CLA-2 OT:RR:CTF:TCM HQ H069895 TNA
Port Director
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
726 Exchange Street Suite 400 Buffalo, NY 14210
RE: Internal Advice Request 09/027; classification of closet mirror doors
Dear Port Director:
This is in response to your Request for Internal Advice 09/027, dated July 14, 2009, initiated by Ladner & Associates on behalf of its client, King Star Products, Inc. (“King Star”), concerning the proper classification of closet mirror doors under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). The request has been forwarded to our office for reply.
FACTS:
The subject merchandise consists of a line of steel-framed bi-fold and sliding mirror doors that are used as doors for the types of closets that are built into a wall. They are available in either top-roll or bottom-roll models. All models consist of a steel frame to which a glass mirror is mounted. Each model of door is available in one or more of a variety of colors/finishes for the metal frame, such as satin gold, bright gold, bright white, arctic silver, architectural brown, mat black, vanilla, nickel, and laminated oak. The glass mirror may be clear, bronzed or smoked. They are imported and sold as complete units, including all of the hardware required for installation. Included as part of the door unit are steel rails, tracks and stiles, along with screws, brackets, handles, rollers guides, hinge assemblies, pivot assemblies, connectors, and installation instructions.
The percentage value of the components varies by model. In some models, the value of the mirror is approximately 13%, while the value of the steel frame is approximately 73%. In other models, the value of the mirror is approximately 29%, and the value of the steel is approximately 52%. The components’ weights as a percentage of the total also vary by model. In some models, the mirror’s weight is approximately 66% percent of the item’s weight, and in some models, the mirror weighs approximately 73%. In some models, the frame’s weight is 19%, and in other models, it is 30%.
ISSUE:
Whether sliding doors whose front is encased in glass mirrors should be classified under heading 7009, HTSUS, as glass mirrors; under heading 7013, HTSUS, as glassware of a kind used for indoor decoration or similar purposes, or under heading 7308, HTSUS, as doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, not of stainless steel?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification under the HTSUS is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order.
GRI 3(b) states that:
When, by application of Rule 2(b) or for any other reason, goods are prima facie classifiable under two or more headings, classification shall be effected as follows:
…
Mixtures, composite goods consisting or different materials or made up of different components, and goods put up in sets for retail sale, which cannot be classified by reference to 3(a), shall be classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, insofar as this criterion is applicable.
The HTSUS provisions under consideration are as follows:
7009 Glass mirrors, whether or not framed, including rear-view mirrors
7013 Glassware of a kind used for table, kitchen, toilet, office, indoor decoration or similar purposes (other than that of heading 7010 or 7018)
7308 Structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) and parts of structures (for example, bridges and bridge sections, lock gates, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, shutters, balustrades, pillars and columns) of iron or steel; plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, of iron or steel:
7308.30 Doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors:
The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes (ENs) constitute the official interpretation of the Harmonized System. While not legally binding nor dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUS and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of these headings. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127 (Aug. 23, 1989).
The EN to heading 7009, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:
It should be noted, however, that mirrors converted into parts of articles of furniture of Chapter 94 (e.g., wardrobe doors) are classified with those articles of furniture.
The EN to heading 7013, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:
This heading covers decorative articles which are in the form of mirrors, but cannot be used as mirrors due to the presence of printed illustrations; otherwise they are classified in heading 70.09.
Articles of glass combined with other materials (base metal, wood, etc.), are classified in this heading only if the glass gives the whole the character of glass articles. Precious metal or metal clad with precious metal may be present, as minor trimmings only; articles in which such metals constitute more than mere trimmings are excluded (heading 71.14).
The heading also excludes :
(a) Glass mirrors, whether or not framed (heading 70.09).
The EN to heading 7308, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:
This heading covers complete or incomplete metal structures, as well as parts of structures. For the purpose of this heading, these structures are characterised by the fact that once they are put in position, they generally remain in that position. They are usually made up from bars, rods, tubes, angles, shapes, sections, sheets, plates, wide flats including so called universal plates, hoop, strip, forgings or castings, by riveting, bolting, welding, etc. Such structures sometimes incorporate products of other headings such as panels of woven wire or expanded metal of heading 73.14. Parts of structures include clamps and other devices specially designed for assembling metal structural elements of round cross section (tubular or other). These devices usually have protuberances with tapped holes in which screws are inserted, at the time of assembly, to fix the clamps to the tubing.
