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HS 2523.90Building materials

HS Code for GGBS / Slag Cement (HS 2523.90)

Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) is a supplementary cementitious material from steel-making. CEM III (36-95% slag), CEM II/A-S and B-S (blended slag cements) drastically cut embedded CO2 vs pure OPC. Under CBAM, GGBS-heavy formulations can cut certificate cost by 50-70%.

Reviewed against WCO HS · WTO IDB · National customs schedules4 authoritative sourcesLast reviewed July 2026

Sample 6-digit codes

CodeDescription
2618.00Granulated slag (slag sand) from iron/steel manufacture
2523.90Other hydraulic cements (includes slag cement)
Need to check a specific code? Use the free HS code lookup tool.

Typical import duty by market

MarketDuty
European Union
0-1.7%
CBAM 2026 - GGBS slag itself is not CBAM-covered as raw material.
United States
0%
India (BCD)
10%

Worked landed-cost example

20,000 MT GGBS Grade 100, FOB Nagoya USD 85/MT, CFR Los Angeles

FOBUSD 1,700,000
Freight (Panamax)USD 550,000
CFRUSD 2,250,000
US dutyUSD 0
Landed ≈ USD 2.25m. Sold to ready-mix concrete producers.
Run your own numbers in the import duty & tax calculator.
Regulatory checkpoints
  • · EN 15167 for GGBS.
  • · ASTM C989 slag classification (Grade 80, 100, 120).
  • · EN 197-1 CEM III classifications.
  • · CBAM: GGBS (2618.00) is currently outside CBAM scope, but slag cement (2523.90) is inside - creates an arbitrage on formulation.
Top exporting countries
  • · Japan (Nippon Steel)
  • · South Korea (POSCO)
  • · India (JSW, Tata)
  • · China
  • · Turkey

Frequently asked questions

Is slag itself CBAM-covered?

Currently no - HS 2618.00 (granulated slag) is not on CBAM Annex I. Only slag cement (2523.90) and clinker (2523.10)-based products are covered. Importing GGBS separately and blending at destination avoids CBAM certificates on the slag portion - a real economic advantage.

Destination market toolkits

Country-specific duty, VAT/GST and Incoterms practice for the top destinations for building materials.

Import into India →
IGST on imports · 5% / 12% / 18% / 28%
Import into China →
Import VAT · 13% standard, 9% reduced, 6% services
Import into United States →
No federal VAT / GST · 0% federal
Import into Germany →
VAT (Umsatzsteuer / Einfuhrumsatzsteuer) · 19% standard, 7% reduced
Import into Türkiye →
KDV (VAT) · 20% standard, 10% reduced, 1% basic goods (from July 2023)
Import into Japan →
Consumption Tax (JCT) · 10% standard / 8% reduced (food, newspapers)

Building materials landed-cost pages: every destination market

Jump straight to the building materials import guide for any of the destination markets we cover.

Related commodity guides

HS 25Building materials
HS Code for Cement and Clinker (Chapter 25) →
HS 2523.10Building materials
HS Code for Cement Clinker (HS 2523.10) →
HS 2523.29Building materials
HS Code for Grey Portland Cement (HS 2523.29) →
HS 2523.21Building materials
HS Code for White Portland Cement (HS 2523.21) →

Related tools

HS Code Lookup →
Search harmonised codes across 21 sections.
Import Duty & Tax →
Landed cost with duty, VAT/GST and cess.
Landed Cost by HS & Country →
Duty + VAT/GST + Incoterm split for this HS.
CIF ↔ FOB Converter →
Convert customs value between Incoterms.

Sources & citations

Duty rates and regulations compiled from WCO HS, WTO integrated database, national customs authorities and published FTA schedules. Provided for decision-support only - confirm the 10-digit line and current preferential status with your licensed customs broker before acting.

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