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NY K87337




July 6, 2004
CLA-2-94:RR:NC:SP:233 K87337

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 9401.30.8030

Mr. Rick Mosley
Kuehne & Nagel, Inc.
101 Wrangler Drive, Suite 201
Coppell, TX 75019

RE: The tariff classification of an office chair and mat from China.

Dear Mr. Mosley:

In your letter dated June 25, 2004, on behalf of Office Depot, Inc., you requested a tariff classification ruling.

The item under consideration is an office swivel chair with a manual gas lift and swivel/tilt mechanism that rocks the seat and back together with a tension adjustment feature. It has a wooden seat and back with sponge cushioning cover with genuine leather upholstery, attached to a steel base. The chair has five nylon casters, a steel screw lift, seat plate and back tube. Included in the retail box is a rigid polypropylene folded chair mat with the approximate dimensions of 36 X 48 inches designed to be placed on the floor. The mat is designed for use on medium and low loop carpets, and when placed on the floor, protects the carpet from the rigors of the motion of the chair while in use. The chair and mat are packaged together for retail sale. You have submitted several images of the retail box for our review.

The Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized Tariff System provide guidance in the interpretation of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System at the international level. Explanatory Note X to GRI 3(b) provides that the term “goods put up in sets for retail sale” means goods that: (a) consist of at least two 2 different articles which are, prima facie, classifiable in different headings; (b) consist of articles put up together to meet a particular need or carry out a specific activity; and (c) are put up in a manner suitable for sale directly to users without repacking. Goods classifiable under GRI 3(b) are classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, which may be determined by the nature of the material or component, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the article. The office chair and mat are a set for tariff classification purposes, with the essential character imparted by the chair.

The applicable subheading for the office chair and mat will be 9401.30.8030, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for “Seats, whether or not convertible into beds, and parts thereof: Swivel seat with variable height adjustment: Other, Other.” The rate of duty will be free.

This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 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 Lawrence Mushinske at 646-733-3036.

Sincerely,

Robert B. Swierupski
Director,

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