HQ 0085193 - Nested Boxes - United States International Trade Commision Rulings

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HQ 085193

November 16, 1989

CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 085193 JBW

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6307.90.9050

Mr. William C. Cain
Cain Customs Brokers, Inc.
Progreso Int'l Bridge
P.O. Box 10
Progreso, TX 78579

RE: Nested Boxes

Dear Mr. Cain:

Your letter of July 17, 1989, on behalf of M & G Box Corporation, addressed to our New York office, has been referred to this office for reply concerning the classification of three nested boxes under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA).

FACTS:

The sample submitted is a set of three nested boxes. The boxes are constructed of paperboard, which comprises 81.4 percent of the total weight and 19 percent of the total value. The paperboard boxes are completely covered, lined, and decorated with textile materials, which comprise 18.4 percent of the total weight and 65 percent of the value. The textile material is composed of 70 percent polyester and 30 percent cotton.

ISSUE:

What is the classification of a textile covered box under the HTSUSA?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

The General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's) set forth the legal framework in which merchandise is to be classified under the HTSUSA. GRI 1 requires that classification be determined first according to the terms of the headings of the tariff and any relative section or chapter notes and, unless otherwise required, according to the remaining GRI's.

As you noted in your letter, the items under consideration play a number of functional roles, each role imparted by a different component of the box. The formed paperboard boxes may be used for different purposes, including storage of a variety of items or as gift boxes. Without the textile covering, such boxes are classifiable under Chapter 48 as an article of paperboard. Additionally, the items serve a decorative or ornamental function. The textile covering imparts the decorative function of this item and, consequently, is classifiable under Section XI as a textile article.

The two components of the item, the paperboard and the textile, form an inseparable whole, and the item is therefore a composite good. GRI 3 governs classification. Two or more different headings refer to part only of the components of the good, and therefore, the rule of relative specificity of GRI 3(a) is inapplicable. According to GRI 3(b), a composite good is classified as if it consists of the component that imparts the essential character to the good. GRI 3(c) states that if an item cannot be classified according to essential character, then it is classified under the heading that occurs last in numerical order among the headings that merit equal consideration.

No single component imparts the essential character to the textile covered boxes. The role of the textile as decoration is equal to the role of the paperboard box as a storage item. Resort to objective factors such as value or weight of the components is likewise inconclusive. The value of the textile exceeds the value of the paperboard, but the weight of the paperboard exceeds that of the textile. Classification of the item, according to GRI 3(c), must be made by the heading that occurs last in numerical order.

The textile provisions of Section XI occur later in the HTSUSA than the paperboard provisions. The textile covered boxes are consequently classified as textile articles. Pursuant to note 7(e) of Section XI, the boxes are "made up," for they are assembled by gluing. Therefore, the items are classified under subheading 6307.90.9050, HTSUSA, as other made up articles of textile.

HOLDING:

The nested boxes are classified under subheading 6307.90.9050, HTSUSA, as other made up articles of textile and are subject to a duty of 7 percent ad valorem.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division

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