This page sits under the Mulia Charcoal Logistics pillar and is the template for our import-by-country guides. It covers the US customs mechanics end to end. Logistics overview
Quick answer
How do you import coconut charcoal to the USA?
Coconut charcoal enters the USA under HTS heading 4402 at a Free base duty, plus a 10% Section 301 duty in force since 24 July 2026, whose exclusion status for 4402 is unconfirmed. Your licensed customs broker files the ISF 10+2, posts the customs bond and submits CBP Form 7501. The FDA regulates hookah charcoal as a tobacco-product component.
US import at a glance
Classification, headline duty, and who clears the cargo.
- HTS classification
- Candidates under heading 4402 (both Free base duty)
- Headline duty
- MFN Free + a 10% Section 301 duty (since 24 July 2026)
- Entry documents
- ISF 10+2, customs bond, CBP Form 7501
- Customs clearance
- Buyer's licensed customs broker
- FDA
- Hookah charcoal is a regulated tobacco-product component
- Trade term
- FOB Tanjung Emas (Semarang) · CIF/CFR on request
1. What buyers in this market order
Across the markets these guides cover, every recurring account takes a printed inner box or inner plastic packed into a master carton, and every account is private label: our briquette, your brand on the box.
This comes from our own order book — the recurring accounts we ship to in this market. It describes what those buyers reorder, not the full range we produce.
Order profile
- Cube size
- 25, 26 and 27 mm
- Grade
- Super Premium and Platinum
- Inner unit
- 1 kg inner box or 1 kg plastic
- Master carton
- 10 kg
- Container
- 40 ft
- Reorder cadence
- Every month
Every one of those accounts reorders. These are repeat programs, not one-off trial containers.
Note
What the markets these guides cover buy is not the whole ladder — every grade we produce is specified on the grades page.
Order book as of 2026-09-19
2. Who handles what
Who does what on a container shipment: we export and document; you and your customs broker clear and deliver at destination.
The factory handles
- Production and per-batch quality control, each batch with a Certificate of Analysis
- Dangerous-goods-compliant packing, UN 1361 marking, and the safety data sheet (SDS)
- Export documentation — commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, certificate of origin, dangerous-goods declaration, and the SP 978 weathering report
- Delivery to Tanjung Emas (Semarang) under FOB, plus booking support
You and your customs broker handle
- Ocean freight booking under FOB — or we quote CIF/CFR to your port on request
- Destination customs declaration and clearance
- Import duty, VAT or equivalent taxes, and destination port charges
- FDA tobacco-product compliance — establishment registration, product listing, and PMTA status — and clearing any Import Alert 98-06 hold
- Final inland delivery to your warehouse
3. HTS classification
Coconut shell charcoal falls under HTS heading 4402. Two 10-digit codes are candidates; both carry a Free base (MFN) duty, so the exact code does not change the base rate. A CBP binding-ruling request would settle it — confirm classification with your customs broker.
Candidate codes:
-
4402.20.00.00
"Of shell or nut" — most precise for coconut shell charcoal; base duty Free.
-
4402.90.01.00
Residual "Other"; base duty Free. Legacy CBP ruling N306942 (2019) cited 4402.90.0000 before the post-2022 renumbering.
Note: Both candidates carry a Free base (MFN) duty, so the exact 10-digit code does not change the rate; a CBP binding-ruling request would settle it. Confirm classification with your customs broker.
4. Duties & fees
US duty on heading 4402 is a layered stack, and the reciprocal-tariff layer is in active legal flux. Read it as a dated stack with a legal-status flag, not a single number.
| Layer | Rate | As of | Legal status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base MFN duty (heading 4402) Most-favored-nation; applies to all candidates Source (opens in new tab) | Free | 2026-06-15 | — |
| Section 301 duty (forced-labor action) USTR Section 301 action of 23 July 2026 (91 FR 47318): Indonesia is in the 10% group. Applies to goods entered on or after 24 July 2026, on top of the Free MFN base. Source (opens in new tab) | 10% | 2026-09-25 | In force since 24 July 2026. The notice excludes some products (Annex II, Parts A and L for Indonesia); whether heading 4402 is among them is not confirmed — pending a check against the annex by your customs broker. |
| Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) Formal entry; minimum $34.58, maximum $670.86 per entry (FY2027, from 1 October 2026) Source (opens in new tab) | 0.3464% | 2026-09-25 | — |
| Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) Vessel imports only; assessed on cargo value Source (opens in new tab) | 0.125% | 2026-06-15 | — |
Verified as of the date shown; duties and tariffs change without notice — confirm with your customs broker at booking.
How the reciprocal layer moved
The MFN base is Free. The additional layer has changed legal basis three times in 2026. The IEEPA reciprocal tariff (+32% from April 2025; about 19% under the US–Indonesia agreement of February 2026) was voided by the Supreme Court on 20 February 2026. A 10% Section 122 surcharge replaced it from 24 February 2026 and reached its 150-day statutory limit on 24 July 2026. The same day, a 10% Section 301 duty on Indonesian-origin goods took effect (USTR action of 23 July 2026, 91 FR 47318). Expect it to move again; confirm the live rate with your broker at booking.
Anti-dumping / countervailing
No anti-dumping or countervailing-duty order was found for Chapter 44 charcoal from Indonesia in the ITA database; confirm with your customs broker.
