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NY N005320




January 24, 2007

CLA-2-71:RR:E:NC:2:233

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 7116.20.0500; 7116.20.1500

Ms. Kathryn Kelly
SEA Trading Co.
12623 Huntingwick Dr.
Houston, TX 77024

RE: The tariff classification of beaded jewelry from Thailand.

Dear Ms. Kelly:

In your letter dated January 10, 2007, you requested a tariff classification ruling.

The merchandise under consideration is variously designed beaded jewelry consisting of necklaces, earrings and bracelets, primarily made of semiprecious stones. Some designs will include freshwater cultured pearls and some will also include beads of sterling silver. All of the beads, stones and silver will be purchased in Thailand. The jewelry will be manufactured by means of stringing the beads into various pieces in their final form in Thailand. You indicate that the semiprecious stones and cultured pearls will be from various countries but that it is often difficult to determine the countries of origin as they are purchased in the Thai market. The value of most pieces would be less than $40. The jewelry pieces will not be marked, but will be tagged with the country of origin. A marked sample was not submitted with your letter for review.

The applicable subheading for the beaded jewelry, if valued not over $40 per piece, will be 7116.20.0500, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Articles of precious or semiprecious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed): Articles of jewelry: Valued not over $40 per piece.” The rate of duty will be 3.3% ad valorem.

The applicable subheading for the beaded jewelry, if valued over $40 per piece, will be 7116.20.1500, HTSUS, which provides for “Articles of precious or semiprecious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed): Articles of jewelry: Other.” The rate of duty will be 6.5% ad valorem.

Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.

You have also requested a country of origin and country of origin marking ruling, and are inquiring as to the application of any trade program or agreement.

Articles classifiable under subheadings 7116.20.0500 and 7116.20.1500, HTSUS, which are products of Thailand, are currently entitled to duty free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) upon compliance with all applicable regulations. The GSP, however, is subject to modification and periodic suspension, which may affect the status of your transaction at the time of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse. To obtain current information on GSP, check our Web site at www.cbp.gov and search for the term "GSP".

The country of origin of an article is the country in which a substantial transformation takes place. A substantial transformation takes place when the processing of a material or article results in a new and different article having a distinct name, character, or use. Beads made of semiprecious stones, freshwater cultured pearls and sterling silver, produced in various countries, is substantially transformed when manufactured into jewelry in Thailand. Therefore, beaded jewelry produced in Thailand from beads originating in various countries is a product of Thailand, the country in which the processing takes place.

The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. 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 U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article.

As provided in section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(b)), the country of origin marking is considered conspicuous if the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. is able to find the marking easily and read it without strain.

With regard to the permanency of a marking, section 134.41(a), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(a)), provides that as a general rule marking requirements are best met by marking worked into the article at the time of manufacture. For example, it is suggested that the country of origin on metal articles be die sunk, molded in, or etched. However, section 134.44, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.44), generally provides that any marking that is sufficiently permanent so that it will remain on the article until it reaches the ultimate purchaser unless deliberately removed is acceptable.

The proposed marking of imported beaded jewelry, by affixing hangtags, is an acceptable method of marking the country of origin provided that the tags are affixed in a conspicuous place and so securely that, unless deliberately removed, they will remain on the articles until they reach the ultimate purchaser (19 CFR 134.44).

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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