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NY L80286




November 5, 2004

CLA-2-73:RR:NC:N1:113 L80286

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 7326.20.0070

Ms. Edith Tolchin
EGT Global Trading
P.O. Box 231
Florida, NY 10921

RE: The tariff classification of a bottle holder from Taiwan or China.

Dear Ms. Tolchin:

In your letter dated October 19, 2004, on behalf of Collins Creations, you requested a ruling on tariff classification.

The merchandise is a cup or water bottle holder for a lawn mower. The holder is made of zinc-plated steel wire. It is designed to clip onto the handle of a lawnmower. It has a strip of steel and a bolt and wing nut forming a clamp to hold it in place.

The applicable subheading for this product will be 7326.20.0070, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for articles of iron or steel wire, other. The general rate of duty will be 3.9 percent ad valorem.

You also request advice on country-of-origin marking under two different scenarios. In scenario A, the product will be entirely manufactured in one country. In Scenario B, the product will be manufactured in one country with “raw materials” from a different country.

In scenario A, the country of origin will be the country of manufacture. In scenario B, the following facts must be taken into consideration.

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 United States 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 United States the English name of the country of origin of the article. Congressional intent in enacting section 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 are the product. The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that at the time of purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy them, if such marking should influence his will." United States v. Friedlaender & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297, 302, C.A.D. 104 (1940).

Part 134, Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") Regulations (19 C.F.R. § 134), implements the country of origin marking requirements and the exceptions of 19 U.S.C. § 1304. Section 134.1(b), CBP Regulations (19 C.F.R. § 134.1(b)), defines "country of origin" as the country of manufacture, production or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the "country of origin" within the meaning of Part 134. A substantial transformation occurs when an article emerges from a manufacturing process with a name, character, and use that differs from the original material subjected to the processing. See United States v. Gibson-Thomsen Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 267 (C.A.D. 98) (1940).

In determining whether the combining of parts or materials constitutes a substantial transformation, the issue is the extent of operations performed and whether the parts lose their identity and become an integral part of the new article. Belcrest Linens v. United States, 6 CIT 204, 573 F. Supp. 1149 (1983), aff’d, 2 Fed. Cir. 105, 741 F.2d 1368 (1984). Assembly operations that are minimal or simple, as opposed to complex or meaningful, will generally not result in a substantial transformation. See, C.S.D.s 80-111, 85-25, 89-110, 89-118, 89-129, 90-51 and 90-97.

For purposes of this ruling, we assume that the “raw materials” referred to in your letter are the coils of wire out of which the holder is made. The coils will be cut to length, bent to shape, and assembled with the clamp. The cutting, shaping and assembling of the wire will result in a substantial transformation of the wire, creating a new and different article having a distinctive name, character or use.

Consistent with CBP’s previous rulings, we find that the country of origin of the wire to be the country where the final processing takes place.

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

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 James Smyth at 646-733-3018.

Sincerely,

Robert B. Swierupski
Director,

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