Successful conclusion of the 74th Session of the Harmonized System Committee

The 74^th Session of the Harmonized System Committee has concluded on a high note, successfully concluding an eighty-item agenda.

The meeting, chaired by Mr. Tom Peter Beris from the United States, was attended in-person by 70 members from 69 countries and the European Union. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) also participated in-person as observers.

The Session was officially opened by Mr. Ian Saunders, the Secretary General, at the WCO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

In his opening remarks, the Secretary General expressed his appreciation for the work of the Committee in advancing the Harmonized System (HS). He emphasized the HS's critical role in global trade and the Committee's responsibility to ensure its correct and uniform application. Acknowledging the Committee's contributions to public health, security, and environmental sustainability through the accurate classification of goods and the update of provisions, he noted the active work in this cycle addressing recent global challenges such as health crises, trade disruptions, security threats, and climate change. He highlighted the HS as the backbone of global trade, facilitating revenue collection, policy implementation, and protection against hazardous materials.

The Secretary General also stressed the importance of Green Customs initiatives and the role of the HS plays in this in providing a framework for the classification of environmental goods and hazardous substances. This underlined the ongoing efforts of the HS Committee to enhance the extent and quality of environmentally focused provisions in the next HS edition. He also mentioned the Exploratory Study on the Strategic Review of the HS, which assessed the current health and future sustainability of the HS, inviting the Committee to consider the recommendations arising from the Study. He concluded by emphasizing the collaboration with international organizations, the private sector, and environmental groups, and expressed confidence in the Committee's efforts to achieve meaningful outcomes for global trade and security.

The Chairperson noted that this Session was the penultimate session before the provisionally adopted amendments for HS 2028 were submitted to the Council for adoption, and that the heavy agenda reflected this. He also noted that the agenda included a number of challenging issues faced by colleagues working at the border and expressed his appreciation for being able to come together as experts to discuss and resolve these issues.

The Committee produced outstanding results over the ten days. This included examination of a wide range of work presented in the reports of the 64^th Session of the Review Sub-Committee and the HSC presessional Working Party.

In her closing remarks, the Acting Director, Ms. Gael Grooby, congratulated the Committee on the productivity of the session and highlighted the significant achievements.

The Committee examined all 80 items on the agenda items and, as a result, finalized 23 amendments to the HS 2028 Nomenclature, 7 amendments to the HS 2022 Explanatory Notes, 21 new Classification Opinions, the deletion of 2 Classification Opinions and 18 new classification decisions. In addition, the Committee made significant progress on the matters still subject to on-going discussions at its next Session.

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