5. Landed-cost worked example
Landed cost is the sum of the goods, the freight, and the import charges. The structure below holds for any lane; the duty components are public verified figures, while the FOB and freight are illustrative and quoted at booking.
- FOB goods value
- Illustrative only — your actual FOB applies
- Ocean freight + DG surcharges
- Quoted on request (indicative)
- Duties & fees
- From the duty stack above (MFN Free + Section 301 + MPF + HMF)
- Landed cost
- FOB + freight + duties & fees
The formula is shown so you can plug in your own figures. The indicative FOB range per grade is published on the pricing pillar, and the landed-cost page carries this same layer model with a calculator that runs on your own freight quote — both are linked under Related topics below. Live numbers for your order are quoted at booking.
6. The entry process
US entry for a UN 1361 container follows the standard CBP sequence, handled by the buyer's customs broker with data we supply.
Step by step:
-
ISF 10+2
The Importer Security Filing (ISF, "10+2") must be transmitted at least 24 hours before the cargo is laden aboard the vessel at the origin port. The importer files ten data elements: seller; buyer; importer-of-record number; consignee number; manufacturer or supplier; ship-to party; country of origin; HTSUS number; container stuffing location; and consolidator.
-
Customs bond
A continuous or single-entry customs bond is required and must include ISF provisions; ISF penalties run to $5,000 per violation, up to $10,000 per filing.
-
Entry summary
Entry is finalized on CBP Form 7501; the data is reusable between the ISF and the 7501.
7. Dangerous-goods handling at US ports
The cargo arrives as declared UN 1361, Class 4.2 dangerous goods, and is handled accordingly at the US port. The classification and the prevention controls are covered on the dangerous-goods pages.
What UN 1361 is The 2026 rules Insured arrival & cargo protection
8. FDA: hookah charcoal as a tobacco-product component
The FDA regulates hookah charcoal as a component or part of a tobacco product, so registration, listing and a PMTA apply before US introduction.
This is regulatory information, not legal advice — see the disclaimer below.
- Deeming Rule
- FDA Deeming Rule, 81 FR 28974 (10 May 2016; effective 8 August 2016).
- Scope
- Hookah charcoal is regulated as a component or part of a tobacco product when it maintains combustion of waterpipe tobacco (81 FR 28974 at 29019), regardless of the material it is made from.
- Requirements
- Establishment registration, product listing, and a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) before lawful US introduction — hookah charcoal is a new tobacco product, not grandfathered before 15 February 2007.
- Enforcement discretion
- The FDA has not adopted a broad enforcement-discretion policy for hookah charcoal; a pending application is not a safe harbor, the posture is not codified, and it can change without notice.
- Import enforcement
- Import Alert 98-06 (detention without physical examination of new tobacco products without marketing authorization); CBP may detain or refuse entry.
- Do not mislabel
- Labeling the product as BBQ or general-purpose charcoal does not change FDA jurisdiction; misbranded or adulterated tobacco products are subject to detention or refusal, and misdeclaration is separately actionable.
- Practical steps
- Work with US counsel and a customs broker experienced in tobacco-product entries before you ship; confirm registration, listing, and marketing-authorization status for your specific product.
Important
Regulatory information, not legal advice
This page summarizes US import and FDA requirements for general information only and is not legal advice. Tobacco-product regulation changes without notice and enforcement is fact-specific. Confirm your obligations with a licensed US customs broker and qualified counsel before importing.
9. Production and transit lead time
Production takes about 21 days for a 20-ft container and 21–25 days for a 40-ft; sea transit from Semarang (IDSRG) to Los Angeles and New York / New Jersey runs about 25–45 days, for an indicative 46–70 days from order to arrival. A first order under a new brand adds 7–10 days to the production stage.
Class 4.2 dangerous-goods bookings need extra lead time, so book early. The SP 978 weathering window (at least 14 days) is part of our production and packing schedule, not added on top of it when the order is planned ahead.
Indicative only — subject to vessel schedule and booking confirmation, and never a guaranteed arrival date.
10. US ports & routing
Indicative ocean transit from Semarang (IDSRG) to the main US gateways:
- Los Angeles, USA (West Coast) (USLAX): about 25–32 days.
- New York / New Jersey, USA (East Coast) (USNYC): about 35–45 days.
Indicative; varies by line and season. Last updated 2026-06-23.
Frequently asked questions
What is the HTS code for coconut charcoal?
What duty or tariff applies in the USA?
Do I need a customs broker?
Which US ports do you ship to?
Is hookah charcoal FDA-regulated / do I need a PMTA?
What is Enforcement Discretion?
Sources
- Harmonized Tariff Schedule (opens in new tab), U.S. International Trade Commission
- Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations of Acts, Policies, and Practices of Various Economies Related to the Failure of Each Economy To Impose and Effectively Enforce a Prohibition on the Importation of Goods Produced With Forced Labor (opens in new tab), Office of the United States Trade Representative (Federal Register)
- Customs User Fees To Be Adjusted for Inflation in Fiscal Year 2027 (opens in new tab), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Federal Register)
- 19 CFR 24.24 — Harbor maintenance fee (opens in new tab), Code of Federal Regulations, Title 19 (U.S. Government Publishing Office, edition revised as of 1 April 2025) — accessed