Customs Tariff Chapter 78: Lead and articles thereof
Section XV - Base metals and articles of base metal
Finin2min Summary — in 2 Minutes
Chapter 78 covers lead and articles thereof. It is a classification chapter of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, not a static duty card. The recurring classification risk is unwrought lead versus waste/scrap, rolled products and other lead articles, together with environmental controls on lead-bearing waste.
A defensible declaration begins with the goods as imported, the Section and Chapter Notes and GRI 1. The Supreme Court in Commissioner of Customs (Import) v Welkin Foods, 2026 INSC 19, reaffirmed that heading terms and legal Notes come first and that later GRIs are sequential tools, not shortcuts.
Heading architecture of Chapter 78
Use this heading map only after reading the applicable legal Notes. Final classification must descend to the live Indian 8-digit tariff item in force on the bill-of-entry date.
| Heading(s) | Architecture |
|---|---|
| 7801 | Unwrought lead |
| 7802 | Lead waste and scrap |
| 7804 | Lead plates, sheets, strip and foil; lead powders and flakes |
| 7806 | Other articles of lead |
Do not fill gaps in the heading sequence with obsolete or deleted headings from old tariff masters. Indian 8-digit subdivisions can also change without altering the broad four-digit heading title.
Legal boundaries and exclusions
- Fix the product in its imported condition before looking at rates. For Chapter 78, the evidence file should cover lead content and alloy composition, unwrought versus scrap/waste condition, plate/sheet/strip/foil dimensions, contamination and waste status, finished-article function.
- Apply the legal Notes for Section XV and Chapter 78 before choosing a heading. A commercial name can be narrower, broader or simply different from the tariff concept.
- If the product is a mixture, composite, unfinished article, set/combination or part, apply the relevant Notes and GRIs sequentially; do not jump directly to essential character.
- Keep the strongest competing heading in the working paper and state exactly which Note, objective product fact or GRI step eliminates it.
- Treat classification, exemption, preferential origin, trade-remedy duty and import admissibility as separate legal tests.
Chapter-specific focus: unwrought lead versus waste/scrap, rolled products and other lead articles, together with environmental controls on lead-bearing waste. A short contemporaneous classification memorandum should record the competing heading, the decisive Note or product fact, and why the alternative was rejected.
How to classify goods in this chapter
- Freeze the facts before the rate. Collect lead content and alloy composition, unwrought versus scrap/waste condition, plate/sheet/strip/foil dimensions, contamination and waste status, finished-article function.
- Read Section and Chapter Notes. They can exclude goods even where a heading title appears commercially attractive.
- Apply GRI 1 first. Match objective goods to heading terms and Notes.
- Use GRI 2 only when its trigger exists. Incomplete/unfinished goods and mixtures require careful legal analysis.
- Move through GRI 3 and 4 only if earlier rules genuinely fail. Do not manufacture ambiguity to reach a preferred rate.
- Apply GRI 5 and GRI 6. Treat containers/cases where relevant and compare subheadings only at the same level.
- Lock the material date. Confirm Finance Act, exemption and DGFT code changes effective on the bill-of-entry date.
- Calculate duty only after classification. Then test BCD, SWS, import IGST/cess, tariff value, trade remedies, exemption and preference/origin.
2025–26 statutory and tariff update
From 1 May 2026, the applicable BCD rate on lead waste and scrap is incorporated into the First Schedule instead of being carried through Notification 45/2025-Customs; the corresponding exemption entry is omitted and the official memorandum states there is no change in the applicable rate of duty.
The 2026 review must be read together with the Finance Act, 2026, Notification 02/2026-Customs and the consolidated exemption structure that refers back to Notification 45/2025-Customs. A tariffisation can move an applied rate into the First Schedule without changing the percentage; a code split can alter declaration architecture even where the effective duty is unchanged.
DGFT Notification 24/2026-27 dated 22 July 2026 synchronised ITC(HS) 2022 Schedule-I with Finance Act 2026 changes. For an affected tariff line, check customs classification and import-policy code together rather than copying a pre-July 2026 master.
Duty, exemption, origin and trade-remedy layer
After the 8-digit CTI is fixed, calculate import incidence independently. Verify the First Schedule BCD, the operative general or specific exemption notification, SWS treatment, import IGST/cess, any tariff value, and anti-dumping, countervailing or safeguard duty that applies to the product, origin and exporter.
A preferential FTA rate is not a classification concession. The correct CTI must first be selected, and the origin claim must independently satisfy the applicable Rules of Origin and CAROTAR evidence requirements. Likewise, do not reverse-engineer a tariff heading from the exemption that produces the lowest duty.
Where a concession is conditional on end use, certification, manufacturing use, importer status or bond procedure, preserve evidence for every condition. An eligible description without evidence of the notification conditions does not establish entitlement.
Import-policy and allied-law controls
For Chapter 78, separately check:
- DGFT metallic scrap policy
- Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules / MoEFCC permissions where applicable
- Battery Waste Management Rules where lead battery waste is involved
- BIS/QCO requirements where notified
Correct customs classification does not itself establish importability. Restricted/prohibited goods, items requiring licence or NOC, QCO-controlled products, hazardous/waste goods, wildlife-linked products or regulated consumer goods can remain non-clearable despite a technically correct tariff code.
