0305.54.00.00 - Herrings (Clupea harengus, Clupea pallasii), anchovies (Engraulis spp.), sardines (Sardina pilchardus, Sardinops spp.), sardinella (Sardinella spp.), brisling or sprats (Sprattus sprattus), mackerel (Scomber scombrus, Scomber australasicus, Scomber japonicus), Indian mackerels (Rastrelliger spp.), seerfishes (Scomberomorus spp.), jack and horse mackerel (Trachurus spp.), jacks, crevalles (Caranx spp.), cobia (Rachycentron canadum), silver pomfrets (Pampus spp.), Pacific saury (Cololabis saira), scads (Decapterus spp.), capelin (Mallotus villosus), swordfish (Xiphias gladius), Kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis), bonitos (Sarda spp.), marlins, sailfishes, spearfish (Istiophoridae)

This HTS category encompasses a wide variety of dried fish, specifically those that have been salted but not smoked. The description lists numerous species, including herrings, anchovies, sardines, mackerel, and swordfish, among others. The key defining characteristics for inclusion in this category are that the fish must be dried and salted, and crucially, not subjected to smoking at any stage of processing. This exclusion of smoking differentiates it from other categories within 0305.

Unlike sibling categories that specify dried cod, certain freshwater fish, or broader classifications of dried fish from specific families, 0305.54.00.00 is a residual category for dried and salted fish that do not fall under those more specific headings. It serves to capture a diverse range of commercially important saltwater and anadromous fish species prepared through drying and salting, excluding those explicitly defined elsewhere or those that have undergone smoking.

As this is a leaf node, there are no further subcategories within 0305.54.00.00. Therefore, classification into this specific code relies on the fish being dried and salted, fitting within the extensive list of species provided in the description, and not being covered by any more narrowly defined sibling categories. The absence of smoking is the critical factor distinguishing this category from those that include smoked dried fish.