United States International Trade Commision Rulings And Harmonized Tariff Schedule
faqs.org  Rulings By Number  Rulings By Category  Tariff Numbers
faqs.org > Rulings and Tariffs Home > Rulings By Number > 1998 HQ Rulings > HQ 960513 - HQ 960622 > HQ 960559

Previous Ruling Next Ruling
HQ 960559





October 26, 1998

CLA-2 RR:CR:TE 960559 GGD

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6402.91.40

Mr. Joe Cassidy
Tender Tootsies, Limited
Post Office Box 580 Lambeth Station
London, Ontario N6P 1R5, Canada

RE: Reconsideration of HQ 959429; Classification of Women's Boots; Ruling Correct on Face; New Ruling Based on New Sample Submitted

Dear Mr. Cassidy:

This letter is in response to your request of November 18, 1997, for reconsideration of HQ 959429, issued October 23, 1997, as it pertains to the classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) of a woman's boot manufactured in Viet Nam. A sample boot was submitted at the time of the original determination. A separate sample was submitted with your current request.

FACTS:

In Headquarters Ruling Letter (HQ) 959429, issued October 23, 1997, this office reconsidered and affirmed Port Ruling Letter (PD) A83017, dated May 13, 1996, in which a woman's boot was classified in subheading 6402.91.50, HTSUS, the provision for "Other footwear with outer soles and uppers of rubber or plastics: Other footwear: Covering the ankle: Other: Footwear designed to be worn over, or in lieu of, other footwear as a protection against water, oil, grease or chemicals or cold or inclement weather," with a column two duty rate of 66 percent ad valorem. The determination in HQ 959429 was based upon our
examination of a sample boot identified as style number 7320, and our finding that the boot possessed a foxing-like band, i.e., the boot's unit molded sole vertically overlapped the upper by 1/4 inch or more. That sample, however, was not retained by this office.

With your request for reconsideration, you submitted an additional sample identified as style no. 7320. Upon review of the record and the descriptions of the sample classified in HQ 959429, we find that the ruling is correct on its face. We are, however, treating your request for reconsideration as a request for a new binding ruling as to the tariff classification of the sample submitted with this request.

The sample subject to this ruling, identified by style no. 7320, is a ladies' size 6, cold weather boot with a rubber and/or plastic outer sole and upper. The boot measures approximately 9 inches in height and contains an acrylic pile lining which extends the entire length of the shaft. The boot has a zipper in the front which extends from just above the wearer's arch to the very top line of the boot. Since the boot is not intended to be cuffed, the external surface area of the upper (ESAU), including any accessories and reinforcements, is composed of over 90 percent rubber and/or plastic. The sample boot has a unit molded sole which only slightly overlaps the upper (by less than 1/4 inch) when measured on a vertical plane.

ISSUE:

Whether the boot is classified in subheading 6402.91.50, HTSUS; or in subheading 6402.91.40, HTSUS.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Classification under the HTSUS is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative Section or Chapter Notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRI may then be applied. The Explanatory Notes (EN) to the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, which represent the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level, facilitate classification under the HTSUS by offering guidance in understanding the scope of the headings and GRI.

You maintain that style 7320 does not have a foxing-like band and should therefore be classified in subheading 6402.91.4050, HTSUSA, which provides for "Other footwear with outer soles and uppers of rubber or plastics: Other footwear: Covering the ankle: Having uppers of which over 90 percent of the external surface area (including any accessories or reinforcements such as those mentioned in note 4(a) to this chapter) is rubber or plastics except (1) footwear having a foxing or a foxing-like band applied or molded at the sole and overlapping the upper...designed to be worn over, or in lieu of, other footwear as a protection against water, oil, grease or chemicals or cold or inclement weather, For women: Other."

On November 17, 1993, in the Customs Bulletin, Volume 27, Number 46, Customs published Treasury Decision (T.D.) 93-88 (dated October 25, 1993), which contains certain footwear definitions used by Customs import specialists to classify footwear. The definitions were provided merely as guidelines and, although consulted here, are not to be construed as Customs rulings. In pertinent part, the typical "foxing band" was said to be "a rubber tape, about 1 inch high by 1/16 inch thick, which covers the lower part of the upper and the edge of the rubber outersole." The term "foxing-like band" was defined as "a band around a substantial portion of the lower part of the upper which either has been attached (cemented, sewn, etc.) to the sole or is part of the same molded piece of rubber or plastics which forms the sole."

In T.D. 83-116, dated June 22, 1983, Customs also set forth guidelines relating to the characteristics of foxing and foxing-like bands. We noted that unit molded footwear is considered to have a foxing-like band if a vertical overlap of 1/4 inch or more exists from where the upper and the outsole initially meet (measured on a vertical plane), and that if the overlap is less than 1/4 inch, the footwear is presumed not to have a foxing-like band. We find that in this case, since the sample boot has a unit molded sole which overlaps the upper by less than 1/4 inch when measured on a vertical plane, the boot does not possess a foxing-like band.

HOLDING:

The subject sample, identified by style no. 7320, is classified in subheading 6402.91.40, HTSUS, the provision for "Other footwear with outer soles and uppers of rubber or
plastics: Other footwear: Covering the ankle: Having uppers of which over 90 percent of the external surface area...is rubber or plastics...." The column two duty rate is 35 percent ad valorem.

Sincerely,


Previous Ruling Next Ruling

See also: