CLA-2 CO:R:C:T 089137 HP
Mr. Steven W. Baker
Bellsey and Baker
100 California Street
Suite 670
San Francisco, CA 94111
RE: HRL 088149 affirmed. Sleep sack is bed linen, not
camping goods or other made up article. Unfinished; Cocoon
Dear Mr. Baker:
This is in reply to your letter of April 8, 1991,
concerning the tariff classification of a sleep sack, produced
in China, under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States Annotated (HTSUSA). Please reference your client
Design Salt USA.
FACTS:
The merchandise at issue was described in HRL 088149 of
December 27, 1991, as follows:
The merchandise at issue is a 100
percent woven cotton sleeping sack, to be
imported from China. It measures 33 x 86
inches and is sewn together on three
sides. One end of the sack has an 11 1/2
inch pocket which is formed by a folded
length of material sewn on its sides,
which can be used to accommodate the
insertion of a pillow. The portion of the
top sheet near the pillow insert is not
sewn down, forming a flap which allows a
person to easily slip into and out of the
sleep sack.
The literature accompanying your
request states that this item is called a
COCOON TRAVELSHEET. It is advertised as a
"washable sleeping environment" to be used
in hotels, hostels, hammocks, and homes.
In your letter you indicate that the
sleeping sack is intended to serve as a
sleeping bag for travellers in warm
countries. "COCOON" is available in three
printed fabric styles.
In HRL 088149, we classified the sleep sack under
subheading 6302.21.2090, HTSUSA, as other bed linen. You
disagree, and argue that the sack should be considered either
a camping good or, in the alternative, an other made up
article.
ISSUE:
Whether the sleeping sack is a camping good under the
HTSUSA?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Heading 6306, HTSUSA, provides for, inter alia, camping
goods. The Explanatory Notes (EN) to the HTSUSA constitute
the official interpretation of the tariff at the international
level. While not legally binding, they do represent the
considered views of classification experts of the Harmonized
System Committee. It has therefore been the practice of the
Customs Service to follow, whenever possible, the terms of the
Explanatory Notes when interpreting the HTSUSA. The EN to
this heading states:
This heading covers a range of
textile articles usually made from strong,
close-woven canvas.
* * *
(5) Camping goods. This group includes
canvas buckets, water bags, wash
basins; ground-sheets; pneumatic
mattresses, pillows and cushions
(other than those of heading 40.16);
hammocks (other than those of heading
58.06).
The heading also excludes:
* * *
(b) Padded sleeping bags and stuffed
mattresses, pillows and cushions
(heading 94.04).
In HRL 088149, we underwent the analysis of whether
heading 6306 was applicable. Therein, we stated:
Although the design of COCOON is
similar to that of sleeping bags typically
used for camping, classification within
heading 6306, as camping goods, is
incorrect. Sleeping bags are specifically
excluded from the notes of this heading.
Moreover, the goods of that heading
encompass items that are made of very
strong and sturdy materials suitable for
use out of doors. Examples provided by the
Explanatory Notes include canvas buckets,
wash basins, ground-sheets (which are
usually waterproof to prevent ground
moisture from seeping through to sleeping
bags), and pneumatic mattresses and
hammocks.
You state that the above rationale was inaccurate, since (1)
only padded sleeping bags are specifically excluded; and (2)
the "strong and sturdy materials" language is not a necessary
requirement. You cite as examples mosquito netting and light
weight tents. We agree in part.
You are correct in claiming that only padded sleeping
bags are specifically excluded from the camping goods heading
into the internally stuffed goods heading. We also agree that
the "strong and sturdy materials" language is not a litmus
test for prima facie classification of any merchandise in
heading 6306, HTSUSA; however, "strong and sturdy materials"
ARE required for construction of sleeping bags (padded or
without padding) and articles intended for use similar
thereto. While mosquito netting dangles and needs to be
flimsy, and tents normally are not jostled once pitched,
articles like the sleep sack, with the potential to be placed
on the ground and slept in, must be fabricated so as to not
absorb moisture and not easily tear on various terrain
objects. We therefore support the analysis of HRL 088149 with
respect to camping goods.
