CLA-2 RR:CR:TE 962455 RH
Mr. Scott Silver
CHESAPEAKE Sales & Marketing
18 Cushing Avenue
Annapolis, MD 21403
RE: Request for Reconsideration of HQ 077195, dated February 12, 1986;
Hand Towels; Kitchen Towels; Heading 6302
Dear Mr. Silver:
This is in reply to your letter of December 9, 1998, requesting reconsideration of Headquarters Ruling Letter 077195, dated February 12, 1986, concerning the classification and quota category of kitchen towels. We note that this ruling was not issued to your company and was issued under the Tariff Schedules of the United States (TSUS), the predecessor to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Thus, the classification set forth in that ruling will not be modified or revoked as it is not based on the current law. We will treat your letter as a request for a ruling under 19 CFR §177.2.
Members of my staff met with you on June 7, 1999, to discuss the issues in this case.
FACTS:
Your company imports 100 percent cotton velour kitchen towels which are sold to kitchen textile manufacturers who silk screen imprint them to coordinate with U.S. made potholders, oven mitts and aprons. These coordinate sets are then sold to retailers across the country. The towels are 16 inches by 25 inches and range in weight from 2.0 - 3.5 pounds per dozen. The towels are of sheared velour front construction, with full loop terry on the back. All of the towels you import are white or ecru.
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You state that your company has been importing the towels under subheading 6302.60.0010 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA), as dish towels (textile category 369). However, Customs recently detained one of your shipments and advised you that the towels should have been entered under subheading 6302.60.0020, HTSUSA, which provides for “Other” towels and requires a category 363 visa.
ISSUE:
What is the classification of the subject towels?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification of goods under the HTSUSA is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes. Heading 6302, HTSUSA, provides for bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen. Within heading 6302, the provision for dish towels is a U.S. statistical breakout. The Guidelines for the Reporting of Imported Products in Various Textile and Apparel Categories, 53 FR 52563, (Textile Guidelines) were developed to facilitate classification at the statistical level, as well as to assist in determining the appropriate textile quota category. The Textile Guidelines, 52564, provide in pertinent part that:
Dish towels (category 369) and hand towels (category 363) fall within the same size range, 15 to 18 inches wide and 24 to 32 inches long, and are sometimes difficult to distinguish from each other. With one exception, dish towels always have a design printed on them or woven or knit into them. The design may be in the form of pictures of fruit, kitchen utensils, chickens, etc., or may be checks, stripes, or similar patterns. The dish towels that usually do not have a design are light weight, plain woven, nonpile cotton towels that may be similar to, but readily distinguishable from, shop towels which are made from a much coarser fabric. These towels may be longer than the other dish towels.
In the ruling cited in your letter, HQ 077195, Customs held that a plain white terry towel belonged to the class or kind of merchandise used as hand towels, even though the label read “dish towel.” That ruling reads in pertinent part:
However, if the towel is imported with the words “Kitchen Towel” printed across it . . . or with other printing similar to the second sample, then the chief use of the class or kind of merchandise to which those towels belong would be as dish towels, and they would be classifiable in item 366.2420, TSUSA, with a textile category designation of 369.
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Arguing that your customers will not accept towels with an imprint such as that described in HQ 077195 because it “ruins” the towel, you suggest an alternative for complying with the “369 labeling requirement.” First, you recommend imprinting the words “kitchen towel” on the country of origin marking label which will be sewn into two seams of the towel. Moreover, during the meeting you proposed sewing a hang-loop (which is characteristic of kitchen towels) printed with the words “Kitchen Towel’ into the corner of each towel. The hang-loop will be in addition to the printing on the country of origin label.
Custom’s primary concern is that the imported towels are difficult, if not impossible, to distinguish from hand towels. We disagree with your comment during the meeting that all hand towels have a dobby border which easily distinguishes them from kitchen towels, although we recognize that many hand towels have such a border. However, we are persuaded that the towels you import will be sold exclusively to kitchen textile manufacturers and will be sold and marketed as kitchen towels. In this case, the towels are advertised as kitchen towels and are sold together with articles such as aprons, potholders and other towels with traditional kitchen designs. Although merchandising is not always a proper means for determining classification, the manner in which the towels are advertised and sold nevertheless has probative value. HQ 087918, dated December 10, 1990, citing Davis Products, Inc. v. U.S., 59 Cust.Ct. 226, 230, C.D. 3127 (1967).
We are satisfied that, in lieu of printing the words “Kitchen Towel” onto the towel itself, Customs will be able to distinguish the towels at issue from hand towels provided they possess both a hang-loop sewn into two seams of the towel with the words “Kitchen Towel” printed on it, as well as printing “Kitchen Towel” onto the country of origin marking label.
HOLDING:
The towels in question are classifiable under subheading 6302.60.0010, HTSUSA, as dish towels, provided they satisfy the requirements listed above. They are dutiable at the general column one rate of duty at 9.7 percent ad valorem and the textile category is 369.
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 renegotiations 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 internal issuance of the U.S. Customs Service, which is available for inspection at your local Customs office.
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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 importation of this merchandise to determine the current status of any import restraints or requirements.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division