Explanatory Note IX to GRI 3(b) states that:
For the purposes of this Rule, composite goods made up of different components shall be taken to mean not only those in which the components are attached to each other to form a practically inseparable whole, but also those with separable components, provided these components are adapted one to the other and are mutually complementary, and that together they form a whole which would not normally be offered for sale in separate parts… As a general rule, the components of these composite goods are put up in a common packing.
EN VIII to GRI 3(b) provides:
The factor which determines essential character will vary as between different kinds of goods. It may, for example, be determined by the nature of the material or component, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the goods.
Requester argues that the subject merchandise is a composite good under GRI 3(b), and should be classified according to its metal frame, which imparts the essential character to the merchandise.
The subject merchandise is imported and sold as complete units. The merchandise is made up of a steel frame and glass mirrors that are, prima facie, classified under different headings that do not describe the complete good. Therefore, the subject merchandise constitutes a composite good of two different materials under GRI 3. Insofar as EN 70.13 directs classification of mirrors into heading 7009, HTSUS, if the subject merchandise’s essential character is imparted by the mirror, it would not be classified in heading 7013, HTSUS.
In relation to the guidance provided by EN VIII to GRI 3(b), several recent court decisions have emphasized the role of the constituent materials or components in relation to the use of the goods to determine essential character. See Structural Industries v. United States, 360 F. Supp. 2d 1330, 1337-1338 (CIT 2005); Conair Corp. v. United States, 29 C.I.T. 888 (2005); Home Depot USA, Inc. v. United States, 427 F. Supp. 2d 1278, 1295-1356 (CIT 2006), aff’d 491 F.3d 1334 (Fed. Cir. 2007).
CBP has also classified similar items in the past. In HQ 967930, for example, we classified sectional garage doors, made of aluminum frames and translucent polycarbonate sheet, according to their aluminum frames. There, CBP acknowledged that the polycarbonate panels covered the vast majority of the door’s surface area, but determined that the metal frame also contributed to the door’s appearance. In addition, CBP found that the aluminum frame comprised the overwhelming majority of the weight and the value of the merchandise. Lastly, CBP noted that it was the aluminum frame that allowed the merchandise to function as a door, because it was the frame provided the structure and form of the door, held the
panels together and allowed the product to open and close, thereby allowing it to function as a garage door. As a result, CBP found that the aluminum frame imparted the essential character to the good. Other CBP rulings dealing with similar doors have also classified the merchandise according to the materials of its frame rather than the material of its panels. See, e.g., NY 811828, dated July 12, 1995; NY 884506, dated April 26, 1993.
In the present case, the glass mirror makes up the predominant percentage of the item’s weight. The mirror also covers the vast majority of the door’s surface area. At the same time, the steel frame comprises the vast majority of the doors’ value. In addition, much like in HQ 967930, the steel frame is what allows the subject merchandise to function as a sliding door. It provides the door’s structure and form, holds the mirror in place, and allows the door to open and close, thereby allowing it to function as a door. As a result, CBP finds that the door’s steel frame gives the merchandise its essential character, and classifies the subject merchandise under heading 7308, HTSUS.
Even assuming, arguendo, that the metal and glass components of the composite good are equal in relation to the role of the good, heading 7308, HTSUS, occurs last in numerical order. We therefore would reach the same conclusion under GRI 3(c).
At GRI 6, subheading 7308.30, HTSUS, provides eo nomine for doors and doorframes made of iron or steel. As a result, CBP finds that the subject merchandise to be classified under heading 7308, HTSUS, and more specifically under subheading 7308.30.50, which provides for “structures and parts of structures… of iron or steel…: doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors: other: other.”
HOLDING:
By application of GRI 3(b), the sliding mirror doors are classified under heading 7308, HTSUS. They are specifically provided for under subheading 7308.30.50, HTSUS, which provides for, in relevant part: structures and parts of structures… of iron or steel…: doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors: other: other.” The general, column one duty rate is free.
You are to mail this decision to the internal advice requester no later than 60 days from the date of the decision. At that time, the Office of International Trade, Regulations and Rulings, will make the decision available to CBP personnel and to the public on the CBP Home Page on the World Wide Web at www.cbp.gov, by means of the Freedom of Information Act, and other methods of public distribution.
Sincerely,
Myles B. Harmon, Director
Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division