Archived – Standard Classification of Transported Goods (SCTG)

Notes: SCTG Classification Highlights

1. Fish, which is classified in 01, "Live animals and live fish" does not include seafood. Seafood, which is classified in 05204, "Seafood...", consists of crustaceans, molluscs, and other aquatic invertebrates.
2. Live fish are classified in 01 with live animals, but live seafood are classified in 052, with other processed seafood and with fish except live.
3. SCTG 0334, "Fresh or dried nuts", does not include fresh or dried peanuts (ground nuts), which are classified in 03501, "Peanuts, not roasted, including for sowing", but processed or prepared peanuts are included in the same category as similarly prepared nuts, in SCTG 07232, "Processed or prepared nuts, peanuts, or seeds, except shelled and purées and pastes, but including roasted nuts, peanut butter, and mixtures of processed nuts".
4. Seeds for sowing are classified in several areas in SCTG. Cereal grain seeds are classified in 02, "Cereal grains"; leguminous vegetable seeds are classified in 03221, "Leguminous vegetables such as peas and beans, and seeds"; soya bean seeds are classified in 034, "Soya beans"; seeds for other oil seeds are classified in 035, "Oil seeds and nuts, except olives and soya beans"; seeds for spices are classified in 07303, "Spices including unprocessed"; and miscellaneous seeds are classified in 03602, "Seeds for sowing n.e.c., including sugar-beet, grass and other forage, tobacco, ornamental flowers, trees, vetches, lupines, and vegetables except seed vegetables".
5. Products of animal origin are classified in several areas in SCTG. Meat and edible meat offal is classified in 05, "Meat, fish, seafood and preparations"; dairy products are classified in 071, "Dairy products except chocolate milk, eggnog, and food preparations of milk"; animal fats and oils are classified in 074, "Animal or vegetable fats and oil and their cleavage products, prepared edible fats, animal or vegetable waxes, and flours and meal of oil seeds"; and miscellaneous products of animal origin are classified in 041, "Cereal straw or husks, forage products, residues and waste from the food industries used in animal feeding, and eggs and other products of animal origin n.e.c.".
6. SCTG 062, "Malt, starches, inulin, wheat gluten, and milled or otherwise worked grains except wheat flour, groats, and meal" also includes non-grain products such as potato flakes and flour and pea flour.
7. SCTG 0724, "Juices except those fortified with vitamins or minerals, but including mixtures" includes neither nectars nor fortified juices, which are classified in 07899, "Other including ice, nectars, chocolate partially skimmed milk, strawberry-flavoured milk, eggnog, non-alcoholic beer or wine, and juice fortified with vitamins or minerals, not concentrated".
8. SCTG 076, "Confectionery, cocoa, and cocoa preparations" does not include sugarless sweets such as sugarless gum, which are classified in 07799, "Other including protein concentrates, vegetable preparations for flavouring, jelly powders, sugarless gum, milk or cream substitutes, canned mincemeat, cheese fondue, concentrated juice fortified with vitamins or minerals, tofu, and vinegar".
9. Ice, classified in 07899, does not include dry ice (carbon dioxide), which is classified in 20241, "carbon dioxide".
10. SCTG 1002, "Monumental or building stone except calcareous and dolomite" also includes slate.
11. Non-metallic minerals are classified in several areas in SCTG. Monumental or building stone is classified in 10; natural sands are classified in 11; gravel and crushed stone are classified in 12; fertilizer minerals such as potassium chloride, and carnallite, sylvite, and other crude natural potassium salts are classified in 22, "Fertilizers and fertilizer materials"; and miscellaneous non-metallic minerals are classified in 13, "Non-metallic-minerals n.e.c.".
12. SCTG 199, "Other products of petroleum refining and coal products" also include some unrefined bituminous minerals such as natural asphalt, tar sands, and asphaltites and asphaltic rocks.
13. SCTG 21, "Pharmaceutical products" does not include foods or beverages such as dietetic, diabetic, or fortified foods, which are classified in 07, "Prepared foodstuffs n.e.c. and fats and oils"; aqueous solutions of essential oils and toilet preparations, which are classified in 232, "Essential oils and resinoids, and perfumery, cosmetics, or toilet preparations"; soaps and cleaning preparations, which are classified in 233, "Soap, organic surface-active agents, cleaning preparations, polishes and creams, and scouring preparations"; inputs to the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, which are classified in 20503, "Sulphonamides, provitamins and vitamins, hormones, glycosides or vegetable alkaloids and their derivatives, antibiotics, and chemically pure sugars n.e.c. such as galactose, sorbose, xylose, trehalose, and raffinose"; or plasters for use in dentistry, which are classified in 31939, "Other articles of plaster or of composites based on plaster including models and casts used in the manufacture of dental prostheses, and plaster and putty including for making metal-casting moulds".
