HQ 0732711 - Country of origin marking of imported shoes on the shoe box - United States International Trade Commision Rulings

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HQ 732711
January 26, 1990

MAR-2-05 CO:R:C:V 732711 KG

CATEGORY: MARKING

David R. Loeser Jr.
Chase, Leavitt Customhouse Brokers, Inc.
P.O. Box 589
Portland, Maine 04112

RE: Country of origin marking of imported shoes on the shoe box

Dear Mr. Loeser:

This is in response to your letter of August 31, 1989, requesting a country of origin ruling regarding imported shoe boxes. We regret the delay in responding to your inquiry.

FACTS:

You plan to manufacture shoes and shoe boxes in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea and Brazil. A sample shoe box was submitted. The sample has a legend on the two side panels containing a brief history of the company which is importing the shoes. The town of Walton, Maine, is mentioned in the legend. You propose to mark the country of origin of the shoes on the bottom of the box. If a size other than a U.S. size is shown on the end of the box, then the country of origin of the shoes will be on the end of the shoe box.

ISSUE:

Whether the proposed method of marking the country of origin of the imported shoes on the shoe box satisfies section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article (or container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article. The Court of International Trade stated in Koru North America v. United States, 701 F.Supp. 229, 12 CIT (CIT 1988), that: "In ascertaining what constitutes the country of origin under the marking statute, a court must look at the sense in which the term is used in the statute, giving reference to the purpose of the particular legislation involved. The purpose of the marking statute is outlined in United States v. Friedlaender & Co., 27 CCPA 297, 302 C.A.D. 104 (1940), where the court stated that: "Congress intended that the ultimate purchaser should be able to know by an inspection of the marking on the imported goods the country of which the goods is the product. The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that at the time of purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy them, if such marking should influence his will."

Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134), implements the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.46, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.46), sets out specific country of origin marking requirements for imported articles and their containers which mention the full or abbreviated name of a country or locality other than the country of origin.

Customs issued a policy statement regarding imported footwear and shoe boxes, T.D. 86-129 (June 26, 1986), requiring that in order to satisfy the close proximity requirement of 19 CFR 134.46, the country of origin preceded by the words "Made in," or "Product of," must appear near to and on the same panel as the name of the country or locality other than the country of origin. According to T.D. 86-129, these requirements are applicable regardless of the context in which the name of the locality appears. If the name of the country or locality other than the country of origin appears on a side or top panel of the shoe box, marking the bottom of the box will not be acceptable. Therefore, the side panels which contain the phrase "Walton, Maine" would have to be marked with the country of origin near and on whichever panel the phrase is printed. Further, a foreign size reference on the shoe box triggers the requirements of 19 CFR 134.46. Your intention to mark the country of origin of the shoes on the same panel as the foreign shoe size would satisfy the proximity requirement of 19 CFR 134.46.

HOLDING:

The proposed method of marking the country of origin of the shoes on the bottom of the shoe box which has a reference to "Walton, Maine" on the side panels does not satisfy 19 CFR 134.46. The country of origin marking must appear near to and on the same panel as each reference to the U.S. locality. If a foreign size reference is included on the box, the country of origin of the shoes must also appear near to and on the same panel as that foreign size reference.

Sincerely,

Marvin M. Amernick
Chief, Value, Special Programs

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