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NY A88769




November 25, 1996

CLA-2-94:RR:NC:2:230 A88769

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 9406.00.4000

Mr. Leigh A. Schmid
KPMG - Chartered Accountants
Box 10426 777 Dunsmuir St.
Vancouver, BC V7Y 1K3

RE: The tariff classification of customized house packages ("house construction kits") from Canada; not prefabricated buildings of heading 9406

Dear Mr. Schmid:

In your letter dated October 22, 1996, on behalf of your client, Lindal Cedar Homes, you requested a tariff classification ruling.

The ruling was requested on complete house packages customized to suit the individual buyers. A house package can be described as "a house construction kit" as it includes everything required to build the house. The buyer or a private contractor hired by the buyer builds the house according to the plans provided by Lindal Cedar Homes.

A list of materials for a typical house package was submitted. The list includes materials for flooring, decking, loft, roofing, perimeter walls, gables and interiors. The materials consist primarily of lumber, beams, plywood and molding in general sizes and without further processing. There are no prehung doors, preassembled wall sections or any other prefabricated parts.

You suggested classification in subheading 9406.00.4000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA), which provides for prefabricated buildings; of wood. However, a shipment of all the materials needed to make a house does not necessarily comprise a prefabricated building at the time of importation. Prefabricated buildings consist essentially of parts that are preassembled and cut to size or notched, drilled or otherwise made to fit together before importation. Only some parts in the shipment may consist of indeterminate or random lengths for cutting at the site. A prefabricated building requires mainly to be assembled at the site. It does not require to be built at the site. The house packages or construction kits being imported by your client consist essentially of materials that will be used to manufacture a building at the site. They would not be classifiable in subheading 9406.00.4000, HTSUSA.

The materials in the house packages would be classified separately under their applicable subheadings. If a ruling is desired for the separate materials, please submit detailed descriptions including the construction, the species of wood of all layers and any other further processing. An individual ruling request should be limited to five items of the same class or kind.

This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 177).

A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Paul Garretto at 212-466-5779.

Sincerely,


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