Show the EU's own wording for these conditions
  • Goods not originating from or destined to Crimea or Sevastopol (Articles 2 and 2b.1 of Council Regulation (EU) No 692/2014)
  • Goods not originating from or not destined for the non-government controlled areas of Ukraine in the oblasts of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia
  • Goods other than those described in the MG footnotes linked to the measure (Missile Technology Control Regime list - Annex III of Reg. (EU) 267/2012)
  • Goods not consigned from Iran
  • Import authorisation for restricted goods and technologies (Council Regulation (EU) No 267/2012)
  • Goods other than those described in the footnotes linked to the measure (Reg 267/2012)

Statements that the goods are outside a rule's scope 2 conditions

Some conditions are statements that a rule does not cover the goods, for example that the product is not on a controlled list.

Show the EU's own wording for these conditions
  • Goods other than those described in the footnotes linked to the measure
  • Goods not concerned by Regulation (EU) 2017/852

Other conditions 1 condition

These conditions match none of the groups above. Whether customs asks for one depends on the goods, where they come from and the customs procedure.

Show the EU's own wording for this condition
  • Mercury-added products essential for civil protection and military uses; or intended for research, calibration of instrumentation or for use as reference standard (Article 5 (2) of Regulation (EU) 2017/852)
Check this code in the official EU TARIC database

EU tariff measure data of Sept. 1, 2026.

One last classification check

Check the path and the nearest alternatives.

Use this view if you are still unsure the code describes the product precisely.

How we got to this code

  1. XVI
  2. 85
  3. 8540
  4. 8540 20
  5. 8540 20 80
Show the steps

Compare with the codes next to it.

Compare the sibling codes at this level before you settle on this one.

Duty rates shown here are estimates, read from official EU / Danish, Norwegian and UK tariff data for orientation only. Confirm the current rate with Toldstyrelsen, TARIC, Norwegian Customs or the UK Online Trade Tariff before you file. The rate you pay can also depend on the country of origin. These are base customs duties only: import VAT, excise duties, anti-dumping duties and safeguard or quota measures are not included.