CLA-2 OT:RR:CTF:TCM H072237 HkP
[Redacted]
RE: Classification of the Potato Snack Pilot Line
Dear Sir:
This is in response to your request for a binding ruling on behalf of [redacted], on the tariff classification of the Potato Snack Pilot Line under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Your request was forwarded by the National Commodity Specialist Division, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), to this office for a response.
FACTS:
According to the submitted information, the Potato Snack Pilot Line is a production line for dried potato based snack products. The line is comprised of the following nine machines - a cooler, a microwave, a mixer, an expansion chamber, a press, an oven, a dryer, a conveyer, and an extruder. The conveyor as well as various cables connects all the machines in the production line. Raw sliced potatoes are fed into the machine at the beginning of the line and then undergo a series of cooking processes described in your submission to CBP, which are carried out by the collective operation of the entire line.
You have also stated that the line will be assembled by the process owner outside of the United States and priced as a single item on its commercial invoice. It will then be disassembled for ease of transport to the United States, where it will be imported as one entry.
ISSUE:
What is the classification of the Potato Snack Pilot Line under the HTSUS?
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, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order.
GRI 2 provides, in pertinent part:
Any reference in a heading to an article shall be taken to include a reference to than article incomplete or unfinished, provided that, as entered, the incomplete or unfinished article has the essential character of the complete or finished article. It shall also include a reference to that article complete or finished (or falling to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of this rule), entered unassembled or disassembled.
The 2009 HTSUS provision under consideration is as follows:
8438 Machinery, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter, for the industrial preparation or manufacture of food or drink, other than machinery for the extraction or preparation of animal or fixed vegetable fats or oils: parts thereof:
8438.60.00 Machinery for the preparation of fruits, nuts or vegetables ….
Legal Note 4 to Section XVI, HTSUS, in which Chapter 84 is located, provides:
Where a machine (including a combination of machines) consists of individual components (whether separate or interconnected by piping, by transmission devices, by electric cables or by other devices) intended to contribute together to a clearly defined function covered by one of the headings in Chapter 84 or Chapter 85, the whole falls to be classified in the heading appropriate to that function.
You argue that the correct classification of the line is under heading 8438 (8438.60.00), HTSUS, by application of GRI 3(b). You state that the essential character of the machine as a whole is to process potatoes, which are a vegetable. In addition you note that classification would not be affected by the fact that the merchandise is imported unassembled because under the provisions of GRI 2(a), unassembled products may be classified as if they were imported assembled.
Before GRI 3(b) can be considered, we must first determine whether these machines, which if imported separately would be classified in different headings, can be classified at GRI 1, that is, according to the terms of the heading and any relative Legal Notes. Applying the provisions of Note 4 to Section XVI, HTSUS, we find that the machines at issue are a functional unit because they will be interconnected and all contribute to the manufacturing process that results in the final potato product. Furthermore, the function of this unit is described by heading 8438, HTSUS, that is, as machinery for the industrial preparation or manufacture of food, and is not described by any other heading of chapter 84, HTSUS. Consequently, it meets all the terms of heading 8438, HTSUS, and must be classified there at GRI 1. The line is further described in subheading 8438.60.00, HTSUS, as machinery for preparation of vegetables because a potato is a vegetable. Finally, under the provisions of GRI 2(a), complete machines of heading 8438, HTSUS, may be imported in an unassembled or disassembled condition, as will be the case in this instance.
Because classification was determined at GRI 1, that is, according to the terms of the heading and relative section notes, there is no need to consider classification under GRI 3.
HOLDING:
By application of GRI 1(Note 4 to Section XVI) and GRI 2(a), the Potato Snack Pilot Line is classified under heading 8438, HTSUS. It is specifically provided for in subheading 8438.60.00, HTSUS, as: “Machinery, not specified or included elsewhere in … chapter [84], for the industrial preparation or manufacture of food or drink, other than machinery for the extraction or preparation of animal or fixed vegetable fats or oils …: Machinery for the preparation of fruits, nuts or vegetables.” The 2009 column one, general rate of duty is Free.
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 the World Wide Web at www.usitc.gov.
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to entry documents filed at the time the goods are entered. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the CBP officer handling the transaction.
Sincerely,
Gail A. Hamill, Chief
Tariff Classification and Marking Branch