14. SCTG 22, "Fertilizers and fertilizer materials" includes chemicals used as or in fertilizers, such as nitric acid, phosphoric acid, and ammonia, even if they are to be used for non-fertilizer purposes.
15. SCTG 291, "Printed books, brochures, leaflets, and similar printed products" does not include catalogues, which are classified in SCTG 293, "Advertising materials, commercial or trade catalogues, and similar printed products", stationery books such as exercise books and accounting journals, atlases, or music books, which are classified in 299, "Other printed products".
16. SCTG 302, "Textile clothing and accessories, and headgear except safety" does not include leather or fur garments, which are classified in 305, "Leather and articles, luggage and related products, and dressed furskins and articles"; or sport equipment, which are classified in 402, "Toys, games, and sporting equipment"; but it does include artificial fur and artificial leather garments, as well as plastic or rubber clothing.
17. Foil is deemed to be a basic shape and therefore, classified in SCTG 32, "Metal in primary or semi-finished forms and in finished basic shapes". It is classified in 322, if of iron or steel; 32411, if of copper; 32423, if of aluminum; and 32499, if of other non-ferrous metals. It should be noted that for Canadian purposes only, nickel and zinc have been broken out to SCTG 32492 and 32493 respectively. For comparison purposes, Canadian data for 32492, 32493, 32499 should be compared to U.S. data for SCTG 32499.
18. Articles of precious metal include anything that contains "pure" precious metals or clad with precious metals. Articles that are only coated with precious metals are not deemed to be precious-metal articles.
19. Parts and accessories are classified with the products to which they apply, unless otherwise specified.
20. SCTG 3413, "Parts of internal-combustion piston engines" does not include fuel-injection or oil pumps, which are classified in 3431, "Pumps for liquids"; engine crank shafts and cam shafts and gear-boxes, which are classified in 3497, "Ball or roller bearings, transmission shafts and cranks, bearing housings and plain shaft bearings, gears and gearing, ball and roller screws, gear boxes and other speed changers, flywheels and pulleys, and clutches and shaft couplings"; or electrical ignition or starting equipment and spark plugs, which are classified in 35991, "Ignition or starting equipment and spark plugs used for spark-ignition or compression-ignition internal combustion engines, generators including dynamos and alternators, cutouts used with internal combustion engines, and ignition wiring sets including wire assemblies".
21. SCTG 345, "Materials-handling, excavating, boring, and related equipment" includes self-propelled construction and mining machinery.
22. SCTG 35621, "Computer software" includes instruction manuals if packaged with the software. Separately presented software and other computer manuals are classified in 291.
23. SCTG 3552, "Office equipment" does not include photocopying machines, which are classified in 3822, "Photocopying and thermocopying apparatus".
24. Military vehicles are classified according to their primary function. Those designed to transport only a few men are classified in 361, "Motor vehicles for the transport of less than 10 people except motorcycles, armoured fighting vehicles, snowmobiles, golf carts and similar vehicles, and parts"; those designed to transport many men are classified in 3632, "Vehicles for the transport of people with a seating capacity of 10 or more persons, except parts"; those designed to transport goods are classified in 362, "Motor vehicles for the transport of goods and road tractors for semi-trailers, except parts"; and those designed to fight military battles are classified in 36391, "Armoured fighting vehicles including tanks and parts".
25. Waste and scrap does not include agricultural or food waste and scrap, which is primarily classified in SCTG 041, "Cereal straw or husks, forage products, residues and waste from the food industries used in animal feeding, and eggs and other products of animal origin n.e.c.". A separate class has been created for garbage, SCTG 41901, since the metal, glass, and wood components cannot be identified as the waste categories of SCTG 41 require. In addition, these other components have some inherent value, where as the garbage does not.
26. Some most-detailed SCTG categories contain HS or SCG components that, in theory, apply to more than one SCTG category, but which, in practise have been "forced" to what was deemed to be the single-most appropriate SCTG category. As an example, see HS 0204.50, "Meat of goats [including frozen]" is forced to SCTG 05111, which is fresh meat.