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NY N006776




February 28, 2007

CLA-2-63:RR:NC:TA:349

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 6302.31.5010; 6302.31.5020

Ms. Margaret R. Polito
Neville Peterson LLP
17 State Street, 19th Floor
New York, NY 10004

RE: The tariff classification and status under the United States-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement (UBFTA), of pillowcases and sheets from Bahrain.

Dear Ms. Polito:

In your letter dated February 8, 2007 you requested a ruling on the status of sheets and pillowcases from Bahrain under the UBFTA. This request is made on behalf of WestPoint Home Inc.

You submitted samples of two pillowcases and one flat sheet. The pillowcases are made from a 100 percent cotton woven fabric that is not printed and not napped. The open end of the pillowcase referred to as Style 62252 is finished with a 4.5-inch wide strip of embroidered self-fabric. The other pillowcase, Style 61862, has a 4-inch wide banded or cuffed hem made from self-fabric. This hem features an embroidered design. The flat sheet is made from a 60 percent cotton and 40 percent man-made fiber fabric that is not printed and not napped. It is hemmed on two sides and selvage on the bottom. The top edge is finished with a 4.25-inch wide strip of embroidered self-fabric.

The manufacturing operations for the sheet and pillowcases are as follows:

Bahrain:
-cotton fibers are spun into a yarn.
-cotton and man-made fibers are spun into a yarn. -yarns are woven into a cotton fabric and a 60/40 cotton/mmf fabric. -fabrics are bleached and dyed.
-some rolls of fabric are shipped to Pakistan.

Pakistan:
-fabric is embroidered with Pakistani yarns. -embroidered fabric is cut to widths of less than 30 centimeters. -spools containing 100-yard lengths of these strips are returned to Bahrain.

Bahrain:
-cotton and cotton blend fabrics are cut to size for pillowcases and sheets. -embroidered fabric strips are cut to length. -fabrics are sewn/hemmed to create the sheet and pillowcases. -sheet and pillowcases are packaged and shipped directly to the U.S.

You have indicated that the Pakistani yarns used to embroider the fabric strips weighs less than 7 percent of the total weight of the sheet and pillowcases.

The applicable tariff provision for the pillowcases will be 6302.31.5010, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen: other bed linen: of cotton: containing any embroidery, lace, braid, edging, trimming, piping or appliqué work: not napped pillowcases, other than bolster cases. The general rate of duty will be 20.9 percent ad valorem.

The applicable tariff provision for the flat sheet will be 6302.31.5020, HTSUS, which provides for bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen: other bed linen: of cotton: containing any embroidery, lace, braid, edging, trimming, piping or appliqué work: not napped sheets. The general rate of duty will be 20.9 percent ad valorem.

The pillowcases fall within textile category 360 and the flat sheet falls within textile category 361. With the exception of certain products of China, quota/visa requirements are no longer applicable for merchandise which is the product of World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries. The textile category number above applies to merchandise produced in non-WTO member-countries. Quota and visa requirements are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information on quota and visa requirements applicable to this merchandise, we suggest you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” which is available on our web site at www.cbp.gov. For current information regarding possible textile safeguard actions on goods from China and related issues, we refer you to the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel of the Department of Commerce at otexa.ita.doc.gov.

General Note 30(b), HTSUS, sets forth the criteria for determining whether a good is originating under the UBFTA. General Note 30(b), HTSUS, (19 U.S.C. § 1202) states, in pertinent part, that

For the purposes of this note, subject to the provisions of subdivisions (c), (d), (e), (g) and (h) thereof, a good imported into the customs territory of the United States is eligible for treatment as an originating good of a UBFTA country under the terms of this note only if –

(i) the good is a good wholly the growth, product or manufacture of Bahrain or of the United States, or both;

(ii) for goods not covered by subdivision (b)(iii) below, the good is a new or different article of commerce that has been grown, produced or manufactured in the territory of Bahrain or of the United States, or both, and the sum of--

(A) the value of each material produced in the territory of Bahrain or of the United States, or both, and

(B) the direct costs of processing operations performed in the territory of Bahrain or of the United States, or both,
is not less than 35 percent of the appraised value of the good at the time the good is entered into the territory of the United States; or

(iii) the good falls in a heading or subheading covered by a provision set forth in subdivision (h) of this note and--

(A) each of the nonoriginating materials used in the production of the good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification specified in such subdivision (h) as a result of production occurring entirely in the territory of Bahrain or of the United States, or both; or

(B) the good otherwise satisfies the requirements specified in such subdivision (h); and
and is imported directly into the territory of the United States from the territory of Bahrain and meets all other applicable requirements of this note. For the purposes of this note, the term “good” means any merchandise, product, article or material.

The sheets and pillowcases at issue will be eligible for the UBFTA preferential treatment if they are transformed in Bahrain so that the non-originating material undergoes a change in tariff classification described in subdivision (h) to General Note 30, HTSUS. For heading 6302, HTSUS, subdivision (h), Chapter 63, rule 1, states that:

A change to headings 6301 through 6302 from any other chapter, except from headings 5106 through 5113, 5204 through 5212, 5307 through 5308 or 5310 through 5311, chapter 54 or headings 5508 through 5516, 5801 through 5802 or 6001 through 6006, provided that the good is cut or knit to shape, or both, and sewn or otherwise assembled in the territory of Bahrain or of the United States, or both.

Additionally, General Note 30(e), HTSUS, sets out specific rules for textile and apparel articles. General Note 30(e)(i) states in pertinent part that:

Except as provided in subdivision (ii) below, a textile or apparel good that is not an originating good under the terms of this note, because certain fibers or yarns used in the production of the component of the good that determines the tariff classification of the good do not undergo an applicable change in tariff classification set out in subdivision (h) of this note, shall be considered to be an originating good if the total weight of all such fibers or yarns in that component is no more than seven percent of the total weight of that component.

Based on the facts provided, the goods described above qualify for UBFTA preferential treatment, because they will meet the requirements of HTSUS General Note 30(b)(iii). The goods will therefore be entitled to a Free rate of duty under the UBFTA upon compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and agreements.

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/.

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 John Hansen at 646-733-3043.

Sincerely,

Robert B. Swierupski
Director,

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