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NY 861386

APRIL 11,1991

CLA-2-64:S:N:N3D:346SM 861386

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6404.20.4060

Ms. Brigitte Hammond
Amber Fashions
9 Findley Street
Hampton, VA 23666

RE: The tariff classification of dance shoes from England.

Dear Ms. Hammond:

In your letter dated March 15, 1991, you requested a tariff classification ruling.

You described the submitted samples as follows:

"1. The shoes for which I seek a ruling are all constructed of leather soles, leather insoles, and leather lining. The only part that is not leather is the outside (or visible part) on the uppers. You could stretch this a bit and say that the uppers are made of leather and covered with satin or sequin.

2. I have enclosed five ballroom dance shoes for classification:

Style #6607, 75% leather/25% satin (white)

Style #6607, 75% leather/25% sequin (gold/silver/black)

Style #6609, 75% leather/25%satin (white)

Style #6666, 75% leather/25% sequin (gold/silver/black)

Style #6666, 75% leather/25% sequin (silver/white)"

From our review of the samples submitted, we consider your description to be quite incomplete and to be inaccurate in many respects.

All five samples submitted do have split leather outersoles, but they all have cardboard, not leather, insoles covered with leather stocklinings. We find no leather in any of the uppers. All five have textile exteriors (in some cases with sequins added) and full textile linings. All five have inside heel stiffeners made of cardboard impregnated with plastic and fabric/plastic inside heel counters. We note, to complete their description, that all five samples also have metal shanks and nails, molded plastic "high heels", and rubber top-lifts on the bottom of the heel.

From the materials used in the samples submitted and from some of your statements, we will assume for the purposes of this ruling that, in all five shoes, the total weight of the leather, cardboard, and metal components is greater than that of the textile materials, rubber and plastics. It is your responsibility as an importer to see that accurate weight breakdowns for these (and similar) styles will be submitted to the Customs port of entry with your shipments. The Customs port of entry should have the accuracy of those weight breakdown confirmed by laboratory analysis of samples from the actual shipments.

Regarding the uppers of style number 6607 (sequin version) and the two styles numbered 6666, we note that the fabric is interwoven or decorated with gold colored "metallized yarn" (which is considered a textile material) and has a multitude of tiny silver-colored sequins added on top. These sequins do not nearly cover all the surface of the upper since there are easily visible gaps between them.

We also note:

1. We recommend you stop using the same style number for shoes whose uppers have different materials. These different materials often lead to different Tariff classifications. This may therefore, complicate and confuse the process of entering correctly your imports.

2. We assume from your letter that the previous shipments of these styles are not pending, i.e. their liquidations are final.

3. The United States Congress enacted a new Tariff Schedule, effective 1/1/89. This new Tariff uses as it's basis the Inter- national Nomenclature developed by the Customs Cooperation Council in Brussels, Belgium. In the case of footwear, many concepts and definitions are, as a result, quite different in classifying shipments before and after that date.

The applicable subheading for all five shoes will be 6404.20.4060, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for women's footwear whose upper's external surface is predominately textile materials (note that accessories and reinforce- ments are not part of the upper's external surface); whose outer sole's external surface is predominately leather; which, we assume, is, by weight, not over 50% as a total of textile materials, rubber and plastic; and which, we assume, is valued over $2.50 per pair. The rate of duty will be 10 percent ad valorem.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Section 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).

A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the Customs officer handling the transaction.

Sincerely,

Jean F. Maguire
Area Director

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