What Is a Schedule B Number: Lookup, Filing, and Penalties

A Schedule B number is a ten-digit code the U.S. Census Bureau assigns to every physical good exported from the United States. The Bureau’s Foreign Trade Division uses these codes to track what leaves the country and in what quantities, and you’ll need the correct one any time a single commodity in your shipment is worth more than $2,500.¹ The code identifies your product by material, function, and category, and its first six digits line up with the international Harmonized System so customs authorities in other countries recognize what you’re shipping.

What the Ten Digits Mean

Every Schedule B number moves from broad to specific. The first two digits identify a chapter, a wide category like live animals, plastics, or machinery. The next two narrow the chapter to a heading, and the two after that pinpoint a subheading. Those first six digits match the international Harmonized System used by most trading nations.²

The final four digits are unique to the United States. They exist for domestic statistical tracking and let the Census Bureau draw finer distinctions between products that share the same six-digit international code. Two items that look identical on a foreign customs form can carry different Schedule B numbers because the U.S. tracks them separately.¹

How to Look Up Your Schedule B Number

Census Bureau Search Tool

The Census Bureau runs a free online Schedule B Search Engine. You type in keywords describing your product (its material, function, or common name) and the tool walks you through prompts that narrow to the right code.³ Results show the full ten-digit number with a short description. If several possibilities appear, compare each description against your product’s actual characteristics and pick the closest match. The tool is available at uscensus.prod.3ceonline.com.⁴

Customs Rulings Database

For an unusual or composite product, U.S. Customs and Border Protection maintains the Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS). The database holds CBP classification rulings going back to 1989, so you can see how similar products have been classified before.⁵ A ruling for a product like yours is strong backup for your own choice.

Direct Help from the Census Bureau

When the search tool and rulings database don’t settle it, the Census Bureau’s classification specialists take questions by phone at 1-800-549-0595 (Option 2) and by email at eid.scheduleb@census.gov.⁶ Have your product’s material, function, and technical specs ready before you call.

Getting the Classification Right

The system generally prioritizes what an item does over what it’s made of, so a sensor built for medical equipment can fall into a different category than a nearly identical sensor made for a car. Before you search, gather:

Material composition. Whether the product is primarily wood, metal, plastic, ceramic, or a composite often determines the chapter.
Function and intended use. A motor for household appliances classifies differently than one for industrial machinery.
Technical specifications. Dimensions, voltage, weight, and chemical concentration often decide the final digits.

When a product could plausibly fit under more than one heading, the international rules favor the most specific description. For mixed or composite goods, the material or component that gives the product its essential character usually controls.⁷ Have your commercial invoice and a detailed product description in front of you before you start.

Schedule B vs. HTS Codes

If you also import, you probably know Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes, the ten-digit numbers used on the import side. The Census Bureau lets you use an HTS code in place of a Schedule B number on most export filings; after you file, the Bureau converts it to the corresponding Schedule B number for statistics.⁸

The two systems share the same first six digits and diverge in the final four. There are roughly 19,000 HTS codes and about 9,000 Schedule B codes, so several HTS numbers often map to a single Schedule B. HTS codes usually carry more detail and work fine for export filing. For some goods, though (certain aircraft turbines, for example), Schedule B has finer distinctions the HTS doesn’t capture, and the Census Bureau will reject the HTS code and require the Schedule B number instead.⁸ The Bureau publishes a list of HTS codes that aren’t valid for AES filing on its Foreign Trade website.

When the Number Gets Used

You report your Schedule B number when you file Electronic Export Information (EEI) through the Automated Export System (AES). Filing is required whenever any single commodity type in a shipment is valued above $2,500.⁹ The $2,500 threshold applies per Schedule B number, not per shipment. If your shipment contains three products and only one exceeds $2,500, you file EEI for that one and note the exemption for the others.

Filing covers shipments from any of the fifty states or the District of Columbia to foreign countries, and shipments between the U.S. mainland and Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands.¹⁰ Shipments to other U.S. territories generally do not require EEI. Some goods require a filing regardless of value: if your product needs an export license from the Bureau of Industry and Security or the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, you file even on a $50 shipment.¹¹ The same is true for items under specific military-related classifications and any transaction involving a party on the Unverified List.

