Chapter 85 · Electrical machinery and equipment

HS 854149 · Other PV / photosensitive semiconductor devices

Get the code right at quotation time, not at customs.

Misclassifying HS 854149 on the commercial invoice walks the cargo into the wrong duty rate, the wrong rebate column, and a customs hold that costs days of demurrage to clear. This page gives you the WCO heading, the product it most often covers, the China VAT export rebate rate, the US Section 301 status, the supplier provinces that ship it, and practitioner buying notes for first-time importers.

For an explanation of how the WCO Harmonized System is structured, what each digit means, and why misclassification is the most common landed-cost error first-time buyers make, see the HS code glossary entry.

Key facts

The numbers a buyer needs at the quotation stage. Verify each against the live source before invoicing; rates and rebate columns move.

WCO heading Other photovoltaic / photosensitive semiconductor devices
Chapter 85, Electrical machinery and equipment
Industry segment Semiconductors and ICs
Chinese name 其他光敏半导体器件
China VAT export rebate 13% Source: China State Taxation Administration (国家税务总局), 2025 schedule. Subject to change.
US Section 301 25% Source: USTR Section 301 List 1 / 2 / 3 / 4. Verify against the current schedule.
Major Chinese supplier provinces Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui

Buying notes

Other photovoltaic and photosensitive devices not covered by 854141 (modules) or 854142 (modules with inverters). Includes raw PV cells, optical sensors, photodiodes, and infrared sensors. Section 301 25%. The PV-cell sub-category specifically is the segment most affected by the US AD/CVD case and forced-labour (UFLPA) detentions on Xinjiang-polysilicon-traced supply; verify the polysilicon origin chain through the entire bill-of-materials before booking US-bound cargo.

Common end uses

The applications that drive most of the global tonnage under this code.

  • Standalone PV cell trade (downstream module assembly)
  • Industrial optical sensors
  • IR remote-control receivers
  • Light-meter and ambient-light sensors
  • Optical communication photodetectors

Where to read next

For the structure of the HS / Harmonized System, what each digit means, and why misclassification costs landed-cost margin, see the HS code glossary entry.

Need a quote on this code? Send us the HS code, the destination port, and the tonnage and we will quote FOB China and CIF / DDP landed including the current Section 301 and rebate position.

Free download

Free PDF: thirty-point factory audit checklist used on every chemical-park site visit, mapped against the HS-code-leading Chinese producers.