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HQ 951632

August 12, 1992

CLA-2 CO:R:C:T 951632 jlj

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 4601.91.2000

Mr. J. A. Kaufman, Jr.
St. John's Import & Export Co., Inc.
P. O. Box 4460
Jascksonville, Florida 32201

RE: Reconsideration of Headquarters Ruling Letter (HRL) 088638; Rattan Webbing Sheets Used in the Manufacture of Furniture; Heading 4601

Dear Mr. Kaufman:

In your letter of April 7, 1992, you requested reconsideration of HRL 088638 of May 7, 1991, concerning rattan webbing sheets imported from China and used in the manufacture of furniture. HRL 088638 classified the rattan webbing under the provision for plaiting materials, plaits and similar products of plaiting materials, ... woven, in sheet form ... : other: of vegetable materials: of one or more of the materials bamboo, rattan, willow or wood, in subheading 4601.91.2000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA).

You state that, when you imported rattan furniture, it was free of duty. You don't understand why you must pay a 6.6 percent ad valorem duty on rattan webbing. You request that the rattan webbing be reclassified under subheading 4601.20, HTSUSA, which provides for mats, matting and screens of vegetable material.

The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States is a statutory enactment by the Congress. While we understand your bewilderment over the duty rates applicable to furniture vis a vis the material to make furniture, these rates are based on the historical treatment of the particular imported merchandise involved, as well as the effect that merchandise may have in general on our domestic economy. In any event, the Customs Service is without authority to administratively alter any portion of the tariff.

In HRL 088638, we stated that the instant rattan webbing sheets fit neither the definition of mats and matting (i.e., floor coverings or horticultural coverings) nor the definition of screens (i.e., room dividers, building panels or devices to close off windows or doors), and therefore they could not be classified in subheading 4601.20, HTSUSA.

Inasmuch as the instant merchandise does not fit within the definitions of mats, matting or screens, it still cannot be classified as such in subheading 4601.20, HTSUSA. HRL 088638 is affirmed. The instant merchandise is classified in subheading 4601.91.2000, HTSUSA.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division

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