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HQ 962749




December 20, 2001

CLA-2 RR:CR:TE 962749 GGD

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6403.59.6060

Port Director
U.S. Customs Service
1205 Royal Lane
Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, Texas 75261-0950

RE: Decision on Application for Further Review of Protest No. 5501-98-100196, filed November 6, 1998, Concerning the Classification of Men's Leather Footwear; Additional U.S. Note 1(a) to Chapter 64, HTSUSA

Dear Sir:

This is a decision on an application for further review (AFR) of a protest timely filed against your decision in the classification and liquidation of an entry of men's footwear that was entered in November 1997.

FACTS:

You classified the merchandise in subheading 6403.59.6060, HTSUSA, the provision for “Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of leather: Other footwear with outer soles of leather: Other: Other: For men, youths and boys, For men: Other," with a general column one duty rate of 8.5 percent ad valorem.

The protestant claims that the goods should be classified in subheading 6403.59.3040, HTSUSA, the provision for “Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of leather: Other footwear with outer soles of leather: Other: Welt footwear, For men: Other," with a general column one duty rate of 5 percent ad valorem.

The goods at issue are men's shoes with uppers of leather (alligator) and outer soles of leather. Entry documentation, photographic evidence of various stages of the subject footwear's manufacturing, and the manufacturer's statement, collectively
indicate that the manufacturing process involves the use of a welting machine, that the sole of each shoe is stitched directly to the vamp, and that the shoes are not constructed with a separate strip of material extending around the edge of the sole to which the outsole is sewed.

ISSUE:

Whether the men's leather shoes at issue may be classified as "welt footwear" under the HTSUSA.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Classification under the HTSUSA 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 HTSUSA by offering guidance in understanding the scope of the headings and GRI.

Chapter 64, HTSUSA, covers footwear, gaiters and the like, and parts of such articles. Additional U.S. Note 1(a) to chapter 64, HTSUSA, states that, for the purposes of this chapter:

The term “welt footwear” means footwear constructed with a welt, which extends around the edge of the tread portion of the sole, and in which the welt and shoe upper are sewed to a lip on the surface of the insole, and the outsole of which is sewed or cemented to the welt.

In William A. Rossi's The Complete Footwear Dictionary, Second Edition (2000), “welt” is defined, in pertinent part, as: "A strip of leather or synthetic material between the edge or crevice of the upper and sole, lying flat on the sole edge, to which both the upper and sole are attached...."

The protestant asserts that it ordered and purchased the leather shoes at issue from the manufacturer and that the manufacturer made them of welt construction. The manufacturer, in turn, maintains that its welting process is universally recognized, and that the shoes produced by the process are classified as welted shoes all over the world.

While we recognize that some type of welt process was employed to construct the footwear at issue, the shoes do not constitute "welt footwear" as that term's meaning is set forth above for purposes of classification in the United States. Additional U.S. Note 1(a) to chapter 64 requires that a shoe classified under the HTSUSA as "welt footwear," must be constructed with a "welt," i.e., a separate strip of leather or synthetic material which extends around and on top of the edge of the tread portion of the sole, to which both the upper and sole are attached. Both the welt and shoe upper must be sewed to a lip protruding from the bottom surface of the insole, and the outsole must be attached by sewing or cementing to the welt. In this case, the shoe does not have a separate strip of material and the outsole is stitched to the vamp (the lower forward part of the upper). Although other countries may very well consider the subject shoes to be welted, they cannot be classified under the HTSUSA as "welt footwear." The men's leather footwear is classified in subheading 6403.59.6060, HTSUSA, the classification assessed on the protested entry.

HOLDING:

The men's leather footwear at issue is classified in subheading 6403.59.6060, HTSUSA, the provision for “Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of leather: Other footwear with outer soles of leather: Other: Other: For men, youths and boys, For men: Other." The general column one duty rate is 8.5 percent ad valorem.

The protest should be DENIED. In accordance with Section 3A(11)(b) of Customs Directive 099 3550-065, dated August 4, 1993, Subject: Revised Protest Directive, you are to mail this decision, together with the Customs Form 19, to the protestant no later than 60 days from the date of this letter. Any reliquidation of the entry or entries in accordance with the decision must be accomplished prior to mailing of the decision.

No later than 60 days from the date of this letter, the Office of Regulations and Rulings will make the decision available to Customs personnel, and to the public on the Customs Home Page on the World Wide Web at www.customs.gov, by means of the Freedom of Information Act, and by other methods of public distribution.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division

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