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Customs data for every item in one photo

Send a photo of the goods. Inspect finds each item in it and returns its name, description, quantity, category, material, HS code, country of origin and value, with a box showing where it is in the photo. The code, origin and value each come with a confidence, and anything uncertain is marked for a person to check.

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Reviewed by the border.bot editorial team. Updated .

How Inspect works

  1. One photo, every item

    Inspect finds each separate product in the photo, draws a box round it and counts it. Identical units are one item with a count, a pair of shoes is one pair, and a set is one set. Reflections, packaging and pictures on boxes are left out.

    Found in the photo

    Crew-neck T-shirt
    Folded, label showing
    1
    Sneakers
    Worn, no box
    1 pair
    Graphing calculator
    Model name on the case
    1

    Illustrative example.

  2. What each item is, and what it is made of

    Each item gets a name, a description, a category and its materials, with an English customs description beside them. A care label in the photo settles the material; without one it is read from what shows, and an item whose material can’t be seen is marked for review.

    Crew-neck T-shirt

    Description
    A folded crew-neck T-shirt in white jersey
    Category
    Apparel
    Material
    Cotton (read from the label)
    Quantity
    1

    Illustrative example.

  3. A 6-digit HS code, checked against the tariff

    Each item gets its HS subheading: the six digits every country shares. The code is looked up in the live tariff, so it is always a subheading that exists, and one that doesn’t is cut back to its heading and marked. For a destination’s full national line, run the item through Classify.

    HS code, 6 digits

    6109.10

    1. 61Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted or crocheted
    2. 6109T-shirts, singlets, tank tops and similar garments, knitted or crocheted
    3. 6109.10Of cotton
    Confidence shown per item

  4. Where it was made, and what it is worth

    A “Made in” read from a label is quoted as the origin. Without one, the origin is estimated where the item was most likely manufactured (the brand’s manufacturing footprint, not where it is based), marked as an estimate, never shown as more than 60% likely and listed with the other likely countries. The value is an estimated retail price in US dollars with a range: useful for an undescribed parcel or for checking a declared value, but not the customs value, which is the price actually paid.

    Crew-neck T-shirt

    Origin
    “Made in Vietnam” on the label
    Vietnam
    Value
    Estimated retail price, one unit
    $24.00 ($15–35)
    Customs value
    The price actually paid
    Yours to declare

    Illustrative example.

Goods arrive without data more often than with it

A parcel with a vague description, a returned item, a box of secondhand stock, a shipment a seller never described: someone has to look at the goods and type out what they are before a code, an origin and a value can be declared. Inspect does the looking and the typing, and leaves people the items it isn’t sure of.

  • Every item, not just the first

    One request returns each product in the photo with its own quantity, code, origin and value, and a box showing which item is which.

  • Confidence you can set a threshold on

    The code, origin and value each come with a confidence. Items whose code falls below your review threshold are marked, with the reason.

  • Codes that exist

    Every HS code is checked against the live tariff before it is returned, so nobody declares a subheading that isn’t there.

  • Evidence, not just answers

    A “Made in” read off a label is quoted, and an estimated origin says it is an estimate. The photo itself isn’t kept.

What a photo can tell

Some fields are read straight off the goods, some are estimated from what the photo shows, and a few need more than a photo. Each answer says which.

  1. QuantityCountedEach item; large counts go to review
  2. Name and categorySeenWhat the product is, in plain words
  3. MaterialRead or seenFrom a care label when it shows; the outer material otherwise
  4. HS code6 digitsChecked against the live tariff
  5. OriginRead or estimated“Made in” quoted; an estimate is at most 60% likely
  6. ValueEstimatedA retail price with a range, not the price paid
  7. Inside the itemNeeds moreFill, lining, batteries: another look or the seller

Who uses Inspect

  • Forwarders and consolidators

    Photograph parcels that arrive with no description or a vague one, and get the data to declare them, item by item.

  • Posts and carriers

    Pre-fill the customs form at the counter from a photo of what’s being sent, so the sender confirms rather than types.

  • Resale and returns

    List secondhand and returned goods for cross-border sale with a code, origin and value from a photo, without a catalogue entry to start from.

  • Customs and compliance teams

    Photograph what’s in a parcel and compare it with the declaration: the items, the counts, the codes and the values.