You have argued in the alternative that the sleep sack is
more appropriately classified as an other made up article of
heading 6307, HTSUSA, than in heading 6302. The latter
heading provides for, inter alia, bed linen. The EN to
heading 6302 states:
These articles are usually made of
cotton or flax, but sometimes also of
hemp, ramie or man-made fibres, etc.; they
are normally of a kind suitable for
laundering. They include:
(1) Bed linen, e.g., sheets, pillow
cases, bolster cases, eiderdown cases
and mattress covers.
We held in HRL 088149 that
The travel sheet considered herein is bed
linen because it is exclusively used for
sleeping, as indicated by the photographs
and text of your descriptive literature.
In addition, its lightweight cotton fabric
and its suitability for laundering is
characteristic of sheets, to which they
are most closely related. However, the
added features of the item's construction
(pillow pocket, sewn together edges) makes
classification in the "other" subcategory
appropriate.
In HRL 084053 of August 31, 1989, we classified sleeping bag
shells which, after importation, are inverted, stuffed, sewn
closed, and zipped, as other made up articles under heading
6307, HTSUSA. You claim that the sleep sacks are more closely
related to these unfinished sleeping bag shells than to flat
sheets or other bedding. This reliance, however, is based
upon a misreading of HRL 084053.
We noted within HRL 084053 that
the language of a heading may limit or
otherwise define the scope of the
provision. Where the heading specifies
the type of merchandise, the product must,
at the time of importation, meet those
specifications even if otherwise
incomplete. A sleeping bag shell without
being stuffed or fitted with springs, even
if it has the essential character of a
sleeping bag, cannot be classified in a
heading for articles of bedding fitted
with springs or stuffed. GRI 2 cannot be
introduced to modify what is required in
the heading.
For that reason, the sleeping bag shell was not classifiable
in heading 9404, HTSUSA. Note, however, that the article was
still considered an unfinished sleeping bag. In HRL 084418 of
August 8, 1989, we classified a throw pillow cover, which
would be filled and stitched closed after importation, as an
other made up article under heading 6307, HTSUSA. We stated
that:
unstuffed pillow covers cannot be
classified as an unfinished "other
furnishing article," [under heading 6302,]
because, if it were finished (filled), it
would not be classifiable under heading
6304 as an "other furnishing article."
Although it was not stated therein, we applied this same
rational in excluding the unfinished sleeping bag shells of
HRL 084053 from heading 6302, HTSUSA. Your claim is therefore
unsupported, and the holding of HRL 088149 is affirmed.
HOLDING:
As a result of the foregoing, the instant merchandise is
classified under subheading 6302.21.2090, HTSUSA, textile
category 362, as bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and
kitchen linen, other bed linen, printed, of cotton, other,
other, other. The applicable rate of duty is 7.6 percent ad
valorem.
The designated textile and apparel category may be
subdivided into parts. If so, visa and quota requirements
applicable to the subject merchandise may be affected. Since
part categories are the result of international bilateral
agreements which are subject to frequent negotiations and
changes, to obtain the most current information available, we
suggest that you check, close to the time of shipment, the
Status Report On Current Import Quotas (Restraint Levels), an
issuance of the U.S. Customs Service, which is updated weekly
and is available at your local Customs office.
Due to the changeable nature of the statistical
annotation (the ninth and tenth digits of the classification)
and the restraint (quota/visa) categories, you should contact
your local Customs office prior to importing the merchandise
to determine the current status of any import restraints or
requirements.
Pursuant to section 177.9(d), CUSTOMS REGULATIONS (19
C.F.R. 177.9(d)), HRL 088149 of December 27, 1990, is
affirmed.
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the
entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is
imported. If the documents have been filed without a copy,
this ruling should be brought to the attention of the Customs
officer handling the transaction.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division