HS Code Lookup for Heading 5203

52.03 ‑ Cotton, carded or combed.

This heading covers cotton (including garnetted stock and other cotton waste) which has been carded or combed, whether or not further prepared for spinning.

The main purpose of carding is to disentangle the cotton fibres, lay them more or less parallel, and entirely or largely free them from any extraneous matter they may still contain. The fibres are then in the form of wide webs (laps) which are generally condensed into slivers. These slivers may or may not be combed before being converted into rovings.

Combing, which is chiefly practised for the spinning of long staple cotton, removes the last traces of extraneous matter clinging to the fibres and eliminates the shorter fibres in the form of combing waste; only the longer fibres, lying parallel, remain.

The slivers, whether or not combed, undergo a series of doubling and drawing processes on drawing frames and roving frames, emerging from the latter as rovings. It should be noted that rovings may, on leaving the roving frames, have approximately the same diameter as the single yarn of heading 52.05 or 52.06, and that they are slightly twisted; however, since they have not been spun, they do not yet constitute yarns and remain in this heading.

Slivers are generally coiled into cans, whereas rovings are usually put up on large bobbins. Laps are normally rolled onto wooden rollers.

The products of this heading may be bleached or dyed.

Carded cotton in sliver form as used by hairdressers (sometimes called “barbers’ wadding”) is classified in this heading, but cotton wadding falls in heading 56.01 or, if medicated or put up in packings for retail sale for medical or surgical purposes, in heading 30.05.