Getting customs data from a photo

Taking a photo that reads well

Lay the items out in one layer with a little space between them, in even light, with labels and tags facing the camera. A visible care label settles the material and the origin, and a readable model name sharpens the value.

What a photo can’t tell

A photo shows the outside of an item. What it is filled with, an inner lining, a label folded out of sight, or whether a device holds a battery may need another look or the seller’s description, and Inspect marks those items for review rather than guessing. Counting many identical units on a shelf is also unreliable, so large counts are sent to review.

Six digits, and the national line

The first six digits of a tariff code are the Harmonized System, the same in every country. The digits a country adds after them often turn on a unit value, on who a product is for or on what is inside it, which a photo can’t show. Inspect stops at six; Classify gives a destination’s full line.

Estimated value and customs value

Most countries value imports at their transaction value: the price actually paid or payable for the goods, under the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement (opens in a new tab). A photo can’t show what was paid. Inspect’s value is an estimated retail price with a range, useful for an undescribed parcel or for checking a declared value, but the value on the declaration is the one the buyer paid.

Three ways to get the data from the goods

Typed in by handZonos Visionborder.bot Inspect
Per itemWhat someone writesName, description, quantity, materials, categoriesThe same, plus where it is in the photo
HS codeLooked up separatelyA code and a confidence score, when switched onA 6-digit code checked against the live tariff, with a confidence
OriginFrom the label, if readA country and a confidence score, when switched onA label quoted, or an estimate marked as one
ValueGuessed or left outA value and a range, when switched onAn estimated value and a range, with a confidence
Try itNot applicableThrough a demoA free photo tool, no account
AccessNot applicableGraphQLREST, MCP and the dashboard

What you send, what you get back

Request

Photo
A T-shirt, a pair of sneakers and a calculator

Result

Items
3, each with its box
T-shirt HS code
6109.10
T-shirt origin
Vietnam, from the label
T-shirt value
about $24.00
Sneakers
Sole material not visible: review

Illustrative example.

  • Codes

    6-digit HS subheadings, checked against the live tariff; one that isn’t there is cut back to its heading and marked.

  • Origin

    Read from a label and quoted, or estimated from the brand and kind of product and marked as an estimate.

  • Value

    An estimated retail price of one unit in US dollars, with a range and a confidence.

  • Personal data

    The photo isn’t kept, only its fingerprint; names and addresses on shipping labels are left out of the answer.

With or without code

Run single checks and CSV uploads in the dashboard with no integration work, call the REST API from your own systems, or connect the MCP server to an AI assistant. All three use the same engine and save every result in your workspace.

REST API

  • POST/v1/inspectInspect a photo

MCP tools

inspect_photo in Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other MCP clients.

Developer quickstartConnect the MCP serverAPI reference (opens in a new tab)

POST /v1/inspect
curl https://api.border.bot/v1/inspect \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BORDERBOT_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
  "imageUrl": "https://shop.example/photos/parcel-0142.jpg"
}'

Questions about Inspect

What does Inspect return for a photo?

Each product in it: name, description, quantity, category, material, 6-digit HS code, country of origin and value, with a confidence on the code, origin and value, and a box showing where the item is in the photo.

How is this different from Classify with a photo?

Classify takes one product and returns the destination’s full tariff code. Inspect takes a photo with any number of products in it and returns each one’s facts, 6-digit HS code, origin and value.

Why 6 digits?

The first six digits are the Harmonized System, the same in every country, and they are what a photo can usually settle. The digits a country adds often turn on things a photo can’t show. Classify gives the full national line.

How is the country of origin found?

A “Made in” on a label in the photo is read and quoted. Without one, the origin is estimated where the item was most likely manufactured, from the brand’s manufacturing footprint and where that kind of product is made, never from where the brand is based. It is marked as an estimate, never shown as more than 60% likely, and listed with the other likely countries.

Is the value the customs value?

No. It is an estimated retail price of one unit with a range. Customs value is usually the price actually paid, which a photo can’t show: declare that price.

Is the photo kept?

No. Only a fingerprint (a hash) of the photo is kept with the run. Names and addresses visible in the photo are left out of the answer.

Is the result binding?

No. It is data to declare from, with a confidence on the code, origin and value. A binding classification comes from the customs authority; have uncertain items checked by a licensed broker.

Further reading

Sources

Examples on this page are illustrative unless a source is named. Rules and rates change, so run a check for a current answer. This page was reviewed by the border.bot editorial team on . How we check our pages.

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