Importing coconut charcoal to the USA

What buyers in this market order

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

Across the five markets these guides cover, every account takes a 1 kg inner unit — printed box or plastic — packed into a master carton, and every account is private label: our briquette, your brand on the box.

Packaging formats and master-carton options · Private label and white label

Every one of those accounts reorders. These are repeat programs, not one-off trial containers.

What these five markets buy is not the whole ladder — every grade we produce is specified on the grades page.

The full grade ladder · Indicative FOB price per ton

Order book as of 2026-09-19

Who handles what

The division of labour for a 18 tons (one 20ft container) shipment. We export and document; you and your customs broker clear and deliver at destination.

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.

  Source (opens in new tab)

• 4402.90.01.00

  Residual "Other"; base duty Free. Legacy CBP ruling N306942 (2019) cited 4402.90.0000 before the post-2022 renumbering.

  Source (opens in new tab)

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.

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.

Verified as of the date shown; duties and tariffs change without notice — confirm with your customs broker at booking.

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 122 + 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.

What your incoterm covers (FOB and the freight split)→

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:

1. 1. 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.
2. 2. 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.
3. 3. Entry summary. Entry is finalized on CBP Form 7501; the data is reusable between the ISF and the 7501.

The export documents we supply→

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

FDA: hookah charcoal as a tobacco-product component

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.

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.

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 2026-06-22.