Common Exemptions

Shipments to Canada are generally exempt, regardless of value, unless the goods require an export license or fall under another mandatory rule.¹²
Individual Schedule B classifications worth $2,500 or less within a shipment, provided they don’t require a license.⁹
Tools of trade you own and carry abroad for business use, as long as they don’t need a license, aren’t for sale, and return to the U.S. within one year.¹³
Gift parcels and humanitarian donations authorized under License Exception GFT.¹³

When you claim an exemption, you must note the specific citation on the bill of lading, air waybill, or other commercial loading document and on the carrier’s outbound manifest.⁹

Filing Deadlines

EEI has to be filed and the confirmation given to your carrier before the goods leave the country. The deadline depends on transport mode:

Ocean freight: at least 24 hours before cargo is loaded onto the vessel at the U.S. port.
Air cargo: no later than 2 hours before scheduled departure.
Truck: no later than 1 hour before the truck arrives at the U.S. border.
Rail: no later than 2 hours before the train arrives at the U.S. border.

These apply to non-military shipments filed before departure.¹⁴ Missing a deadline is treated as a late-filing violation even if you eventually submit, so build lead time into your logistics.

Who Is Responsible for Filing

Legal responsibility falls on the U.S. Principal Party in Interest (USPPI), typically the U.S. company or individual that sold or is sending the goods. The USPPI can file directly through AES or authorize an agent, such as a freight forwarder or customs broker, through a power of attorney or written authorization. Even when an agent handles the filing, the USPPI stays responsible for accurate, timely information; the agent is responsible for submitting it correctly based on what the USPPI provides. If a foreign entity is the principal party, it cannot file directly and must authorize a U.S.-based agent.¹⁵

Once AES accepts the filing, it returns an Internal Transaction Number (ITN), the confirmation code proving the filing is on record. You give the ITN to your carrier before the shipment departs, and it appears on your customs documentation. All parties (USPPI, agent, carrier) must keep the underlying records for five years from the date of export.¹⁶

Penalties for Getting It Wrong

Civil penalties apply to administrative violations and don’t require proof of intent. Failing to file, or filing more than ten calendar days late, can bring a penalty up to $10,000 per violation. Filing after the deadline but within ten days runs up to $1,100 per day of delay, capped at $10,000 per violation. Filing false or misleading information carries its own civil penalty of up to $10,000 per violation, separate from any criminal consequences. These amounts adjust annually for inflation.¹⁷

Criminal penalties apply when a person knowingly fails to file or knowingly submits false information. Conviction can bring a fine of up to $10,000 per violation, imprisonment for up to five years, or both, and forfeiture of the goods and any proceeds from the violation.¹⁸¹⁷

1
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.1 – Purpose and Definitions
2
International Trade Administration. Harmonized System (HS) Codes
3
United States Census Bureau. Schedule B
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United States Census Bureau. Census Bureau Schedule B Search Engine
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. CROSS – Access to Rulings Issued by Customs
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United States Census Bureau. Contact Us
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World Customs Organization. General Rules for the Interpretation of the Harmonized System
8
United States Census Bureau. Exporting With Import Classification Numbers
9
eCFR. 15 CFR Part 30, Subpart D – Exemptions From the Requirements for the Filing of Electronic Export Information
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eCFR. 15 CFR 30.2 – General Requirements for Filing Electronic Export Information
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eCFR. 15 CFR 758.1 – The Electronic Export Information (EEI) Filing to the Automated Export System (AES)
12
International Trade Administration. Electronic Export Information (EEI)
13
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.37 – Miscellaneous Exemptions
14
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.4 – Electronic Export Information Filing Procedures, Deadlines, and Certification Statements
15
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.3 – Electronic Export Information Filer Requirements, Parties to Export Transactions, and Responsibilities
16
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.10 – Retention of Export Information and the Authority to Require Production of Documents
17
eCFR. 15 CFR 30.71 – False or Fraudulent Reporting on or Misuse of the Automated Export System
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 13 U.S. Code 305 – Penalties for Unlawful Export Information Activities