ShipSeeker API
Programmatic U.S. duty & landed-cost lookups for brokers, forwarders, and ops teams. Drop real tariff math into your quoting tools, ERP, or spreadsheets — JSON in, JSON out.
The REST API is included with the Team plan ($149/mo — 10,000 calls/mo) and Broker (100,000/mo). Prefer pay-as-you-go? Prepaid credit packs start at $19 for 1,000 calls (1 credit = 1 call, never expire). Get your key on your account page · OpenAPI spec for Postman / Insomnia / Swagger. Connecting an AI agent instead? See the MCP server (included with Importer).
Authentication
Send your key in an Authorization: Bearer ss_live_… header (recommended). A ?key=ss_live_… query parameter also works but is discouraged — query strings get recorded in server, proxy, and browser logs. All responses are JSON; errors use standard HTTP status codes. Keys are stored hashed — if you lose one, regenerate it from your account.
Entitlement: a key works on the Team plan (10,000 calls/mo) or on pay-as-you-go credits — each billable call spends 1 credit and the response carries an X-Credits-Remaining header. When credits run out you get 402 Payment Required; top up on your account page. Credit packs: $19/1,000 · $49/5,000 · $99/20,000 calls.
Rate limit: 120 requests/minute per key (both modes). Every response includes an X-RateLimit-Remaining header; exceeding it returns 429.
Base duty + Section 301 + the forced-labor baseline tariff + CBP fees (MPF/HMF) + landed cost for one HTS code and origin.
| Param | Description |
|---|---|
| htsrequired | HTS code, e.g. 8507.60.00 (6/8/10-digit; resolves to the nearest line). |
| value | Customs value in USD. |
| origin | china, mfn, mx, ca, kr, … or col2 (Column 2). |
| s301 | China Section 301 rate: 25, 7.5, or none. |
| ocean | 1 to include the Harbor Maintenance Fee (ocean freight). |
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/duty?hts=8507.60.00&value=50000&origin=china&s301=25&ocean=1" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"hts": "8507.60.00",
"description": "Lithium-ion batteries",
"origin": "china",
"customs_value": 50000,
"duty_rate": "3.4%",
"rate_basis": "General (MFN)",
"duty": 1700,
"specific_rate": false,
"section_301": 12500,
"baseline_tariff": 6250,
"baseline_rate": "12.5%",
"mpf": 173.20,
"hmf": 62.50,
"total_duties_fees": 20685.70,
"landed_cost": 70685.70
}HTS classification & rate schedule — general (MFN), special (FTA), and Column 2 rates.
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/hts/8507.60.00" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"hts": "8507.60.00",
"code": "8507600000",
"description": "Lithium-ion batteries",
"rates": {
"general": "3.4%",
"special": "Free (A+, AU, BH, CL, ...)",
"column2": "7.5%"
},
"units": ["No.", "kg"]
}AI-assisted HTS classification — describe a product in plain English and get the most likely 6-digit HS subheadings with GRI reasoning, each grounded in real HTS lines + duty rates. Decision support, not a binding ruling. Rate-limited; results are cached.
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/classify?q=men%27s+knitted+cotton+t-shirts" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"query": "men's knitted cotton t-shirts",
"candidates": [
{
"hs6": "6109.10",
"heading": "T-shirts, singlets ... knitted or crocheted, of cotton",
"reasoning": "GRI 1 — knitted cotton t-shirts are classified under heading 6109.",
"confidence": "high",
"lines": [
{ "htsno": "6109.10.00", "general": "16.5%", "description": "Of cotton", "code": "6109100000" }
]
}
],
"disclaimer": "AI decision support, not a binding ruling. Verify on USITC HTS / CBP CROSS."
}Largest exporting countries of the product's HS2 chapter worldwide (UN Comtrade). limit defaults to 10 (max 50).
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/exporters?hts=8507&limit=5" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"hs2": "85",
"year": 2024,
"exporters": [
{ "country": "China", "exports_usd": 418200000000 },
{ "country": "Hong Kong", "exports_usd": 142600000000 },
{ "country": "Germany", "exports_usd": 98400000000 }
]
}Restricted-party / sanctions screening against the U.S. Consolidated Screening List (OFAC SDN, BIS Entity List, Denied Persons, Military End User, ITAR-debarred, CMIC). Name-based; a match is a flag to review. limit defaults to 20 (max 50).
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/screen?q=Hikvision" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"query": "Hikvision",
"list_size": 26127,
"match_count": 2,
"matches": [
{
"name": "Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., Ltd.",
"source": "CMIC",
"score": 100,
"confidence": "exact",
"programs": "CMIC-EO13959",
"country": "CN",
"federal_register_notice": "",
"alt_names": ["Hikvision"],
"source_url": "https://home.treasury.gov/..."
}
]
}Search live U.S. antidumping/countervailing-duty & trade-remedy proceedings (Commerce/ITA via the Federal Register) by product or country. Surfaces activity (orders, initiations, reviews, scope rulings) — not a scope determination. limit defaults to 20 (max 50).
curl "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/adcvd?q=quartz+surface" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY"
{
"query": "quartz surface",
"total_on_file": 118,
"proceedings": [
{
"title": "Certain Quartz Surface Product From India: Preliminary Results...",
"action": "Preliminary",
"product": "Certain Quartz Surface Product",
"country": "India",
"date": "2026-09-14",
"type": "Notice",
"federal_register_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/...",
"document_number": "2026-18700"
}
]
}Cost a whole PO in one call (up to 1,000 lines). CBP fees (MPF/HMF) are applied once to the combined value. Per-line origin overrides the request-level default.
curl -X POST "https://shipseeker.xyz/api/v1/duty/bulk" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ss_live_YOUR_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"s301": "25",
"ocean": true,
"items": [
{ "hts": "8507.60.00", "value": 50000, "origin": "china" },
{ "hts": "9403.60", "value": 24000, "origin": "vietnam" }
]
}'{
"items": [
{ "hts": "8507.60.00", "origin": "china", "customs_value": 50000,
"duty_rate": "3.4%", "duty": 1700, "section_301": 12500, "baseline_tariff": 6250, "line_total": 70450 },
{ "hts": "9403.60.80", "origin": "vietnam", "customs_value": 24000,
"duty_rate": "Free", "duty": 0, "section_301": 0, "baseline_tariff": 3000, "line_total": 27000 }
],
"totals": {
"customs_value": 74000, "duty": 1700, "section_301": 12500, "baseline_tariff": 9250,
"mpf": 256.34, "hmf": 92.50, "landed_cost": 97798.84
}
}Notes & limitations
Responses include base HTS duty, China Section 301, the Section 301 forced-labor baseline (baseline_tariff, 10%/12.5% by origin, effective Jul 2026) and CBP fees — rates current as of October 2026. Specific/compound-rate lines return "specific_rate": true with a null duty. Section 232 metals and AD/CVD are product-specific and not auto-applied; FTA preference requires meeting rules-of-origin — verify with a licensed customs broker before filing.