Case law and classification doctrine
| Authority | Principle | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Commissioner of Customs (Import) v Welkin Foods, 2026 INSC 19 | Start with GRI 1, heading terms and Section/Chapter Notes. Later GRIs are sequential. HSN explanatory material is an important interpretive aid. | Supreme Court |
| Dunlop India Ltd. v Union of India, Supreme Court (1975) | Classify the imported article by the tariff language and its objective identity; end use is not decisive unless the entry makes it relevant. | Judgment text |
| Chapter-specific research position | Item-level rulings must be checked against the exact tariff text and material date. No judgment should be used as a substitute for current Section/Chapter Notes. | Research cut-off: 5 Oct 2026 |
Material-date rule: older decisions can retain a useful classification principle while producing a different current result after an HS amendment, Note change or Indian 8-digit restructuring.
Worked example
A consignment of lead-bearing material is invoiced as “lead scrap”. First establish whether it is genuine metal scrap or regulated hazardous waste/battery waste. If it is legally importable scrap, classify under the live 7802 item and, for post-1 May 2026 entries, source the applicable BCD from the First Schedule rather than an obsolete exemption master.
A Finin2min-grade working paper should then record: product facts; candidate headings; decisive Note/GRI; selected 8-digit CTI; 2026 effective-date check; exemption/preference tested; DGFT status; allied licences/NOCs/QCO evidence; and the primary-source extracts relied upon.
For repeated high-value imports, keep a controlled product master with revision dates. If the physical specification changes, the classification conclusion must be re-tested rather than mechanically reused.
Evidence and compliance checklist
- Commercial invoice, packing list and purchase order with a technically precise description.
- Manufacturer specification/process sheet covering lead content and alloy composition, unwrought versus scrap/waste condition, plate/sheet/strip/foil dimensions, contamination and waste status, finished-article function.
- Certificate of analysis, laboratory report, technical drawing, catalogue, sample photograph or other objective evidence where the tariff test depends on measurable characteristics.
- Current Section/Chapter/Supplementary Notes and the precise Indian 8-digit tariff item for the material date.
- Finance Act and Budget change extract where the CTI, rate or exemption architecture changed in 2026.
- Operative exemption/concession and proof for each substantive condition.
- FTA certificate/origin records and CAROTAR documents where preference is claimed.
- DGFT policy extract, licence/NOC and BIS/QCO/quarantine/wildlife/environmental or sectoral evidence where applicable.
- Signed internal classification note explaining the rejected competing heading and date of legal review.
Common mistakes
- Using the overseas supplier’s HS code as if it were automatically the Indian 8-digit CTI.
- Selecting the heading from end use where the tariff text does not make use or adaptation decisive.
- Searching exemptions or lower rates before fixing classification.
- Continuing a pre-2026 CTI, concession or code after a Finance Act/DGFT change.
- Treating an earlier bill of entry, broker precedent or portal result as primary legal authority.
- Ignoring objective composition, construction, dimensions, processing stage or laboratory evidence.
- Applying old case law without checking whether the legal Notes or heading text changed.
Scrap classification and environmental admissibility are separate
Heading 7802 answers a tariff-classification question; it does not answer whether the material may legally be imported as waste. Contamination, battery origin and hazardous characteristics can trigger environmental permissions, port conditions and documentary controls independent of customs classification.
The 2026 tariffisation is also a systems-control issue: the effective rate may be unchanged while the legal source of that rate moves from an exemption entry into the First Schedule. Duty engines that retain only the old notification route can fail after the cut-over date.
Where the answer depends on a threshold, measurement or constituent material, preserve the underlying test result in the customs file. A conclusion unsupported by the measurable fact is difficult to defend in reassessment, audit or litigation.
Finin2min Q&A
Does this chapter page provide the final customs duty?
No. It provides the legal classification route and highlights current changes. Final incidence depends on the live 8-digit tariff item, exemption, SWS, IGST/cess, trade remedies and preference/origin on the material date.
Can a past bill of entry determine classification?
No. Past clearance can be evidence of practice, but every declaration must remain legally correct for its own product facts and date. A repeated historical error does not become the tariff law.
When should technical testing be obtained?
Before filing when composition, dimensions, species, manufacturing stage, construction, coating or another measurable property controls the heading. Contemporaneous testing is stronger than reconstructing facts after clearance.
When is an advance ruling worth considering?
For repeated or high-value imports with stable specifications where genuine classification uncertainty remains after Notes/GRI analysis, a Customs advance ruling can be considered. The factual description must match the goods actually imported.
Primary sources and current-law trail
- Finance Act, 2026 - Gazette of India.
- Union Budget 2026-27 - Changes in Customs.
- Notification 02/2026-Customs.
- CBIC Tax Information Portal for operative Customs law, notifications and circulars.
- DGFT for ITC(HS) Schedule-I and Notification 24/2026-27.
- Supreme Court - Welkin Foods.
Source hierarchy: Gazette/Customs Tariff Act and operative notifications control. DGFT controls import policy. Judicial authorities interpret legal text. Commercial databases and old bills of entry are research aids only.
Professional disclaimer. Educational and professional reference only. Verify the exact Customs Tariff item, effective Finance Act amendment, exemption notification, trade-remedy measure, DGFT policy and product-specific regulatory requirement for the bill-of-entry date before reliance.