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HQ 735105


October 27, 1993

MAR-2-05 CO:R:C:V 735105 AT

CATEGORY: MARKING

Jeremy P. Page, Esq.
Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A.
The Waterford
5200 Blue Lagoon Drive
Miami, Florida 33126-2022

RE: Country of origin marking of imported garments assembled from U.S. components and foreign produced "C" pip; 19 CFR 10.22; HQ 734954

Dear Mr. Page:

This is in response to your letters dated April 8 and July 7, 1993, on behalf of Champion Products, Inc. ("Champion"), requesting a ruling on an acceptable country of origin marking for imported wearing apparel from various countries. A sample crew neck sweatshirt with "C" pip was submitted with your letters.

FACTS:

You state that Champion imports wearing apparel (including t-shirts, crew neck sweaters, hooded sweatshirts and mesh shorts) from Jamaica, Mexico, El Salvador and Guatemala into the U.S. The garments are assembled abroad from entirely U.S. components, except the "C" pip which is produced in either China or India. You also state that the finished garments upon entry into the U.S. will be entered under subheading 9802.00.80, Harmonized Tariff Schedules of the United States ("HTSUS"), and that the cost of the "C" pip will be properly entered as a dutiable cost element of the finished wearing apparel. Given that the completed garment will be assembled from entirely of U.S. components, except the "C" pip from either China or India, you ask whether the wearing apparel can be marked "Assembled in of U.S. Components". Presently, Champion is marking these products solely as "Assembled in (name of country of origin)". Furthermore, you inform this office that the per unit price of the foreign produced "C" pip is $0.0790 for China, and $0.0660 for India. The "C" pip is a red, white and blue decal that is in the shape of the letter C.
You state that the "C" pip is attached to the wearing apparel in the country where the garment is assembled and will be affixed to the garment in various locations and sizes depending on the particular style of apparel. The "C" pip is affixed to the left sleeve of the sample crew neck sweatshirt near the cuff and measures approximately 1" X 1/2". This ruling is limited to garment displaying a "C" pip which is of this approximate size or smaller.

ISSUE:

Whether the proposed marking "Assembled in of U.S. Components" is an acceptable country of origin marking for wearing apparel assembled from U.S. components and a small "C" pip of foreign origin?

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 its 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. Congressional intent in enacting 19 U.S.C. 1304 was 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.

Pursuant to section 10.22 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 10.22), articles assembled abroad and entitled to an exemption under subheading 9802.00.80, HTSUS, are considered products of the country of assembly for the purposes of the country of origin marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304. This regulation further states that if an imported assembled article is made entirely of American-made materials, the United States origin of the material may be disclosed by using a legend such as "Assembled in from material of U.S. origin," or similar phrase.

In HQ 734954 (June 14, 1993) Customs determined that wearing apparel assembled in various foreign countries from U.S. components and foreign thread from Costa Rica which was eligible for an exemption under subheading 9802.00.80, HTSUS, could be marked "Assembled in of U.S. Components" and that it was not necessary to identify the foreign origin of the thread. The thread in that case was considered to be an insignificant component of minimal value.
Similarly, in this case, like the thread in HQ 734954, the "C" pip is not a significant component of the completed garment. It is a small component of minimal value. As you state, the "C" pip only costs between $0.0660 and $0.0790, depending where it is sourced, which represents about 1 percent of the cost of the finished garment and only measures approximately 1" X 1/2". Accordingly, assuming the wearing apparel is eligible for an exemption under 9802.00.80, HTSUS, marking the country of origin of the completed garments with the phrase "Assembled in of U.S. components", would be an acceptable marking under 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR 10.22, and as in HQ 734954, it is not necessary to identify the foreign origin of the foreign "C" pip. However, the marking must be conspicuous, legible and permanent (factors which we can not determine in this ruling since a sample with the proposed marking was not submitted for our review).

It should be noted that textile fiber products imported into the U.S. must be labeled in accordance with the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (15 U.S.C. 70 through 70k) and the rules promulgated thereunder by the Federal Trade Commission. Therefore, we suggest that you contact the Federal Trade Commission, Division of Enforcement, 6th and Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20508, as to whether the proposed marking for the wearing apparel satisfies such requirements.

HOLDING:

The proposed country of origin marking on the imported wearing apparel, as described above, satisfies the marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR 10.22, provided that the garments are eligible for a duty exemption under subheading 9802.00.80 HTSUS and that the marking is conspicuous, legible and permanent. It is not necessary to identify the foreign origin "China" or "India" of the "C" pip.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division

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